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Monday, August 31, 2015

Merkel calls on EU to mirror Turkey's help for refugees | Fulton News

Merkel calls on EU to mirror Turkey's help for refugees

By Drew Parker on August 31, 2015No Comment

– German chancellor praises Turkish assistance to millions of refugees from Syria

BERLIN – German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised Turkey on Monday for providing shelter to millions of Syrian refugees and urged Europe to share the responsibility.

More:Merkel calls on EU to mirror Turkey's help for refugees | Fulton News

Turkey produces almost five times more watermelons than Spain

Turkey produces almost five times more watermelons than Spain

In 2014, Turkey's watermelon production was almost five times greater than Spain's, according to data from the European Statistical Office (Eurostat).

More:Turkey produces almost five times more watermelons than Spain

CEE Explained: Turkey's rapidly changing landscape

CEE Explained: Turkey's rapidly changing landscape

By Nİlüfer Sezgin

For an economist covering the Turkish economy and politics, there is never a dull moment.

You could find yourself in the position of having to defend how much Turkey deserves an investment grade rating despite its huge external vulnerability (real sector’s open FX position corresponds to 24% of GDP), while the following year, you may have to discuss why rating agencies could cut the IG status because of the very same external vulnerability issue.

More:CEE Explained: Turkey's rapidly changing landscape

Turkish Exports See Worst July Since 2010 as Russia Slump Hurts - Bloomberg Business

Turkish Exports See Worst July Since 2010 as Russia Slump Hurts

Turkish exports fell to their lowest July figure since 2010 as shipments to Russia slumped by half from a year earlier.

More:Turkish Exports See Worst July Since 2010 as Russia Slump Hurts - Bloomberg Business

Istanbul circuit to be "used car lot" - Pitpass.com

Istanbul circuit to be "used car lot"

NEWS STORY
31/08/2015

Istanbul Park, which hosted seven rounds of the Formula One World Championship between 2005 and 2011, and described by Bernie Ecclestone as "the best race track in the world" is to be used as a car dealership.

More:Istanbul circuit to be "used car lot" - Pitpass.com

Press freedom groups demand release of journalists held in Turkey | Media | The Guardian

Press freedom groups demand release of journalists held in Turkey

Monday 31 August 2015 08.54 BST

Global rights and press freedom groups have called on the Turkish authorities to release journalists working for Vice News who were detained on Thursday (27 August) in the city of Diyarbakir in southeast Turkey.

More:Press freedom groups demand release of journalists held in Turkey | Media | The Guardian

Turkish Delegation to Visit Israel - Inside Israel - News - Arutz Sheva

Turkish Delegation to Visit Israel - Are Renewed Ties Coming?

For the first time since the Marmara incident, Israel will welcome a delegation from Turkey, in what some see as a step to renewal of ties.

More:Turkish Delegation to Visit Israel - Inside Israel - News - Arutz Sheva

LETTER FROM ISTANBUL: The Pluck o’ the Irish | Lost Coast Outpost | Humboldt County

LETTER FROM ISTANBUL: The Pluck o’ the Irish

James Tressler / Yesterday @ 8:26 a.m. / Letter From Istanbul

Violence can be ugly, brutal and life-threatening. Then again, at certain rare times, it can possess an arresting beauty. It can even be funny, too -– maybe not for the participants, but for those watching from a (safe) distance.

More:LETTER FROM ISTANBUL: The Pluck o’ the Irish | Lost Coast Outpost | Humboldt County

China’s economic earthquake also shakes Turkey - ECONOMICS

China’s economic earthquake also shakes Turkey

Mustafa Sönmez - mustafasnmz@hotmail.com
Competing with a powerful China, which has joined capitalism as a ‘unique’ actor, will be more difficult for Turkey, but more importantly competing with Chinese goods in the local market will also be tough

More:China’s economic earthquake also shakes Turkey - ECONOMICS

PKK Battle With Turkish Government Claims More Lives

PKK Battle With Turkish Government Claims More Lives
By Max Willens

The latest installment in a decadeslong battle between a Kurdish military group and the Turkish government claimed seven more lives Sunday, Agence France-Presse reported. Three police officers, three Kurdish rebels and a 12-year-old civilian boy lost their lives in separate parts of the country.

