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Saturday, October 31, 2015

Greek and Turkish Cypriots unite in defence of halloumi - Telegraph

Greek and Turkish Cypriots unite in defence of halloumi

The divided island comes together to seek protected status for its cheese - but Britain stands up for its own producers

More:Greek and Turkish Cypriots unite in defence of halloumi - Telegraph

Turks Head To Polls With Concerns Over Poverty And Inequality

Turks Head To Polls With Concerns Over Poverty And Inequality

Turkish novelist and essayist Kaya Genc shares his thoughts on the socioeconomic challenges the country faces.

More:Turks Head To Polls With Concerns Over Poverty And Inequality

Friendship with Turkey has its price | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

Friendship with Turkey has its price

The refugee crisis made it possible: out of the blue, Turkey's reputation in the EU has received a boost. Support from Ankara, however, has a price, and not just a financial one. Daniel Heinrich reports from Istanbul.

More:Friendship with Turkey has its price | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

Turkish voters say: ′We want safety′ | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

Turkish voters say: 'We want safety'

Turkish voters have mixed feelings ahead of Sunday's polls.But most Turks are simply hoping the results will provide stability for the country, Seda Serdar reports from Ankara.

More:Turkish voters say: ′We want safety′ | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

Turkey’s Election Could Only Deepen Its Political Divide | TIME

World Turkey
Turkey’s Election Could Only Deepen Its Political Divide

Jared Malsin / Istanbul

2:43 PM ET

The second Turkish election in five months comes at a time of major political crisis, as President Erdogan exerts his authority

More:Turkey’s Election Could Only Deepen Its Political Divide | TIME

Turkey elections: Defeat would not be the end of President Erdogan | Voices | The Independent

Turkey elections: Defeat would not be the end of President Erdogan
The canny – and politically brutal – leader for the past 13 years faces a divided opposition

I asked a friend, long resident in Turkey, if he thought that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan might be more conciliatory towards his enemies and more moderate in his pursuit of power after the parliamentary election. The friend laughed at my naivety. “Do you imagine that Dracula ever thinks he has enough blood?” he asked derisively. “Do rich men ever feel that they have made enough money? Do you imagine that there will be cuddly Erdogan toys in the toy shops six months from now?”

More:Turkey elections: Defeat would not be the end of President Erdogan | Voices | The Independent

Residents of Turkish town say warning signs were ignored as Islamic State lured their sons - LA Times

Residents of Turkish town say warning signs were ignored as Islamic State lured their sons

In the deeply conservative backwater community that yielded Turkey's most lethal terrorist cell, relatives and officials lament what they call grievous security oversights that allowed Islamic extremism to fester, resulting in a string of bombings that have killed 140 people and shaken this nation of 80 million.

More:Residents of Turkish town say warning signs were ignored as Islamic State lured their sons - LA Times

Erdogan: Turkey's abrasive 'Sultan' - Yahoo News

Erdogan: Turkey's abrasive 'Sultan'
AFP By Tanya Willmer

Istanbul (AFP) - Saviour or dictator? President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rose from humble beginnings to become Turkey's most powerful politician since Ataturk, but after more than a decade at the top he is now its most divisive.

More:Erdogan: Turkey's abrasive 'Sultan' - Yahoo News

Stakes for Erdogan highest in 13 years | i24news - See beyond

Stakes for Erdogan highest in 13 years

Decisive factors as Turks go to polls for 2nd time in six months: renewed war with Kurds, Syria’s future

The days before the snap election are to be held in Turkey have been defined by restlessness. Police have raided two television stations, halting their broadcasts and adding to the harassment of opposition media; the release of a new most-wanted list featuring hundreds of persons said to constitute a danger to state security (the list includes names familiar to everyone in Turkey), as well as widespread surprise arrests of Islamic State supporters. All these have put the country into a frenzy.

More:Stakes for Erdogan highest in 13 years | i24news - See beyond

Editors from around the world urge Turkey to protect media - StarTribune.com

In letter to Turkish president, editors from dozens of countries sound alarm on media freedom
By DESMOND BUTLER Associated Press
October 30, 2015 — 11:05am

ISTANBUL — Dozens of editors from leading international news organizations have written to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressing "profound concern regarding the deteriorating conditions for press freedom in Turkey."

More:Editors from around the world urge Turkey to protect media - StarTribune.com

Seized Turkish media outlets turn pro-government overnight | Reuters

Seized Turkish media outlets turn pro-government overnight
ISTANBUL | By Ayla Jean Yackley and Hamdi Istanbullu

Oct 30 Two Turkish opposition newspapers seized in a crackdown on an arch-enemy of President Tayyip Erdogan suddenly turned staunchly pro-government on Friday, publishing fawning front pages after new state-appointed management sacked most of their staff.

More:Seized Turkish media outlets turn pro-government overnight | Reuters

If Turkey chooses Erdogan at the polls this weekend, Isis will gain strength and the refugee crisis will worsen | Voices | The Independent

If Turkey chooses Erdogan at the polls this weekend, Isis will gain strength and the refugee crisis will worsen

The West should make it clear to Erdogan that his destructive policies are starting to overshadow geopolitical and strategic benefits that Turkey has historically brought to the table

More:If Turkey chooses Erdogan at the polls this weekend, Isis will gain strength and the refugee crisis will worsen | Voices | The Independent

Women with children are stuck at home - RIGHTS

Women with children are stuck at home

İpek Yezdani - ISTANBUL
70 percent of women with small children are not employed in Turkey, UN Women’s Lakshmi Puri says

More:Women with children are stuck at home - RIGHTS

What's At Stake In Turkey's Upcoming Elections

What's At Stake In Turkey's Upcoming Elections

The outcome of Sunday's parliamentary election will be important for Turkey's domestic stability, its role in resolving the Syrian conflict and Europe's migration crisis, and Erdogan's legacy.

More:What's At Stake In Turkey's Upcoming Elections

Turkish companies hungry for Danish renewable energy | The Post

Turkish companies hungry for Danish renewable energy

October 30th, 2015 5:07 pm| by Shifa Rahaman

Huge Turkish conglomerates, on the hunt for renewable sources of energy to drive growth, are increasingly looking to Denmark to fulfil their needs.

More:Turkish companies hungry for Danish renewable energy | The Post

Amanpour on Turkey: When a society cracks down its press, it weakens itself

Amanpour on Turkey: When a society cracks down its press, it weakens itself

Christiane Amanpour. (Photo: AP)
October 30, 2015, Friday/ 18:03:59/ TODAY'S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL

CNN Chief International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour expressed her concerns about the future of freedom of the press in Turkey on Thursday, in the wake of the management takeover and raid on the İpek Media Group.

More:Amanpour on Turkey: When a society cracks down its press, it weakens itself

Turkey's private equity spree suffers gloomy politics, lira's decline | Reuters

Turkey's private equity spree suffers gloomy politics, lira's decline

* Big ticket private equity deals have dried up

* Political uncertainty, lira's slump deter investors

* Sunday's vote won't be a panacea for political worries

By Asli Kandemir

ISTANBUL, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Private equity firms that flooded into Turkey in recent years are now struggling in the face of political uncertainty and the lira's decline, which have made it harder to lure new investors and exit deals profitably.

More:Turkey's private equity spree suffers gloomy politics, lira's decline | Reuters

The End of the Turkish Model - WSJ

The End of the Turkish Model

Erdogan’s moderate Islamist AKP party promised reform and growth but has turned instead to consolidating power

More:The End of the Turkish Model - WSJ

AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul prepare for long journeys - US News

AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul preparefor long journeys or simply pass the time
The Associated Press

Associated Press
Oct. 30, 2015 | 11:30 a.m. EDT
+ More

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey this year overtook Pakistan to become the country hosting the most refugees, with 2.2 million from Syria and 200,000 from Iraq.

More:AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul prepare for long journeys - US News

Friendship with Turkey has its price | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

Friendship with Turkey has its price

The refugee crisis made it possible: out of the blue, Turkey's reputation in the EU has received a boost. Support from Ankara, however, has a price, and not just a financial one. Daniel Heinrich reports from Istanbul.

More:Friendship with Turkey has its price | World | DW.COM | 31.10.2015

An election which will decide Turkey’s future - FT.com

An election which will decide Turkey’s future

A grand coalition is the best chance of curbing Erdogan’s power

Turkey’s voters have the chance on Sunday not just to call time on more than a decade of single-party rule by the neo-Islamist Justice and Development party, but to set limits to the power of the AKP’s founder, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Under his rule, Turkey is slipping its western moorings and sliding into the maelstrom of the Middle East. This election is also therefore a chance to pull back from what would be a disaster for the country, for the region and for Europe.

More:An election which will decide Turkey’s future - FT.com

Turkey’s Erdogan Should Listen to the Voters - The New York Times

Turkey’s Erdogan Should Listen to the Voters

Not so long ago, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, prime minister of Turkey from 2003 until 2014 and president since, was hailed as a model leader of an emerging economy with an admirably moderate Islamist bent. At the helm of the Justice and Development Party (A.K.P.) he had created, Mr. Erdogan oversaw an economic recovery and introduced democratic reforms (part of an effort to win admission to the European Union), achieved a truce with Kurdish nationalists and curbed the power of an ambitious military. Yet today, on the eve of a second national election within five months, which Mr. Erdogan engineered after being battered in the first, many of those achievements have been undermined, in no small part because of Mr. Erdogan’s relentless drive to win and consolidate power.

More:Turkey’s Erdogan Should Listen to the Voters - The New York Times

How Erdogan strangles media freedom in Turkey: A view from inside

How Erdogan strangles media freedom in Turkey: A view from inside

ISTANBUL—This week, riot police stormed a media building in the heart of Istanbul, reminding the world –- yet again –- of the perilous situation facing journalists in Turkey where press freedom has been steadily eroding.

