Turkey has revoked the operational licence for Istanbul Bilgi University, effectively forcing it to close, according to a decision published in the Official Gazette on Friday, after the university was seized by the state in a criminal investigation last year.
Istanbul Bigli University © IBU
Turkey has revoked the operational licence for Istanbul Bilgi University, effectively forcing it to close, according to a decision published in the Official Gazette on Friday, after the university was seized by the state in a criminal investigation last year.
Istanbul Bilgi University was established in 1996 and bought by Can Holding in 2019.
Can Holding's companies were seized by the state as part of a money laundering, tax evasion and organised crime investigation last year.
A trustee was appointed to run the university following last year's seizure. It has some 22,000 students, with around 3,400 students registering in 2025.
Turkish media say students will continue their studies at the Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts, the Istanbul Bilgi University's guarantor school. A guarantor school is legally required for all foundation universities and must be a state university.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan signed off on the decision to revoke Istanbul Bilgi's licence.
Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Tuvan Gumrukcu
A Turkish court effectively ousted the main opposition leader Ozgur Ozel on Thursday in a ruling that annuls the party's 2023 congress at which he was elected chairman, marking a big blow to President Tayyip Erdogan's challengers and hitting financial markets.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told U.S. President Donald Trump in a call on Wednesday he welcomed the extension of a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, adding he believed contested issues between the sides could be resolved, according to the Turkish presidency.
A gunman killed six people and wounded eight others Monday in Turkey's southern Mersin province, in a shooting spree that began with the murder of his ex-wife before spiralling into a rampage through a roadside restaurant and surrounding area.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.