More:PKK Battle With Turkish Government Claims More Lives

Erdogan should focus on Turkey’s problems, not his grandiose ambitions - The Globe and Mail

Erdogan should focus on Turkey’s problems, not his grandiose ambitions

If at first you don’t succeed in June, try, try again in November, with a new election.

Such, at least, is the reasoning of a disappointed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, whose Justice and Development Party (AKP) failed to win a parliamentary majority two months ago.

More:Erdogan should focus on Turkey’s problems, not his grandiose ambitions - The Globe and Mail

What a Victory Day! - YUSUF KANLI

What a Victory Day!

Turkey was marking Sunday the anniversary of the Great Victory with ceremonies, limited to a presidential reception and commemorative events. With a Prime Ministry order, all festivities were banned. Why? Because of the national pain over the loss of beloved sons to terrorism related violence… A reason which has become routine of the country after the death of the three-year-old “Kurdish opening” during which the gang, apparently armed to the teeth, prepared for increased violence while those ruling the country were busy with some other petty things, such as elevating themselves to all powerful positions.

More:What a Victory Day! - YUSUF KANLI

Politics of farce in Turkey - NURAY MERT

Politics of farce in Turkey

When I expressed my concerns about the signs of a move from authoritarian rule to fascist political discourse in Turkey (in daily Cumhuriyet last week), I only wanted to underline the danger of ever increasing militarization and “statization” of politics and party in the country.

More:Politics of farce in Turkey - NURAY MERT

Isis attack was against Turkey, not just Kurds, and it is a threat to all the world | Letter from Abdurrahman Bilgiç Turkish ambassador to the UK | World news | The Guardian

Isis attack was against Turkey, not just Kurds, and it is a threat to all the world

The letter from Diane Abbott and others (Western bombs will not stop Isis in Syria, 25 August) needs some clarification. The Isis/Daesh attack in Suruç was not against the Kurds, but against Turkey and Turkish citizens. Not all victims of this attack were of Kurdish origin. Daesh poses a direct and imminent threat not only to Turkey or the other countries in the region, but also to Europe, other western countries and all citizens of the world.

More:Isis attack was against Turkey, not just Kurds, and it is a threat to all the world | Letter from Abdurrahman Bilgiç Turkish ambassador to the UK | World news | The Guardian

Sunday, August 30, 2015

Editorial: Erdogan goes all in | Boston Herald

Editorial: Erdogan goes all in
Sunday, August 30, 2015

Friends of Turkey no doubt hope for another rebuke to the government in a special election now set for Nov. 1. However, the government’s contradictory policies are unlikely to be clarified in any outcome.

More:Editorial: Erdogan goes all in | Boston Herald

Saturday, August 29, 2015

Turkish rule of law, judicial independence and separation of powers on hold

Turkish rule of law, judicial independence and separation of powers on hold

Between the government not enforcing rulings by the Constitutional Court or the Council of State, ignoring legal decisions to reverse politically motivated appointments of the HSYK and rejecting reinstatement cases for unlawfully terminated personnel, Turkey no longer has any rule of law.

More:Turkish rule of law, judicial independence and separation of powers on hold

Turkish jets join air campaign against Islamic State - The Globe and Mail

Turkish jets join air campaign against Islamic State

Suzan Fraser

ANKARA, Turkey — The Associated Press

Published Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015 9:34AM EDT

Turkey announced Saturday that its fighter jets have carried out their first airstrikes as part of the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Syria.

More:Turkish jets join air campaign against Islamic State - The Globe and Mail

Bangkok bomb suspect ‘Turkish national’, say Thai officials

Bangkok bomb suspect ‘Turkish national’, say Thai officials

Bangkok, August 29
A man resembling the prime suspect in Thailand's worst terror attack here that killed 20 people, who was today arrested with dozens of passports and several bomb-making tools and materials, is a Turkish national, security officials said today.