More:How Erdogan strangles media freedom in Turkey: A view from inside

ISTANBUL: Islamic State reaches into Turkey to behead 2 Raqqa activists | World | Kentucky.com

Islamic State reaches into Turkey to behead 2 Raqqa activists

By Zakaria Zakaria

ISTANBUL — A Syrian activist who helped produce a blog dedicated to exposing Islamic State crimes against the residents of Raqqa was found beheaded along with another young activist at their apartment in Sanliurfa in southern Turkey on Friday, friends said.

More:ISTANBUL: Islamic State reaches into Turkey to behead 2 Raqqa activists | World | Kentucky.com

Turkey’s voters to pass judgement on larger-than-life president amid fears for democracy in country | National Post

Turkey’s voters to pass judgement on larger-than-life president amid fears for democracy in country

Matthew Fisher | October 30, 2015 7:35 PM ET

ISTANBUL — Earlier this week police loyal to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan raided two television stations in Istanbul, interrupted live programming and forced them off the air because of their owners’ alleged ties to a U.S.-based opposition cleric.

More:Turkey’s voters to pass judgement on larger-than-life president amid fears for democracy in country | National Post

Friday, October 30, 2015

Turkey After the Snap Elections: War Cabinet or Peace Cabinet? - The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

Turkey After the Snap Elections: War Cabinet or Peace Cabinet?

Soner Cagaptay

October 30, 2015

If this weekend's results compel the AKP to form a coalition, its choice of partners could have very different implications for Turkish policy on the PKK, the Syrian Kurds, the fight against ISIS, and other issues.

In the June 7 elections, Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost its thirteen-year legislative majority, winning only 258 seats in the 550-member parliament. The party is now hoping to restore that majority in a November 1 revote. Yet renewed conflict against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) could play a major role in shaping both the vote tallies and the resultant government.

More:Turkey After the Snap Elections: War Cabinet or Peace Cabinet? - The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

Turkish kingmakers abroad? | i24news - See beyond

Turkish kingmakers abroad?

Voting in Turkish consulates abroad has concluded with high turnout, much to Erdogan’s delight

The deciding vote in the Turkish parliamentary election may have already been cast. While in Turkey the ballots open on Sunday, in Turkish consulates worldwide the vote has already concluded, with a higher than expected turnout – much to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's delight

More:Turkish kingmakers abroad? | i24news - See beyond

Turkey's critical media fear deeper crackdown if election bolsters Erdogan | Reuters

Turkey's critical media fear deeper crackdown if election bolsters Erdogan
ISTANBUL | By Humeyra Pamuk

In almost half a century as a reporter, columnist and editor of two national newspapers, Hasan Cemal has seen coups, military rule and government crises shake Turkish democracy. But never, he says, have press freedoms been so curtailed as under President Tayyip Erdogan.

More:Turkey's critical media fear deeper crackdown if election bolsters Erdogan | Reuters

Turkey releases new most wanted list that includes Fethullah Gülen - CRIME

Turkey releases new most wanted list that includes Fethullah Gülen

ISTANBUL – Agence France-Presse

Fethullah Gülen (L) was included in Turkey's list of most wanted terrorists, which also includes Cemil Bayık (R), one of the founders of the outlawed PKK.
Turkey published a list of its most wanted terrorists on Oct. 28, including Islamic Scholar Fethullah Gülen, leaders of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

More:Turkey releases new most wanted list that includes Fethullah Gülen - CRIME

Another Turkey Boom Unlikely Even If New Government Ends Turmoil - Bloomberg Business

Another Turkey Boom Unlikely Even If New Government Ends Turmoil
Onur Ant
October 30, 2015 — 5:45 AM EDT

While Turkey’s parliamentary elections on Sunday may yet put an end to the recent political turmoil, these charts suggest that a new government will be unable to restore the country’s economic heyday.

More:Another Turkey Boom Unlikely Even If New Government Ends Turmoil - Bloomberg Business

Four Contenders, one wild card: a guide to Turkey's election - Chicago Tribune

Four Contenders, one wild card: a guide to Turkey's election
Selcan Hacaoglu, BloombergBloomberg

ANKARA, Turkey - Turkey is holding its second election in five months on Nov. 1 after an inconclusive June ballot and failed coalition talks.

More:Four Contenders, one wild card: a guide to Turkey's election - Chicago Tribune

Hotel occupancy rates drop double digit numbers in Turkey: Association - TOURISM

Hotel occupancy rates drop double digit numbers in Turkey: Association

ISTANBUL

Turkey’s hotel occupancy rates saw double-digit decline in September despite a rise in local tourists during a 9-day Eid holiday, said the Turkish Touristic Hotels and Investors Association (TUROB) in a written statement on Oct. 30.

More:Hotel occupancy rates drop double digit numbers in Turkey: Association - TOURISM

Turkey ruling party hopes crackdown on Kurds will win back support in heartland | Reuters

Turkey ruling party hopes crackdown on Kurds will win back support in heartland
KAYSERI, Turkey | By Dasha Afanasieva

Like other conservative voters in Turkey's pious, Anatolian heartland, 55-year-old Yasin deserted the ruling AK Party in June parliamentary elections, fearing it had gone soft on Kurdish militants after years of peace talks.

More:Turkey ruling party hopes crackdown on Kurds will win back support in heartland | Reuters

Cyprus Reunification Talks Kick Into High Gear - ABC News

Cyprus Reunification Talks Kick Into High Gear

By The Associated Press

NICOSIA, Cyprus — Oct 30, 2015, 9:55 AM ET

A United Nations envoy says the leaders of ethnically split Cyprus will meet no fewer than six times this month as they take a more hands-on role in reunification talks.

More:Cyprus Reunification Talks Kick Into High Gear - ABC News

AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul prepare for long journeys - US News

AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul preparefor long journeys or simply pass the time
The Associated Press

Associated Press
Oct. 30, 2015 | 11:30 a.m. EDT

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey this year overtook Pakistan to become the country hosting the most refugees, with 2.2 million from Syria and 200,000 from Iraq.

More:AP PHOTOS: Syrians in Istanbul prepare for long journeys - US News

Turkey president intervenes after football boss takes referees hostage | World news | The Guardian

Turkey president intervenes after football boss takes referees hostage

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan persuades Trabzonspor boss to free four match officials he locked in stadium overnight for failing to award penalty

More:Turkey president intervenes after football boss takes referees hostage | World news | The Guardian

Turkey's new election: War or peace? - Yahoo Maktoob News

Turkey's new election: War or peace?

Turkey is headed to its second parliamentary election in five months with snap polls slated for November 1. The election will take place in a highly charged atmosphere with escalating violence and financial volatility.

More:Turkey's new election: War or peace? - Yahoo Maktoob News

Erdogan the gambler spins election wheel again in 'traumatised' Turkey

Erdogan the gambler spins election wheel again in 'traumatised' Turkey

Washington: Suat Kiniklioglu has done it all – once a suspect; then a player; and these days, again a bit of a suspect.

As Turkey girded for a portentous election this weekend, Kiniklioglu wondered about his standing in a fracturing country of 80 million people.

More:Erdogan the gambler spins election wheel again in 'traumatised' Turkey

Is Turkey at the Breaking Point? | commentary

Is Turkey at the Breaking Point?
Michael Rubin / Oct. 29, 2015

On October 26, 2015, the Ankara Chief Prosecutor’s Office — a body wholly under the thumb of Turkey’s mercurial and increasingly authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan — ruled that a government-appointed panel of trustees should take control over the Koza-İpek Group, a media group affiliated with U.S.-based Turkish Islamist figure Fethullah Gülen while prosecutors investigate Erdoğan’s charge that the Gülen’s network of educators, journalists, and businessmen represent a terrorist group.

More:Is Turkey at the Breaking Point? | commentary

US, Europe Watch as Turkey Vote Approaches

US, Europe Watch as Turkey Vote Approaches

Luis Ramirez

October 30, 2015 12:01 AM
ISTANBUL—

U.S. and European leaders are paying close attention to Sunday’s snap elections in Turkey as tensions rise ahead of the poll in which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AKP Party seeks to regain a majority it lost in June elections.

More:US, Europe Watch as Turkey Vote Approaches

Turkey election: Diyarbakir feels pressure - BBC News

Turkey election: Diyarbakir feels pressure
By Mark Lowen BBC News, Diyarbakir

29 October 2015

Before the bomb blast in which she lost both legs, running and pilates were her exercises of choice. But since then, she has turned to the gym - and she is more committed than ever.

More:Turkey election: Diyarbakir feels pressure - BBC News

Thursday, October 29, 2015

Bootleg alcohol kills 12 in Istanbul as police detain 15 suspects - CRIME

Bootleg alcohol kills 12 in Istanbul as police detain 15 suspects

ISTANBUL – Doğan News Agency

Counterfeit rakı consumption has killed 12 and poisoned dozens more, prompting police to launch operations in four Istanbul districts, detaining 15 suspected of producing bootleg alcohol.

More:Bootleg alcohol kills 12 in Istanbul as police detain 15 suspects - CRIME

Turkey, Deeply Divided, Prepares to Reprise Its June Vote - WSJ

Turkey, Deeply Divided, Prepares to Reprise Its June Vote

President Erdogan's Justice and Development party is struggling amid worries about the country’s economy and security

More:Turkey, Deeply Divided, Prepares to Reprise Its June Vote - WSJ

In Turkey vote, a window on common identity - Yahoo News

In Turkey vote, a window on common identity

A Nov. 1 election may confirm a trend seen in a June vote that Turkey may be joining those democracies finding unity on civic values. Will membership in the European Union follow?

