"We feel forgotten": Residents demand answers as street crime surges in Istanbul's historic quarters

Residents across Istanbul's historic districts are losing patience with what they describe as a visible spike in street crime, with locals and business owners in Sultanahmet and Fatih increasingly vocal about their safety concerns during the summer tourist season.

"Every week there's another incident," said a shopkeeper operating near the Blue Mosque in Sultanahmet, one of the city's most visited landmarks. "Tourists are being pickpocketed, bag snatches happen in broad daylight, and when you report it, nothing changes." The merchant, who requested anonymity due to concerns about retaliation, estimated losing customers to rival districts because travellers feel unsafe lingering in the area after dark.

Local community representatives have begun documenting incidents independently. A neighbourhood watch group operating across Fatih reported over 120 reported thefts and harassment cases in the past three months alone—a 40 percent increase compared to the same period last year. The group now conducts evening patrols along Vatan Caddesi and around the Süleymaniye Mosque complex, filling what they argue is a visible gap in official emergency services presence.

"The police are stretched thin, we understand that," explained a community coordinator working with the Sultanahmet Residents Association. "But the response time to calls in our neighbourhood averages 35 to 40 minutes. For a city of Istanbul's stature, that's unacceptable." He noted that emergency services are often redirected to respond to incidents in more affluent areas on the European side, leaving tourist zones relatively unprotected during peak hours.

Emergency responders themselves acknowledge systemic pressures. Istanbul's municipal budget allocation for neighbourhood policing remains below 2019 levels despite population growth and increased tourism, according to publicly available municipal records. The Sultanahmet police station alone covers an area serving over 2 million daily visitors and 40,000 residents.

Some residents have begun taking alternative measures. Several businesses near the Grand Bazaar have jointly funded additional private security contractors, increasing costs by approximately 3,500 Turkish Lira monthly per storefront. "It shouldn't be this way," said one bazaar merchant. "Public safety is a government responsibility, not something we should have to privatise."

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality has promised a comprehensive review of emergency service deployment across historic neighbourhoods by August 2026, with officials stating that additional resources are being considered. However, community members remain sceptical, pointing to similar commitments made two years ago that never materialised into visible change.

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