More:Bangkok bomb suspect ‘Turkish national’, say Thai officials

Death of a peace process: martial law returns to Turkey | openDemocracy

Death of a peace process: martial law returns to Turkey
International State Crime Initiative 29 August 2015

Turkey has placed the Kurds and their struggle for human rights within a state of exception – outside the protections of due process of law.

More:Death of a peace process: martial law returns to Turkey | openDemocracy

Court refuses Erdoğan’s appeal for monetary compensation by main opposition leader - POLITICS

Court refuses Erdoğan’s appeal for monetary compensation by main opposition leader

Mesut Hasan BENLİ - ANKARA

A court in Ankara has refused an appeal for payment of compensation to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, citing the political parties’ right to oppose.

Erdoğan previously took Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to the court for remarks in which he said, “The murderer of 51 people in Reyhanlı is Recep Tayyip Erdoğan” and asked for payment of 1 million Turkish Liras.

More:Court refuses Erdoğan’s appeal for monetary compensation by main opposition leader - POLITICS

Evidence of Ergenekon epic found in Altay Mountains - ARCHAEOLOGY

Evidence of Ergenekon epic found in Altay Mountains

ISTANBUL
An international seminar held recently in Kazakhstan with the participation of leading historians and archaeologists provided information about findings in the Altay Mountains

More:Evidence of Ergenekon epic found in Altay Mountains - ARCHAEOLOGY

Turkey's first election gov't comes with more firsts - POLITICS

Turkey's first election gov't comes with more firsts

ANKARA
For the first time in Turkey's history, a Kurdish problem-focused party takes part in a government. Three figures from two opposition parties, the HDP and the MHP, have taken the seats of EU Minister and Development Minister, as well as Deputy Prime Minister, in Davutoğlu's interim government, approved by President Erdoğan. Turkey now also has a new Foreign Minister and a new deputy prime minister in charge of the economy, as well as the first female minister wearing an Islamic headscarf

More:Turkey's first election gov't comes with more firsts - POLITICS

Mounting toll of Turkey's 'martyrs' stirs controversy | World | Dunya News

Mounting toll of Turkey's 'martyrs' stirs controversy
Last Updated On 29 August,2015 About 0 seconds from now

ISTANBUL (AFP) - It has become a familiar scene in Turkey over the past month. Another soldier is laid to rest, parents grieving as the coffin is draped with the Turkish flag under the merciless glare of television cameras.

More:Mounting toll of Turkey's 'martyrs' stirs controversy | World | Dunya News

Friday, August 28, 2015

Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20

Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20
Middle East
03:10 29.08.2015(updated 03:26 29.08.2015) Get short URL

ANKARA (Sputnik) – A police bus exploded in Turkey injuring 24 people, when a bomb planted at an overpass in the southeastern Mardin Province was detonated by Kurdish militants, The Daily Sabah reports citing security sources.

More:Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20

Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20

Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20
Middle East
03:10 29.08.2015(updated 03:26 29.08.2015) Get short URL

ANKARA (Sputnik) – A police bus exploded in Turkey injuring 24 people, when a bomb planted at an overpass in the southeastern Mardin Province was detonated by Kurdish militants, The Daily Sabah reports citing security sources.

More:Kurdish Militants Blow Up Police Bus in Turkey Injuring Over 20

Germany wants camps in Italy, Greece, Turkey to sort through migrants seeking asylum | euronews, world news

Germany wants camps in Italy, Greece, Turkey to sort through migrants seeking asylum

28/08 11:30 CET

"We must distinguish those who are truly in need of protection from those who do not need protection -- who need to be treated fairly, but then must leave our country"

More:Germany wants camps in Italy, Greece, Turkey to sort through migrants seeking asylum | euronews, world news

Europe - Turkey forms interim government with pro-Kurdish party - France 24

Turkey forms interim government with pro-Kurdish party

Latest update : 2015-08-28
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday approved the makeup of the provisional government that will run the country until November 1 elections, including for the first time pro-Kurdish MPs.