More:In Turkey vote, a window on common identity - Yahoo News

Erdogan and the ′Islamic Calvinists′ | Europe | DW.COM | 28.10.2015

Erdogan and the 'Islamic Calvinists'

Suppression of the Gezi Park protests, press censorship, erosion of the constitution. But Erdogan and 'his' AKP party are still popular in Turkey ahead of Sunday's elections. Daniel Heinrich reports from Kayseri.

More:Erdogan and the ′Islamic Calvinists′ | Europe | DW.COM | 28.10.2015

The battle for Turkey: can Selahattin Demirtas pull the country back from the brink of civil war? | Christopher de Bellaigue | World news | The Guardian

The battle for Turkey: can Selahattin Demirtas pull the country back from the brink of civil war?

As Turkey prepares for the most important election in a generation, the charismatic politician Selahattin Demirtaş holds the key to whether Turks and Kurds can live in peace

More:The battle for Turkey: can Selahattin Demirtas pull the country back from the brink of civil war? | Christopher de Bellaigue | World news | The Guardian

Turkey’s election cycle is stuck in repeat mode

Turkey’s election cycle is stuck in repeat mode
Anthony Skinner, director at Verisk Maplecroft

Turkey's ruling party has its work cut out as the November 1 general elections rapidly approach. The likelihood that the Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) will be able to secure a slim majority at the ballot box is extremely low and, not withstanding electoral fraud, a hung parliament is widely expected. The winner-takes-all approach of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his abuse of power and intolerance of criticism has caught up with him and is taking its toll on the party over which he presides.

More:Turkey’s election cycle is stuck in repeat mode

Erdogan Election Fate May Be Shaped by Kurds Suffering Crackdown - Bloomberg Business

Erdogan Election Fate May Be Shaped by Kurds Suffering Crackdown
Selcan Hacaoglu
Benjamin Harvey

October 29, 2015 — 6:23 AM EDT

Much has changed since a pro-Kurdish party upended Turkish politics in a national election five months ago. The key role of Kurds in determining Turkey’s future hasn’t.

More:Erdogan Election Fate May Be Shaped by Kurds Suffering Crackdown - Bloomberg Business

The most important woman in Turkey – POLITICO

The most important woman in Turkey

Meet Figen Yuksekdağ, whose party tries in vain to keep Erdoğan honest.
By

Alev Scott

10/29/15, 5:36 PM CET

ISTANBUL — Figen Yuksekdağ would be a superstar in a country less suffocated by macho politics.

More:The most important woman in Turkey – POLITICO

U.S. approves sale of 'smart bomb' kits to Turkey - Cyprus

U.S. approves sale of ‘smart bomb’ kits to Turkey

The U.S. State Department has approved the sale of precision bomb kits valued at $70 million to Turkey, a member of NATO and a key part of the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State militants in Syria, the Pentagon said Thursday.

More:U.S. approves sale of 'smart bomb' kits to Turkey - Cyprus

Deputy PM calls on Dutch Turkish, Kurdish groups to calm tensions - NL Times

Deputy PM calls on Dutch Turkish, Kurdish groups to calm tensions
Posted on Oct 29, 2015 by Janene Pieters

Deputy Prime Minister Lodewijk Asscher has called on representatives of the Turkish-Dutch, Kurdish and Alevi communities in the Netherlands to calm the tensions among the communities caused by events in Turkey.

More:Deputy PM calls on Dutch Turkish, Kurdish groups to calm tensions - NL Times

Has ISIS Invaded Turkey? - The Takeaway

Has ISIS Invaded Turkey?
Thursday, October 29, 2015

A shootout earlier this week between a police force and ISIS militants took place not in Iraq, Syria, or even Afghanistan, but in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir.

More:Has ISIS Invaded Turkey? - The Takeaway

Open Grave: Western Media Memory Hole Pre-Dug for Turkey

Open Grave: Western Media Memory Hole Pre-Dug for Turkey

by Peter Lee

Turkey would seem to have every element that makes the heart of an idealistic Western journo go pitty-pat:

Democracy under attack, journalists getting detained and beaten up, fascism on the march, moderate, middle-class protesters getting shredded by Islamic suicide bombers with alleged government connivance, rampant skullduggery in the run-up to a crucial election on November 1, Turkish government backing ISIL and murdering Kurds in northern Iraq, the overall horror presided over by a sinister supervillain from a palace with the size and aesthetic of an Atlantic City casino…

More:Open Grave: Western Media Memory Hole Pre-Dug for Turkey

In divided Turkey, election unlikely to resolve uncertainty - US News

In polarized country, Turkish election likely to deliver more uncertainty
The Associated Press

Associated Press
Oct. 29, 2015 | 10:01 a.m. EDT

By DESMOND BUTLER and SUZAN FRASER, Associated Press

ISTANBUL (AP) — As extremist violence and political uncertainty cast a shadow over Turkey, voters are looking for Sunday's parliamentary election to usher in stability. But in a deeply polarized country, the most likely result is more confusion.

The election is a redo of June elections in which the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, stunningly lost its majority. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for new elections after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu failed to form a coalition with any of the three opposition parties represented in parliament.

More:In divided Turkey, election unlikely to resolve uncertainty - US News

Probability Of Visa-Free Regime Between EU And Turkey Approaches Zero – Analysis | Eurasia Review

Probability Of Visa-Free Regime Between EU And Turkey Approaches Zero – Analysis
Posted By: Penza News October 29, 2015

The European Union is ready to offer Turkey an accelerated path to giving its citizens visa-free travel in return for Turkish help with the migration crisis, Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, stated after the EU Summit in Brussels, Belgium, on October 15, 2015.

More:Probability Of Visa-Free Regime Between EU And Turkey Approaches Zero – Analysis | Eurasia Review

Turkish opposition preps for power share with party it abhors - Chicago Tribune

Turkish opposition preps for power share with party it abhors
Isobel Finkel and Benjamin Harvey, BloombergBloomberg

ISTANBUL - To opposition deputy chief Selin Sayek-Boke, Turkey's current leaders run a "vulgar, oppressive, statist economy" that isn't transparent about spending, fails to follow through on promised reforms and imposes the wrong kind of taxes.


More:Turkish opposition preps for power share with party it abhors - Chicago Tribune

Keep Turkey Democratic - Bloomberg View

Keep Turkey Democratic
8 Oct 29, 2015 2:00 AM EDT
By Editorial Board

Turkey may never have held a more important election than the one that's coming on Sunday. Voters may decide whether a country with strong economic and security ties to the West slides into the sectarian strife and authoritarian politics of the Middle East.

More:Keep Turkey Democratic - Bloomberg View

Turkey braced for another million refugees

Turkey braced for another million refugees

By Richard Spencer, Raziye Akkoc And Justin Huggler, The Telegraph October 29, 2015

Turkey is expecting more than a million more Syrians to pour across its borders, many of whom could travel on to Europe, after Russia's decision to begin airstrikes in support of the Assad regime.

More:Turkey braced for another million refugees

Turkey election a high-stakes gamble for Recep Tayyip Erdogan - The Economic Times

Turkey election a high-stakes gamble for Recep Tayyip Erdogan
By AFP | 29 Oct, 2015, 10.44AM IST

ISTANBUL: His June election setback sparked headlines proclaiming "the beginning of the end".

More:Turkey election a high-stakes gamble for Recep Tayyip Erdogan - The Economic Times

Turkey election: Security has become the key issue - BBC News

Turkey election: Security has become the key issue

8 hours ago

Turkey holds an election on Sunday - the second in five months - with the governing AK Party hoping to win back its majority.

More:Turkey election: Security has become the key issue - BBC News

Opposition Turkish Newspapers Dress Front Pages in Black

Opposition Turkish Newspapers Dress Front Pages in Black After Police Storm HQ

OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images

by Frances Martel28 Oct 20150
Turkish newspapers Bugün and Millet have painted their front pages black in protest of a Wednesday morning police raid on their offices, as well as the offices of Bugün TV and Kanaltürk. Police shut down the Kozi-Ipek media network and attacked journalists and protesters with tear gas and water cannons in what many claim is an abuse of government power.

More:Opposition Turkish Newspapers Dress Front Pages in Black

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Hotel Development in Turkey Reaches All-Time High

Hotel Development in Turkey Reaches All-Time High

Wednesday, 28 October 2015 19:30
Published by Ozgur Tore
Turkey is experiencing a boom in its hospitality sector with 75 new projects and 12,968 rooms currently in the pipeline, an all-time high for this European country. Having emerged from 2014 as the world’s sixth most visited tourist destination, Turkey has seen a massive growth in hotel construction, according to a recent report by leading market research company, TOPHOTELPROJECTS.

More:Hotel Development in Turkey Reaches All-Time High

An American journalist in Turkey | news @ Northeastern

An American journalist in Turkey
October 28, 2015 by Joe O'Connell

Ever since Audrey Pence arrived at North­eastern, she has been inter­ested in learning more about the world. One mech­a­nism she has used to get to know dif­ferent people and places is journalism.

More:An American journalist in Turkey | news @ Northeastern

A day out in Istanbul for disabled Syrian children | Fulton News

A day out in Istanbul for disabled Syrian children

By Kristoff Saunders on October 28, 2015No Comment

- Turkish aid foundation organizes trip to Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace for around 30 Syrian children aged between 5 and 12

More:A day out in Istanbul for disabled Syrian children | Fulton News

Erdoğan’s boomerang – POLITICO

Erdoğan’s boomerang

The president’s call for voters to choose “native” legislators can backfire.
By

Aykan Erdemir

10/28/15, 5:30 AM CET

ANKARA — With Turkey approaching its second election in five months, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan once again emerged from his gargantuan palace to campaign for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

More:Erdoğan’s boomerang – POLITICO

Is it game over for Turkish president Erdogan?

