Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi, who took office in February, told journalists that Türkiye cannot afford to lose youth and children to criminal gangs.
“(The gangs) should surrender, and otherwise, we will continue cracking down on them,” Çiftçi said on Sunday at a meeting with journalists.
“I instructed the police and gendarmerie to continue operations. There will be more and more,” he said. Criminal gangs employing children have flourished in Türkiye in recent years. Gangs turn to disadvantaged youths and minors to carry out hits on rivals and extort businesses, especially in big cities, in a bid to avoid criminal liability, as minors are often handed down more lenient sentences compared to adult offenders.
Çiftçi said they also stepped up the fight against narcotics, citing a nationwide operation last week where 358 suspects were captured. “Drugs fuel other crimes, and counter-narcotics operations are multi-layered. Drugs lie at the foundation of many issues and crimes affecting society. It funds gangs and terrorism. Sadly, it targets our youth,” he said. “We are determined to drain it. Between Jan. 1 and March 22 alone, we seized more than 13 tons of drugs, and it shows our determination,” he said.
The night watch department of the Turkish police department closed in 1991 as law enforcement sought to modernize itself. In 2017, they were reintroduced, with modernized uniforms and more patrols, especially in big cities. Çiftçi said they were now working to reform the force once again. He said the new regulations they planned would allow night watchmen to work during the day as well if the local governorates needed extra manpower for security on certain occasions. “Based on the needs, they will be allowed to work as patrols in predetermined locations in cities,” the minister said.
Another issue Çiftçi commented on was the security of the Turkish-Iranian border as the U.S.-Israel-Iran war raged. The minister was at the Gürbulak border crossing last week to inspect the measures. In statements on Sunday, he assured that the borders had no extraordinary situation at the moment. “We have no problems on the border now, but we still took all necessary measures. We have no gaps in the security,” he highlighted.
On a question regarding investigations into municipalities whose mayors and bureaucrats are involved in corruption, Çiftçi denied any political bias. The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) repeatedly claimed that the charges against its mayors were politically motivated.
Providing official figures regarding the cases, Çiftçi said 3,224 investigations were carried out by his ministry’s inspectors since the March 2024 election. “The ministry granted permission for investigation in 1,298 cases, and 591 among them are municipalities run by the AK Party,” he said, referring to the ruling Justice and Development Party. Çiftçi said 321 CHP municipalities were also investigated and that 102 other municipalities investigated by inspectors were run by the government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