More:Europe - Turkey forms interim government with pro-Kurdish party - France 24

Keeping the revolution alive

Keeping the revolution alive

The focus of the violent Syrian conflict has shifted from atrocities committed by the Assad regime to IS. But activists who joined peaceful protests four years ago say their commitment to the revolution hasn't dimmed. By Ruby Russell and Louise Osborne

More:Keeping the revolution alive

British Journalists Detained in Turkey - ABC News

British Journalists Detained in Turkey
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey — Aug 28, 2015, 12:09 PM ET
By MUCAHIT CEYLAN and SUZAN FRASER
Associated Press

Two British journalists were detained along with their fixer while reporting from the main city in Turkey's mostly Kurdish southeast, where renewed fighting between the security forces and Kurdish rebels has killed scores of people, officials and reports said Friday.

More:British Journalists Detained in Turkey - ABC News

Emboldened by $5.2 bln Brazil deal, HSBC drags feet in Turkey -sources | Reuters

Emboldened by $5.2 bln Brazil deal, HSBC drags feet in Turkey -sources
ISTANBUL | By Nevzat Devranoglu and Asli Kandemir

Aug 28 HSBC is dragging its feet on the sale of its Turkish business to ING Group, two sources familiar with the matter said, as the bank is no longer in a hurry to exit Turkey after securing a hefty $5.2 billion for its Brazilian unit.

More:Emboldened by $5.2 bln Brazil deal, HSBC drags feet in Turkey -sources | Reuters

Exclusive: EU should create immigrant processing centre in Turkey, says German minister | euronews, world news

Exclusive: EU should create immigrant processing centre in Turkey, says German minister

28/08 10:15 CET

The European Union should set up a refugee camp in Turkey where immigration requests could be processed, Germany’s interior minister has said.

In an interview with euronews to air tonight, Thomas de Maizière proposed an approach to ease the plight of refugees while also address the border crisis faced by southern EU countries.

More:Exclusive: EU should create immigrant processing centre in Turkey, says German minister | euronews, world news

Turkish poll shows falling level of support for AK Party - Business Insider

Turkish poll shows falling level of support for AK Party

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's ruling AK Party is not seen winning enough votes to form a single-party government in a Nov. 1 snap election with 38.9 percent support, down from 40.7 percent in the June election, the latest survey from pollster Gezici indicated.

More:Turkish poll shows falling level of support for AK Party - Business Insider

Turkish soccer supports Erdogan's war against the Kurds | James Dorsey

Turkish soccer supports Erdogan's war against the Kurds
Posted: 08/28/2015 12:31 am EDT Updated: 08/28/2015 12:59 am EDT

By James M. Dorsey

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF), in a demonstration of the inseparable ties between sports and politics, has effectively declared its support for renewed Turkish-Kurdish hostilities designed to enhance the prospects of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party in forthcoming snap elections.

More:Turkish soccer supports Erdogan's war against the Kurds | James Dorsey

Terror and economic crisis, the dark year of Turkish tourism - Economy - ANSAMed.it

Terror and economic crisis, the dark year of Turkish tourism
Arrivals plummet over instability, weak ruble. Italians down

27 August, 14:46

(by Cristoforo Spinella) (ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, AUGUST 27 - Security concerns following the conflict with ISIS and Kurdish PKK, recent terror attacks also in Istanbul, the fall of the ruble and low-cost Greece has led to a very poor year for tourism in Turkey as the summer season draws to an end.

More:Terror and economic crisis, the dark year of Turkish tourism - Economy - ANSAMed.it

Operation Türkeş: The start of a battle - YUSUF KANLI

Operation Türkeş: The start of a battle

Sociologists and psychiatrists might eventually come up with an answer, but no seismologist would succeed in measuring the scale of the massive quake in the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). How could anyone think of the possibility of someone carrying the surname of the founding father of the “nationalist struggle” abandoning the struggle and aligning with – as the MHP has been claiming – alleged “thieves” and “partners in the process of the dissolution of the Turkish state?”

More:Operation Türkeş: The start of a battle - YUSUF KANLI

The president’s existential war - BURAK BEKDİL

The president’s existential war

His Majesty has said he believed early elections on Nov. 1 would “clear up the problems created by the June 7” parliamentary elections. The problems? His (and his Grand Vizier’s) problems. 60 percent of Turks (and Kurds) have no problem about the fact that the president’s popularity shrank to 40 percent on June 7. He wants to roll the dice again for he has nothing to lose. So, let him roll the dice again; this is the president’s existential war.