Is it game over for Turkish president Erdogan?

Greed for power, lust of money and addiction to authority have doomed his political image.

More:Is it game over for Turkish president Erdogan?

Turkish inflation floats up beyond expectations - fastFT: Market-moving news and views, 24 hours a day - FT.com

Turkish inflation floats up beyond expectations

While the European Central Bank struggles with a complete absence of inflation, Turkey's central bank has the opposite problem.

More:Turkish inflation floats up beyond expectations - fastFT: Market-moving news and views, 24 hours a day - FT.com

Has Turkey lost the plot?

Has Turkey lost the plot?

The bombing raids and round ups of Kurds inside Turkey look like an attempt to create a security threat scenario for the Turkish state from inside and outside the country

More:Has Turkey lost the plot?

Key players in Turkey vote | GlobalPost

Key players in Turkey vote

Millions of Turks go to the polls next Sunday for what could be one of the most crucial elections in the country's modern history.

More:Key players in Turkey vote | GlobalPost

Turkey needs to ‘upgrade’ its democracy, says former president - FT.com

Turkey needs to ‘upgrade’ its democracy, says former president

Tony Barber in London

Having spent seven years as Turkey’s president, and five years before that as prime minister and foreign minister, Abdullah Gul portrays himself as an elder statesman content to dispense wisdom from the sidelines, not a politician thirsting for one last draught of power.

More:Turkey needs to ‘upgrade’ its democracy, says former president - FT.com

Outrage in Turkey at take over of media outlets | euronews, world news

Outrage in Turkey at take over of media outlets

28/10 03:07 CET

Hundreds of Turkish government critics and opposition leaders have vowed to keep up a protest outside a Koza Ipek outlet namely Bugun TV in Istanbul.

More:Outrage in Turkey at take over of media outlets | euronews, world news

Turkey trying to fool the world on climate change - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

Turkey trying to fool the world on climate change

Previous G-20 summits were obsessed with growth. Then they said, “Growth is not enough; it has to be sustainable.” And then the current Turkish Presidency of the G-20 asked: “Growth is important and sustainable growth even more important. But growth for who?”

More:Turkey trying to fool the world on climate change - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

‘Support me, or I’ll huff and puff and take over your company’ - ÖZGÜR KORKMAZ

‘Support me, or I’ll huff and puff and take over your company’

For the last couple of days, Turkey has seen the worst of what a democratic parliamentary system turns into when those in power bend laws as they please in the absence of any kind of checks and balances.

More:‘Support me, or I’ll huff and puff and take over your company’ - ÖZGÜR KORKMAZ

Turkey marks Republic Day in deep political strain - MURAT YETKİN

Turkey marks Republic Day in deep political strain

Turkey marks the 92nd anniversary of the declaration of the republic on Oct. 29 by its founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in deep political strain ahead of the crucial general election on Nov. 1, which could determine not only the next government but also the country’s entire near future.

More:Turkey marks Republic Day in deep political strain - MURAT YETKİN

Can we believe our property rights are under protection in Turkey anymore? - GÜNEŞ KÖMÜRCÜLER

Can we believe our property rights are under protection in Turkey anymore?

Something very serious has been happening in Turkey, prompting many of us to question whether our property rights are still under protection. This “simple” question has dramatic ramifications with regard to the country’s economic future, as well as its democracy.

More:Can we believe our property rights are under protection in Turkey anymore? - GÜNEŞ KÖMÜRCÜLER

MHP: Nationalist wild card in Turkey's election race - Yahoo Maktoob News

MHP: Nationalist wild card in Turkey's election race
AFPBy Dilay Gundogan | AFP – 21 hours ago

"Turkey is in deep trouble. Its future is on a knife-edge," Devlet Bahceli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) roars at a campaign rally ahead of Sunday's election.

More:MHP: Nationalist wild card in Turkey's election race - Yahoo Maktoob News

Turkey extends clampdown on media - FT.com

Turkey extends clampdown on media

Mehul Srivastava in Istanbul and Funja Guler in Ankara

Supporters of Bugun and KanalTurk media groups confront Turkish riot police

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has extended his crackdown on the country’s media, with police in Ankara using tear gas on crowds outside the offices of holding company, Koza Ipek, whose television and newspapers have been critical of the government.

More:Turkey extends clampdown on media - FT.com

Refugee Crisis Was Designed to 'Strategically Depopulate' Syria – Assange

Refugee Crisis Was Designed to 'Strategically Depopulate' Syria – Assange
© REUTERS/ Dimitris Michalakis

The mass exodus of people from Syria could be part of a strategic plan to weaken the local government by depopulating the country, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said.

More:Refugee Crisis Was Designed to 'Strategically Depopulate' Syria – Assange

Analysis: Turkey at a Crossroads Prior to Sunday’s Snap Elections | Inter Press Service

Analysis: Turkey at a Crossroads Prior to Sunday’s Snap Elections
By Joris Leverink

ISTANBUL, Oct 27 2015 (IPS) - This Sunday, November 1, Turkey heads to the polls for the second time this year, to elect the 550 members of its Grand National Assembly. The snap elections were called for by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in late August when the different parties failed to form a coalition government after the June elections, in which the Justice and Development Party (AKP) had lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since its 13 years in power.

More:Analysis: Turkey at a Crossroads Prior to Sunday’s Snap Elections | Inter Press Service

Russia puts the brakes on Turkey's truck traffic - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Russia puts the brakes on Turkey's truck traffic

In September, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin together inaugurated the newly built Moscow Cathedral Mosque in central Moscow.

More:Russia puts the brakes on Turkey's truck traffic - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

When it comes to foreign policy, will Erdogan resort to 'wily Oriental means'? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

When it comes to foreign policy, will Erdogan resort to 'wily Oriental means'?

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s shadow continues to loom large over Turkey’s foreign policy, restricting the ability of the government to provide the flexibility needed to meet the challenges of major international developments of vital concern to Ankara.

More:When it comes to foreign policy, will Erdogan resort to 'wily Oriental means'? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Merkel's 'indecent proposal' to Erdogan - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Merkel's 'indecent proposal' to Erdogan

It is only a week before the snap elections and in Turkey, nobody really remembers that Germany’s Angela Merkel was in Istanbul on Oct. 18. Yet, despite their reputation in this regard, this cannot be explained by the infamously short memory of Turks.

More:Merkel's 'indecent proposal' to Erdogan - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Miami Airport Celebrated a #BigDayMIA

Miami Airport Celebrates a Historic #BigDayMIA
By Staff October 27, 2015

By: Staff / Published October 27, 2015

Sunday, Miami International Airport celebrated one of the biggest days in its history MIA welcomed in a dizzying succession of events the arrival of new carriers, new routes and a new Airbus A380 service. The lineup was highlighted by Turkish Airlines’ inaugural Istanbul service, British Airways’ introduction of one of its double daily London Heathrow flights aboard the Airbus A380, and the launch of a daily Las Vegas route by Frontier Airlines.

More:Miami Airport Celebrated a #BigDayMIA

How close has Turkey suddenly become? | Left Foot Forward

How close has Turkey suddenly become?
Alessio Colonnelli

Ankara helping out with the refugee crisis could lead to an earlier EU entry. But is that wise?

Angela Merkel’s recent one-day visit to Ankara sparked huge controversy. What was said between her and Turkey’s prime minister Ahmet Davutoğlu triggered criticisms of all sorts, particularly in Germany, from both the right – as you’d expect – and from the left.

More:How close has Turkey suddenly become? | Left Foot Forward

Guarding the Turkish election | Europe | DW.COM | 27.10.2015

Guarding the Turkish election

Terrorism, corruption, vote-rigging - heading into Saturday's elections, the climate in Turkey is one of mistrust. Thousands have volunteered to ensure there's no electoral fraud. Julia Hahn reports from Istanbul.

More:Guarding the Turkish election | Europe | DW.COM | 27.10.2015

Will Black Sea cuisine be Erdogan's lasting legacy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Will Black Sea cuisine be Erdogan's lasting legacy?

As Erdoganmania loses pace, Al-Monitor asked over the course of four weeks in July and August more than 200 people from Ankara and Istanbul what would be the most memorable legacy of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Most answers were about politics, yet a significant number of those informally surveyed suggested the spread of “Black Sea culture and cuisine” as the most pleasant legacy of Erdogan.

More:Will Black Sea cuisine be Erdogan's lasting legacy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Planning to rig an election in Turkey? You'd better think twice - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Planning to rig an election in Turkey? You'd better think twice

With only days to go before Turkey’s Nov. 1 general elections, concerns of vote-rigging are again rife. Leading the effort to prevent fraud is a remarkable civic movement, Vote and Beyond, which has grown steadily in a short amount of time. The volunteers, who started out as a group of eight people in December 2013, became an association in April 2014. They have since become organized in half of Turkey’s 81 provinces, readying to watch the ballot boxes Nov. 1. The number of volunteers was expected to reach about 100,000 by election day.

More:Planning to rig an election in Turkey? You'd better think twice - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

About '260,000 Syrian children' get education in Turkey | Fulton News

About '260,000 Syrian children' get education in Turkey

By Kristoff Saunders on October 27, 2015No Comment

- According to Turkish Education Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Buyuk, out of 260,000 Syrian children, around 50,000 study at state schools

More:About '260,000 Syrian children' get education in Turkey | Fulton News

City of Miami proclaimed October 26 as the Turkish Airlines Day Turkish Airlines announced Guiness ...

City of Miami proclaimed October 26 as the Turkish Airlines Day

Turkish Airlines launched nonstop service from Miami International Airport to Istanbul Atatürk Airport on Oct. 25. To generate excitement for the new service, Turkish Airlines engaged 7-time GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS record holder The Sand Sculpture Company and its owner Ted Siebert to build the tallest sandcastle in Miami.

More:City of Miami proclaimed October 26 as the Turkish Airlines Day Turkish Airlines announced Guiness ...

Rhineland women on Turkey's most wanted list - The Local

Rhineland women on Turkey's most wanted list

Published: 27 Oct 2015 10:59 GMT+01:00

Two young women from western Germany are being hunted by Turkish authorities on suspicion of involvement in a recent spate of terrorist attacks by Isis.

More:Rhineland women on Turkey's most wanted list - The Local

Turkey is looking more and more like its troubled neighbors | Reuters

Turkey is looking more and more like its troubled neighbors
By Samia Nakhoul

It should have been a moment of unity against a backdrop of horror.

At a qualifying match this month for next year’s Euro 2016 soccer championship in the central Anatolian city of Konya, the teams of Turkey and Iceland stood, heads bowed, for a minute of silence commemorating the 102 victims of suicide bombings in Ankara three days earlier.

More:Turkey is looking more and more like its troubled neighbors | Reuters

Turkey Votes, Again - Carnegie Europe - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Turkey Votes, Again
Source: Getty
Marc Pierini, Sinan Ülgen

On November 1, 2015, Turkey will hold its second parliamentary election in just five months. In a new Q&A, Marc Pierini and Sinan Ülgen explain the motivations behind Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s decision to call a snap vote, and they explore potential postelection scenarios.

More:Turkey Votes, Again - Carnegie Europe - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Turkey’s Economic Precipice | commentary

Turkey’s Economic Precipice
Michael Rubin / Sept. 27, 2015

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s “Justice and Development Party,” best known by its Turkish acronym AKP, was a breath of fresh air when it came to power after the November 2002 elections. In the five years before the AKP assumed power, Turkey’s currency devalued from around 200,000 to just over 1.7 million lira against the dollar. The Turkish public blamed the incumbents for a banking crises in November 2000, and then a currency crisis when, on a single day in February 2001, the Turkish lira lost one-third of its value. Incumbent parties bickered and corruption scandals swirled around them. The AKP cultivated an image of cleanliness and piety, even as Erdoğan, its leader and, from February 2003, prime minister, had more than a dozen corruption cases hanging over him from his tenure as mayor of Istanbul. Regardless, the AKP was pragmatic. It focused on the economy first and foremost. In the first two years of AKP rule, the currency stabilized and actually strengthened against the dollar. Some of this stability was the result of new technocrats taking a fresh look at the economy and proposing solutions which previous political paralysis prevented, but Turkish budgetary authorities and many established journalists privately suggested some of the AKP’s accomplishments rested upon an influx of so-called “Green Money,” provided by interests in Saudi Arabia and Qatar and used as an off-books slush fund by Erdoğan and his team.

More:Turkey’s Economic Precipice | commentary

Turkey's secular CHP fights 'authoritarian' President Erdogan - Report: Turkey - RFI

Turkey's secular CHP fights 'authoritarian' President Erdogan

By Tony Cross

Turkey's second election this year, to be held on Sunday, is supposed to end a stalemate that arose from the failure of June's general election to give any party enough seats to govern. President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) won the most votes last time round but faces vigourous opposition from three parties - the pro-Kurd HDP, the right-wing secular MHP and the more left-wing secular CHP. They accuse Erdogan of becoming increasingly authoritarian and are looking for allies to force the AKP out of government.

More:Turkey's secular CHP fights 'authoritarian' President Erdogan - Report: Turkey - RFI

Can a new opposition emerge in Turkey?

Can a new opposition emerge in Turkey?
27 October 2015, 08:00 (GMT+04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 26

By Rufiz Hafizoglu – Trend:

Creation of a new political party in Turkey after the Nov. 1 parliamentary election is currently the most discussed topic in that country.

More:Can a new opposition emerge in Turkey?

Turkey’s exemplary civil initiative is under threat - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

Turkey’s exemplary civil initiative is under threat

In contrast to diehard enemies of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), I usually argue that not everything about the ruling party is evil. Something good can come out of something bad.

More:Turkey’s exemplary civil initiative is under threat - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

EU approves Turkey action plan

EU approves Turkey action plan
River Gaines

03:35 | Tuesday, Oct 27, 2015

Merkel offered "to support a faster visa process" and to speed up negotiations on Turkey's bid to join the European Union, but expects Ankara to act more quickly in readmitting migrants deported from Germany in return, she said after the meeting in Istanbul.

More:EU approves Turkey action plan

Erdogan faces future of power sharing - BBC News

Erdogan faces future of power sharing

27 October 2015

With just under a week to go until Turkey's second elections - and with polls predicting no clear majority - the likelihood of a coalition government is increasing. Selin Girit looks at President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, former leader of the ruling AKP party and Turkey's most powerful man.

More:Erdogan faces future of power sharing - BBC News

Which way for Erdogan? Much at stake in Turkey's repeat election

Which way for Erdogan? Much at stake in Turkey's repeat election
27 October 2015 10:50AM

A week out from Turkey's election and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appears to doing everything he can to lose. But appearances can be deceptive.

More:Which way for Erdogan? Much at stake in Turkey's repeat election

Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested - WSJ

Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested

Country’s economic allure has dimmed amid uncertainty over its political future

More:Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested - WSJ

Turkey: 'Islam' Tea House Was ISIS Recruiting HQ

Turkey: ‘Islam’ Tea House Owned by Suicide Bomber Was ISIS Recruiting HQ

by John Hayward26 Oct 20158
An article in Monday’s Hurriyet Daily News pinpoints an unassuming tea house called “Islam,” in the eastern Adiyaman province, as a pivotal location in the Islamic State’s assault on Turkey.

More:Turkey: 'Islam' Tea House Was ISIS Recruiting HQ

Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested - WSJ

Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested

Country’s economic allure has dimmed amid uncertainty over its political future

More:Turkey’s Growth Goals Are Tested - WSJ

Should relatives of politicians do business? - GİLA BENMAYOR

Should relatives of politicians do business?

Republican People’s Party (CHP) Istanbul deputy Aykut Erdoğdu has claimed that names close to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have caused the Turkish state to lose $17.5 billion. As the Treasury’s former chief inspector, Erdoğdu had headed the CHP’s “Corruption Investigation Department” during the last parliamentary term. He also holds a Certified Internal Auditor certificate.

More:Should relatives of politicians do business? - GİLA BENMAYOR

What will Erdogan do if AKP fails again? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

What will Erdogan do if AKP fails again?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s political acumen is beyond dispute. It is already working wonders to spin the potential failure of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the Nov. 1 polls as a victory.

More:What will Erdogan do if AKP fails again? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Interview with Didier Billion (IRIS)about Turkey’s future in Europe | euronews, news +

Interview with Didier Billion (IRIS)about Turkey’s future in Europe

Give and take. After months of blocking Turkey’s negotiations to join the European Union and the growing migration crisis, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Ankara last week. She offered to help revive Turkey’s stalled talks on EU membership, if it helped stem the migrant flow to Europe.

More:Interview with Didier Billion (IRIS)about Turkey’s future in Europe | euronews, news +

Hopefully, an era is coming to an end - ERTUĞRUL ÖZKÖK

Hopefully, an era is coming to an end

On the morning of Nov. 2, an era in our history will come to an end. If you wonder how we will remember this era in the future, we would have mixed feelings.

Some of us would remember this era with anger; some with sorrow; some with pain; some others with less anger and others will remember as if nothing particular happened.

More:Hopefully, an era is coming to an end - ERTUĞRUL ÖZKÖK

Will Erdoğan let power slip from his hands? - MURAT YETKİN

Will Erdoğan let power slip from his hands?

The main question of the June 7 general election was whether the Kurdish problem-focused Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) could exceed the 10 percent threshold and get into parliament. It managed to do so, thanks to its co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş’s challenging of President Tayyip Erdoğan’s target to change the parliamentary system into a presidential one, which attracted Turkish liberals and leftists as well as traditional Kurdish nationalist and secular votes. The HDP representation in parliament was the reason why the Justice and Development Party (AK Parti) lost its 13-year majority in parliament.

More:Will Erdoğan let power slip from his hands? - MURAT YETKİN

Turkey's Refugee Problem | David L. Phillips

Turkey's Refugee Problem

Turkish merchants and human smugglers are providing a service, profiting from refugees transiting through Turkey to Greece and sanctuary in Northern Europe. More problematic, however, is Turkey's official policy. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is demanding funds and other concessions from the European Union (EU) in exchange for cooperation with the EU's refugee action plan.

More:Turkey's Refugee Problem | David L. Phillips

Istanbul has more Syrian refugees than all of Europe says David Miliband | World news | The Guardian

Istanbul has more Syrian refugees than all of Europe says David Miliband

Head of the International Rescue Committee says Turkey has nearly two million refugees and says rising numbers globally are “a grisly world record”

More:Istanbul has more Syrian refugees than all of Europe says David Miliband | World news | The Guardian

The U.S.-PYD-Turkey Puzzle - The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

The U.S.-PYD-Turkey Puzzle

Soner Cagaptay and Andrew J. Tabler

October 23, 2015

Sustaining U.S. and Turkish assistance to the Syrian Kurds is crucial to blocking ISIS and stemming Russian influence, as is resolving Ankara's Kurdish problems at home, but sending heavy weapons to the PYD would likely have unintended consequences.

The U.S. government continues to debate whether it should provide the People's Defense Units (YPG) -- the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) -- with heavy weapons, including antitank and antiaircraft missile launchers. The YPG has helped capture territory from ISIS in recent months, with U.S. backing that has included airstrikes and ammunition. But the situation is more complex than simply increasing assistance to an allied group.

More:The U.S.-PYD-Turkey Puzzle - The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

Monday, October 26, 2015

Overshadowed by violence and political polarisation

Overshadowed by violence and political polarisation

Turkey is heading to a general election on 1 November in the aftermath of the country′s worst terror attack, renewed fighting with Kurdish rebels and with a society increasingly polarised. The snap election comes after the inconclusive June poll that ended the AKP Party′s 13-year parliamentary majority. But, as Dorian Jones writes from Istanbul, the country may be forced into entering a new era of political compromise

More:Overshadowed by violence and political polarisation

Award for Greek, Turkish Cypriot couples shows Cyprus' ethnic division no barrier to love | Fox News

Award for Greek, Turkish Cypriot couples shows Cyprus' ethnic division no barrier to love
Published October 26, 2015Associated Press

NICOSIA, Cyprus – For Greek Cypriot Michalis Michael and his Turkish Cypriot wife Sukran Ozerdem, mistrust born of decades of separation between their rival communities was no barrier to their love.

More:Award for Greek, Turkish Cypriot couples shows Cyprus' ethnic division no barrier to love | Fox News

Kurds Central to Turkey Vote

Kurds Central to Turkey Vote
Henry Ridgwell

October 26, 2015 9:06 AM
EYIBA, TURKEY—

As Turkey faces its second parliamentary election in five months, the country's Kurdish minority has once again become central to the vote. The pro-Kurdish HDP party won seats in parliament for the first time in June, depriving the ruling AK party of a majority. After hopes that a cease-fire deal between the government and PKK Kurdish separatists in the east would finally bring peace, fighting erupted again over the summer.

More:Kurds Central to Turkey Vote

Turkey's Refugee Problem | David L. Phillips

Turkey's Refugee Problem
Posted: 10/26/2015 3:45 pm EDT Updated: 51 minutes ago

Turkish merchants and human smugglers are providing a service, profiting from refugees transiting through Turkey to Greece and sanctuary in Northern Europe. More problematic, however, is Turkey's official policy. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is demanding funds and other concessions from the European Union (EU) in exchange for cooperation with the EU's refugee action plan.

More:Turkey's Refugee Problem | David L. Phillips

The ISIS War Inside Turkey Is Escalating - The Daily Beast

The ISIS War Inside Turkey Is Escalating

A ferocious firefight in the Turkish city of Diyarbakir, coming in the wake of the Ankara massacre, shows the government is turning its wrath on ISIS. But is it too late?

More:The ISIS War Inside Turkey Is Escalating - The Daily Beast

The Statesman: Erdogan party hits the hustings ahead of Turkey vote

Erdogan party hits the hustings ahead of Turkey vote
AFP
Istanbul, | 26 October, 2015

A week ahead of Turkey's second election in five months, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party is working overtime to try to reclaim its parliamentary majority, in a climate of tension fuelled by the Ankara attacks and the reignited Kurdish conflict.

More:The Statesman: Erdogan party hits the hustings ahead of Turkey vote

The ‘Mankurts’ of Turkey - NURAY MERT

The ‘Mankurts’ of Turkey

Nationalism, conservativism and right-wing politics in general have always been nativist in Turkey. But recently, they are on the rise along with xenophobia, anti-Westernism and anti-intellectualism. All societies in times of turmoil seek refuge in authoritarianism, always search for unity and become skeptical of domestic and foreign enemies. Anti-intellectualism is an essential aspect of authoritarianism, since intellectuals are perceived as the enemies of stability as long as they refuse conformism and defend freedoms and the right to difference and dissent. In this respect, Turkey’s story is no different than other epochs and examples of swings toward authoritarianism.

More:The ‘Mankurts’ of Turkey - NURAY MERT

‘Racist’ Europe does not want Turks walking around their streets: Chomsky - DIPLOMACY

‘Racist’ Europe does not want Turks walking around their streets: Chomsky

Cansu Çamlıbel – CAMBRIDGE, Ma.
The current polarization in Turkey may have been triggered by the European Union’s obstacles in the accession process, leading Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to choose more authoritarian paths, prominent U.S. activist and linguist Noam Chomsky has told daily Hürriyet in an interview.

More:‘Racist’ Europe does not want Turks walking around their streets: Chomsky - DIPLOMACY

Drop in consumer confidence may reflect in the ballot box - ECONOMICS

Drop in consumer confidence may reflect in the ballot box

Mustafa Sönmez - mustafasnmz@hotmail.com

It is an undeniable fact that the economy has played a dominant role in the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) 13-year rule. The voter has supported its economic performance.

More:Drop in consumer confidence may reflect in the ballot box - ECONOMICS

Erdoğan lashes out at Russia, US over Syria policies - POLITICS

Erdoğan lashes out at Russia, US over Syria policies

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has continued his criticisms of both Russia and the United States over their respective policies in Syria, warning the prolongation of the problem in the Arab republic would create more problems for the rest of the world.

More:Erdoğan lashes out at Russia, US over Syria policies - POLITICS

Tensions running high in Turkey as elections loom - Report: Turkey - RFI

Tensions running high in Turkey as elections loom

By Tony Cross

Less than one week to go till Turkey's second general election in five months, tensions are running high as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party fights to claw back the absolute majority that eluded it in June. Nine people were killed on Monday in a shootout between Turkish police and IS suspects, in another sign of growing tensions fuelled by the Kurdish conflict and the spill over from the war in Syria.

More:Tensions running high in Turkey as elections loom - Report: Turkey - RFI

Turkish police in deadly shootout with IS suspects - Yahoo News

Turkish police in deadly shootout with IS suspects
AFP By Mahmut Bozarslan with Fulya Ozerkan in Ankara

Diyarbakir (Turkey) (AFP) - Two Turkish policemen and seven Islamic State suspects were killed in a shootout on Monday that has further rattled the increasingly polarised country just six days ahead of snap elections.

More:Turkish police in deadly shootout with IS suspects - Yahoo News

Turkish president hopes for political legacy - BBC News

Turkish president hopes for political legacy

26 October 2015 Last updated at 05:11 GMT

There is less than a week until Turkey's second election in five months, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is hoping the party he founded, the AKP, will win back the majority it lost in June.

More:Turkish president hopes for political legacy - BBC News

The roots of the massacre in Ankara | SocialistWorker.org

The roots of the massacre in Ankara
October 26, 2015

The bombing in Ankara was the deadliest in modern Turkish history--and in a country where the state regularly uses violence against protesters, and with an election approaching, the government bears much of the blame. In an article first published at the revolutionary socialism in the 21st century website, Phil Buyum Jackson explains the background to the attack and describes events since the bombing.

More:The roots of the massacre in Ankara | SocialistWorker.org

Sunday, October 25, 2015

Old Demons in New Faces? The 'Deep State' Meets Erdoğan's 'New Turkey' | Karabekir Akkoyunlu

Old Demons in New Faces? The 'Deep State' Meets Erdoğan's 'New Turkey'
Posted: 10/25/2015 8:49 pm EDT Updated: 2 hours ago

One suicide bombing after another, Turkey's public is growing accustomed to images of carnage that no longer originate from Syria or Iraq, but from their own capital. The twin blasts that killed at least 102 people at a peace rally in Ankara on 10 October follow a string of deadly explosions in Suruç in July and Diyarbakır in June, and claim the unenviable title of being Turkey's deadliest terror attack from the Reyhanlı bombings of May 2013.

More:Old Demons in New Faces? The 'Deep State' Meets Erdoğan's 'New Turkey' | Karabekir Akkoyunlu

Turkey’s Erdoğan to be ‘caliph’ under presidential system, pro-AKP columnist claims - POLITICS

Turkey’s Erdoğan to be ‘caliph’ under presidential system, pro-AKP columnist claims

A pro-Justice and Development Party (AKP) columnist has claimed that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would be the ‘caliph,’ or leader of Sunni Muslims in the world, under the much-anticipated presidential system.

More:Turkey’s Erdoğan to be ‘caliph’ under presidential system, pro-AKP columnist claims - POLITICS

West counts on Turkey | Vestnik Kavkaza

West counts on Turkey
Oct 24 - 5:33 pm

The 12th meeting of the International Discussion Club ‘Valdai’ finished in Sochi on Thursday. On the sidelines of the event, Vestnik Kavkaza talked to a number of international experts, who spoke about the current agenda of bilateral relations between Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

More:West counts on Turkey | Vestnik Kavkaza

Is Turkey a new “tool” for the duel over Syria? | GulfNews.com

Is Turkey a new “tool” for the duel over Syria?

Gambling between Russia and the US, Turkey is playing with the safety of its territory.
Published: 14:51 October 24, 2015

By Olga Malek

The 70th United Nation (UN) session was one of the most long-awaited events of this year for major political leaders. With the recent US military actions in Syria and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s long-lasting dream to sink Al Assad’s regime, Turkey was carrying out an ambitious plan to take up a dominant position in the Middle East.

More:Is Turkey a new “tool” for the duel over Syria? | GulfNews.com

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Pressure mounts on Turkish government over failure to prevent Ankara attacks | South China Morning Post

Pressure mounts on Turkish government over failure to prevent Ankara attacks

Deadly blasts that killed 102 during a peace rally have been blamed on Islamic State but opposition figures believe security forces were complicit.

More:Pressure mounts on Turkish government over failure to prevent Ankara attacks | South China Morning Post

Turkish Airlines builds world's tallest sand castle in Florida

Turkish Airlines builds world's tallest sand castle in Florida

Saturday, 24 October 2015 16:29

Turkish Airlines tries to break the world record for the tallest sand castle ever built. A team of 12 sculptors - led by seven-time record holder Ted Siebert - are constructing the impressive castle, which requires more than 1,800 tons of sand at Historic Virginia Key Beach Park in Florida, USA. The record attempt marks the airline's inaugural service from Miami to its hub in Istanbul, which begins Sunday.

More:Turkish Airlines builds world's tallest sand castle in Florida

Repeated Airspace Violations Raise Tensions Between Russia And Turkey | EurasiaNet.org

Repeated Airspace Violations Raise Tensions Between Russia And Turkey
October 24, 2015 - 3:50pm, by Joshua Kucera

The Bug Pit Armenia CSTO Russia Syria Turkey

A series of airspace violations related to Russian airstrikes in Syria has raised tensions between Russia and Turkey, adding a military dimension to what has long been a political disagreement over how to deal with the violence in the Middle East.

More:Repeated Airspace Violations Raise Tensions Between Russia And Turkey | EurasiaNet.org

Turkish Fishermen Save Syrian Baby and 15 Other Refugees From Aegean Sea After Boat Sinks - ABC News

Turkish Fishermen Save Syrian Baby and 15 Other Refugees From Aegean Sea After Boat Sinks

By AVIANNE TAN

Oct 24, 2015, 7:51 PM ET
Sixteen Syrian refugees, including an 18-month-old boy, were rescued by Turkish fishermen on Friday after their boat capsized and sank in the Aegean Sea off the coast of Kusadasi near Izmir in Turkey.

More:Turkish Fishermen Save Syrian Baby and 15 Other Refugees From Aegean Sea After Boat Sinks - ABC News

Pressure on Turkey as IS links to Ankara bombing deepen - Yahoo News

Pressure on Turkey as IS links to Ankara bombing deepen
AFP By Philippe Alfroy

Istanbul (AFP) - Two weeks after more than a hundred people were killed in an Ankara bomb attack, Turkey is still unravelling clues that suggest the Islamic State group was responsible, fuelling opposition anger over an apparently enormous security lapse by the government.

More:Pressure on Turkey as IS links to Ankara bombing deepen - Yahoo News

Refugee crisis: Turkey -- Europe's backdoor - Nikkei Asian Review

Turkey -- Europe's backdoor

Sinan Tavsan, Nikkei Staff Writer

Refugees land on the Greek island of Lesbos after sailing from Turkey.

IZMIR, Turkey -- In the middle of the night, a white minivan packed with refugees pulls up to a beach in Bodrum, a Turkish resort town along the turquoise waters of the Aegean Sea. The passengers spill out and join other refugees already waiting there. They hide in the dark, keeping low to the ground until the coast guard ship, searchlights scanning the waters, passes and gendarmes finish patrolling the area.

More:Refugee crisis: Turkey -- Europe's backdoor - Nikkei Asian Review

Turkey sees new wave of Syrian refugees

Turkey sees new wave of Syrian refugees

Reuters
October 24, 2015

ISTANBUL/ANKARA: Turkey is preparing for tens of thousands more refugees from Syria as government forces and Russian warplanes pound opposition-held areas, and officials said many would try illegally to get to Europe.

More:Turkey sees new wave of Syrian refugees

ISIS Fighting Turkey Fighting Kurds | Sarabrynn Hudgins

ISIS Fighting Turkey Fighting Kurds
Posted: 10/23/2015 3:17 pm EDT Updated: 10/23/2015 3:59 pm EDT

Western coverage of Turkey has lauded its recent crackdown against ISIS, but Turkey's simultaneous strikes against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) are inflaming the country's Kurdish problem into an even bigger challenge.

More:ISIS Fighting Turkey Fighting Kurds | Sarabrynn Hudgins

What will the split among nationalists result in for Turkey?

What will the split among nationalists result in for Turkey?
23 October 2015, 22:00 (GMT+05:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 23

By Rufiz Hafizoglu – Trend:

More than a week is left before the re-run parliamentary election in Turkey. Almost all political parties that will participate in the election actively conducted an electoral campaign. But apparently, as opposed to the previous election, the main competition will be observed among three parties during the election to be held on Nov. 1.

More:What will the split among nationalists result in for Turkey?

Debate escalates over collapsed Oslo talks between Ankara-PKK

Debate escalates over collapsed Oslo talks between Ankara-PKK

Cries of treason continue to sound following the revelation by the Republican People’s Party (CHP) of documents detailing secret negotiations between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

More:Debate escalates over collapsed Oslo talks between Ankara-PKK

How have Gaziantep’s exports to war-torn Syria quadrupled since 2011? - GÜVEN SAK

How have Gaziantep’s exports to war-torn Syria quadrupled since 2011?

Turks seem to be fed up with the number of Syrian refugees coming to Turkey. According to a recent survey by the U.S.-based Pew Research Center, 67 percent of Turks believe that “Turkey should allow fewer refugees from Syria and Iraq.” Does that mean that Turks now consider Syrians as a burden? After so many years of Turks migrating to Europe, have we adopted European anti-immigration attitudes ourselves? No, not really. Let me tell you why.

More:How have Gaziantep’s exports to war-torn Syria quadrupled since 2011? - GÜVEN SAK

Friday, October 23, 2015

Ankara: The future of a common identity in Turkey - Cihan Opinion News

Ankara: The future of a common identity in Turkey
CIHAN | ISTANBUL - 23.10.2015 11:17:02
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The already disintegrating common identity of Turkey sustained another blow on Oct. 10 in Ankara. The suicide bombers had the same target as in Diyarbakır and Suruç. They targeted rallies held by pro-Kurdish political movements and Turkish leftists. These rallies called for an end to the crackdown on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Kurdish-populated provinces in the east and Southeast.

More:Ankara: The future of a common identity in Turkey - Cihan Opinion News

Was Erdoğan Behind Ankara Bomb? | commentary

Was Erdoğan Behind Ankara Bomb?
Michael Rubin / Oct. 12, 2015

The Ankara bombing of a peace rally organized by Kurds, labor unions, and civil society groups was the worst single act of terrorism in Turkish history. Among both Turks and those outside Turkey, it has shaken confidence in Turkey and its stability. No terrorists have issued a claim of responsibility.

More:Was Erdoğan Behind Ankara Bomb? | commentary

Why a deal to help Turkey deal with migrants is good for Europe – not migrants

Why a deal to help Turkey deal with migrants is good for Europe – not migrants
By Tania Karas
October 22, 2015

The chaos of thousands of refugees arriving on the Greek islands daily may soon slow if the European Union and Turkey can implement a plan to keep them from coming to Europe.

More:Why a deal to help Turkey deal with migrants is good for Europe – not migrants

What do Israelis want more than all-inclusive Turkish holidays? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

What do Israelis want more than all-inclusive Turkish holidays?

The term “all-inclusive” was popularized by Club Med a generation ago to describe an innovative approach to vacation packaging. For a single fee, guests could enjoy all of the benefits that the facility had to offer. Since then, it has become a generic term, commonly used by Israelis to describe a vacation in one of the many hotels built along the country’s Mediterranean coast. In contemporary Hebrew, “all-inclusive” has come to mean an inexpensive but enjoyable holiday at a Turkish hotel with an all-you-can-eat buffet open round the clock, and — even better — free drinks at the bar, too.

More:What do Israelis want more than all-inclusive Turkish holidays? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

What is the worst Turkish election scenario? - MURAT YETKİN

What is the worst Turkish election scenario?

Well, it depends on who you ask.

If you ask to an average supporter of the Justice and Development Party (AK Parti), who is probably more loyal to President Tayyip Erdoğan than the party itself, the answer would be “not re-gaining a parliamentary majority” in the Nov. 1 re-election, having to share power with strangers, and losing what they have got accustomed to over the last 13 years under single-party governments. That is partly why the AK Parti grassroots has largely postponed questioning a number of things that many find hard to digest - from corruption allegations to fluctuations in the party’s Kurdish policy. They think they will be able to settle accounts within the party once they have regained power. They wouldn’t much care if Erdoğan forced the party to take its chairmanship from Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and give it to another name indicated by Erdoğan.

More:What is the worst Turkish election scenario? - MURAT YETKİN

The EU sends Turkey a very wrong message - SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ

The EU sends Turkey a very wrong message

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to Turkey on Oct. 18, only two weeks before the key parliamentary elections, was one of the most important diplomatic developments in regards to Ankara’s accession process to the European Union.

More:The EU sends Turkey a very wrong message - SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ

ISIL, PKK, Syria intelligence behind Ankara bombing, Erdoğan says - POLITICS

ISIL, PKK, Syria intelligence behind Ankara bombing, Erdoğan says

ANKARA

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has reiterated Turkey’s belief that the 10 October Ankara Massacre was committed by a medley of mutually antagonistic entities, including extreme jihadists and Kurdish militants.

“[The Ankara bombing] totally is a collective terrorist act, in which Daesh [Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant - ISIL], the PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party], the Mukhabarat [Syria’s military intelligence] and the PYD [Democratic Union Party] in northern Syria each played a role,” Erdoğan said Oct. 22 at a gathering of the Confederation of Righteous Trade Unions (HAK-İŞ), a right-wing trade union.

More:ISIL, PKK, Syria intelligence behind Ankara bombing, Erdoğan says - POLITICS

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

EU learning about Turkey’s importance the hard way - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

EU learning about Turkey’s importance the hard way

If negotiations between Ankara and the European Union were not frozen due to the France-Germany-Greek Cyprus trio, by now Turkey would have had an integrated border management system. Currently from the Coast Guard to the gendarmerie, from the Agriculture Ministry to the Customs Ministry, nearly a dozen state institutions have a say on the borders.

More:EU learning about Turkey’s importance the hard way - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

Most Turks believe necessary security measures not taken before Ankara blasts: Survey - LOCAL

Most Turks believe necessary security measures not taken before Ankara blasts: Survey

More than half of Turkish voters think the Turkish government did not take necessary and pre-emptive security measures at the site of a peace rally, where deadly Ankara blasts killed at least 102 civilians and wounded hundreds of others on Oct. 10, a recent survey of public opinion on politics shows.

More:Most Turks believe necessary security measures not taken before Ankara blasts: Survey - LOCAL

Turning a blind eye to Erdoğan's war, turning our backs on Turkish democracy | TheHill

Turning a blind eye to Erdoğan's war, turning our backs on Turkish democracy

By Mostafa Minawi, contributor

The suicide bombing of the political rally for peace in Ankara, which was sponsored by labor groups and supported by the leftist pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP), was not only the worst terrorist attack in Turkey's history, claiming well over 100 lives, it was the latest in a series attacks that have been targeting civilians and political organizations for the past two months. For example, in July, another suicide bombing claimed the lives of 30 young people in the border town of Suruç. Many in Turkey have accused the Turkish state of being behind these attacks. The outspoken leader of HDP, Selahattin Demirtaş, recently said on CNN International that even if the government was not directly behind the violence, they have at least turned a blind eye to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) elements that are not only likely responsible for the attacks, but, according to Demirtaş, have also infiltrated the ranks of the Turkish government. The West has so far remained silent, but at what cost?

More:Turning a blind eye to Erdoğan's war, turning our backs on Turkish democracy | TheHill

Political uncertainty weighs on Turkey - FTSE Global Markets

Political uncertainty weighs on Turkey
Wednesday, 21 October 2015

A survey of 947 respondents in Turkey by Washington think tank PewCentre Research suggests Turks are dissatisfied with the direction of their country. Rising prices, crime and inequality are concerns. Moreover after years of quasi-Islamic rule that has been antipathetic to the military; survey respondents say the military is the only group with a “good influence on the country”. Opinions of the police, national government, religious leaders and the courts are mixed, while views of the media tilt to the negative. More pertinently perhaps, 52% of Turks think their children will be worse off financially in the future. The findings come as voters are scheduled to revisit national government elections on November 1st after the AKP party failed to form a coalition government in June. The upcoming elections will be closely watched, both as a bellwether of wider change in the eastern Mediterranean and as an indicator of the near term prospects for a lynchpin emerging market.

More:Political uncertainty weighs on Turkey - FTSE Global Markets

Turkey's central bank keeps rates on hold ahead of election | Reuters

Turkey's central bank keeps rates on hold ahead of election
ISTANBUL

Oct 21 Turkey's central bank kept all of its interest rates on hold on Wednesday, shying away from a policy change ahead of a Nov. 1 election and waiting to take its cue from an anticipated move on rates by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

More:Turkey's central bank keeps rates on hold ahead of election | Reuters

Terrorism and tragedy in Turkey | The Japan Times

Terrorism and tragedy in Turkey

Oct 21, 2015

Earlier this month, Turkey experienced the worst terrorist attacks in its history. Two suicide bombers targeted a peace rally, killing more than 100 people. There is no shortage of suspects, but no group has yet taken responsibility. An outrage of this scale should unite a nation, but instead the attacks appear to be more deeply dividing an already fractured country. There are real and growing fears that Turkey could be on the brink of civil war or an authoritarian crackdown.

More:Terrorism and tragedy in Turkey | The Japan Times

Turkish prosecutor probes foreign intel service involvement in Ankara massacre - LOCAL

Turkish prosecutor probes foreign intel service involvement in Ankara massacre

Mesut Hasan Benli - ANKARA

The Ankara Chief Prosecutor’s Office in charge of investigating the Oct. 10 double suicide bombing, which has so far killed 102 people, has focused on foreign intelligence services’ possible role in the attack.

More:Turkish prosecutor probes foreign intel service involvement in Ankara massacre - LOCAL

EU, Turkey remain divided despite shared migrant challenge | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

EU, Turkey remain divided despite shared migrant challenge

BRUSSELS: Never waste a crisis, the political adage goes. The European Union and Turkey may be doing so right now, failing to build a closer partnership while facing a common challenge in the Syrian refugee crisis.

More:EU, Turkey remain divided despite shared migrant challenge | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Ankara bombing: Did Turkey misread perils of Islamic State? - CSMonitor.com

Ankara bombing: Did Turkey misread perils of Islamic State?

Turkey's response to Islamic State activities has long been soft, analysts say. But since June there have been three bomb attacks by radicalized citizens linked to the jihadist group.

More:Ankara bombing: Did Turkey misread perils of Islamic State? - CSMonitor.com

Talking Tough to Turkey by Marietje Schaake - Project Syndicate

Talking Tough to Turkey

BRUSSELS – When suicide bombers killed at least 97 people at a rally of pro-Kurdish activists and civic groups advocating peace between the Turkish government and the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Ankara on October 10, the government’s response was as rapid as it was troubling. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu swiftly imposed a temporary broadcast ban on images of the terror attack, and many in the country reported that Twitter had been blocked on some of the most widely used mobile networks, including Turkcell and TTNET.

More:Talking Tough to Turkey by Marietje Schaake - Project Syndicate

US receives Turkey’s PYD message ‘loud and clear,’ Ankara says - SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ

US receives Turkey’s PYD message ‘loud and clear,’ Ankara says

My two previous columns were focused on an ongoing tension between the United States and Turkey over the former’s Oct. 10 airdropping ammunition to the Syrian Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is considered a terrorist organization by the Turkish government.

More:US receives Turkey’s PYD message ‘loud and clear,’ Ankara says - SERKAN DEMİRTAŞ

Unity Is the Only Way Out for a Troubled Turkey | Arzu Kaya Uranli

Unity Is the Only Way Out for a Troubled Turkey

"I am so jealous of people who have a strong sense of belonging to a country," said Duaa, a 16-year-old college student. Then, she couldn't stop herself from bursting into tears and made most of us cry...

More:Unity Is the Only Way Out for a Troubled Turkey | Arzu Kaya Uranli

Talking Tough to Turkey by Marietje Schaake - Project Syndicate

Talking Tough to Turkey

BRUSSELS – When suicide bombers killed at least 97 people at a rally of pro-Kurdish activists and civic groups advocating peace between the Turkish government and the militant Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Ankara on October 10, the government’s response was as rapid as it was troubling. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu swiftly imposed a temporary broadcast ban on images of the terror attack, and many in the country reported that Twitter had been blocked on some of the most widely used mobile networks, including Turkcell and TTNET.

More:Talking Tough to Turkey by Marietje Schaake - Project Syndicate

Deepening Customs Union with EU will ‘create new narrative for Turkish economy’ - ECONOMICS

Deepening Customs Union with EU will ‘create new narrative for Turkish economy’

Güneş Kömürcüler - ISTANBUL

Deepening the current Customs Union deal between Turkey and the EU will enable the country to develop a new economic narrative, according to Sinan Ülgen, the founder of Istanbul Economics and a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe in Brussels.

More:Deepening Customs Union with EU will ‘create new narrative for Turkish economy’ - ECONOMICS

Renewed Kurdish conflict chokes economy in southeast Turkey - Times LIVE

Renewed Kurdish conflict chokes economy in southeast Turkey
AFP | 21 October, 2015 07:55

Just a few months ago, the Hasan Pasa caravansary in southeast Turkey was teeming with visitors, but now the market in the converted inn is deserted as scared shoppers stay away amid fresh violence in the Kurdish conflict.

More:Renewed Kurdish conflict chokes economy in southeast Turkey - Times LIVE

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

ISIS camp in Istanbul trained children as terrorists — RT News

ISIS camp in Istanbul trained children as terrorists
Published time: 20 Oct, 2015 11:43

Turkish police have detained dozens of ISIS-connected suspects, among them 24 under the age of 18, who are being trained to operate in Syria and Iraq as Islamic State’s militants.

The Istanbul Anti-Terror Directorate has arrested dozens of foreigners in one of the districts of Turkey's largest city. Those detained are suspected of getting ready to transfer to areas of Syria in Iraq under Islamic State's control, the Turkish daily Vatan reports.

More:ISIS camp in Istanbul trained children as terrorists — RT News

First image of Ankara suicide bombers on day of attack | Fulton News

First image of Ankara suicide bombers on day of attack

By Kristoff Saunders on October 20, 2015No Comment

- Security camera still shows suspects walking in street before blasts that killed 102

More:First image of Ankara suicide bombers on day of attack | Fulton News

Turkey’s AK Party Weighs CHP Coalition to Avoid Deadlock - Bloomberg Business

Turkey’s AK Party Weighs CHP Coalition to Avoid Deadlock
Selcan Hacaoglu
October 20, 2015 — 11:11 AM EEST

Turkey’s AK Party is weighing a possible coalition with the country’s biggest opposition party should next month’s election lead to another hung parliament, a move that may restore a measure of stability to a country swept by violence and political turmoil.

More:Turkey’s AK Party Weighs CHP Coalition to Avoid Deadlock - Bloomberg Business

ICG: Islamic State’s threat to Turkey | Daily Maverick

ICG: Islamic State’s threat to Turkey

On the eve of mid-November’s Group of 20 summit in Antalya, Turkish officials are in a race against time to restore confidence in a national security architecture which failed to prevent bombings in Ankara this month, in Suruç in July, as well as an Islamic State-inspired attack that killed five people in the majority Kurdish city of Diyarbakır in June. BERKAY MANDIRACI for INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP

More:ICG: Islamic State’s threat to Turkey | Daily Maverick