More:The president’s existential war - BURAK BEKDİL

Erdogan has second shot at one-man rule - FT.com

Erdogan has second shot at one-man rule

David Gardner David Gardner

The assault on the PKK and siege in the south-east are a naked bid for nationalist votes

More:Erdogan has second shot at one-man rule - FT.com

Turkey and the EU’s Self-Righteousness - The Globalist

Turkey and the EU’s Self-Righteousness

Europe tends to belittle the vitality of the political debate inside Turkey and the creativity of its civil society.

More:Turkey and the EU’s Self-Righteousness - The Globalist

Thursday, August 27, 2015

The Turkstream Dream

The Turkstream Dream

Published by Joshua Noonan
August 27, 2015

On 10 August, a key Kremlin official stated that the Turkish government is looking over offers concerning the construction of the proposed Turk Stream pipeline. This follows the February survey activities of the Russian gas giant, Gazprom which surveyed a 110-mile long section land route. This trans-Euxine pipeline was proposed after the European Union blocked the construction of the South Stream pipeline on market-concentration grounds. As a riposte to this action Gazprom, with the support of the Russian government, proposed the construction of Turkstream. According to the Kremlin official “currently, the Turkish side is considering the offers” while Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak stated in early August that the government was ready to sign a partial intergovernmental agreement within weeks.

More:Silk Road Reporters

Hotel Construction in Turkey is at an All-Time High

Hotel Construction in Turkey is at an All-Time High

Thursday, 27 August 2015 11:36
Published by Ozgur Tore

Turkey is now the 6th most visited country in the world with 41 million tourists in 2014. To be able to accommodate more tourists in the country, new hotels are needed. An exclusive new report reveals that hotel construction in Turkey is at an all-time high with 74 projects and 12,968 new rooms in the pipeline.

More:Hotel Construction in Turkey is at an All-Time High

S&M Publication celebrates 25th anniversary

S&M Publication celebrates 25th anniversary

Thursday, 27 August 2015 23:01
Published by Ozgur Tore

S&M Publication, Turkey’s leading travel publication house, celebrated its 25th year in a cocktail held at Hotel Suadiye in Istanbul. Participants at the cocktail adopted a sea turtle, caretta caretta, in Belek, Turkey and contributed the continuity of marine and coastal ecosystem.

More:S&M Publication celebrates 25th anniversary

Turkish Ground Services now provides services in 6 languages

Turkish Ground Services now provides services in 6 languages

Thursday, 27 August 2015 12:31
Published by Ozgur Tore

Turkish Airlines continues to implement significant investments designed to bring the passenger experience to a new level. Its successful ground operations partner, TGS (Turkish Ground Services), is now providing services in 6 languages in order to meet the demands of its foreign passengers who do not speak English.

More:Turkish Ground Services now provides services in 6 languages

What's the greatest risk to Turkey's economy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

What's the greatest risk to Turkey's economy?

Any one of the following problems would ring alarm bells for an emerging market: a slowing economy, rising inflation, distrustful citizens exchanging local currency deposits for dollars whenever possible, a rising tide of violence scaring away foreign tourists and hurting hard currency reserves and concerned foreign investors eyeing the exit because of a bearish stock exchange and a possible hike in interest rates by the US Federal Reserve.

More:What's the greatest risk to Turkey's economy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Islamic State Takes New Ground Near Turkish Border

Islamic State Takes New Ground Near Turkish Border

August 27, 2015 11:46 AM
BEIRUT—

Islamic State has seized new territory from Syrian rebels in northern Syria, advancing in an area where Turkey and the United States are planning to open a new front against the group in coordination with insurgents on the ground.

More:Islamic State Takes New Ground Near Turkish Border

'A dangerous cocktail' is brewing in Turkey - Business Insider

'A dangerous cocktail' is brewing in Turkey

Natasha Bertrand

Just over one month after Turkey launched a two-front war against ISIS in northern Syria and the Kurdish PKK in Iraq, the country is facing violent blowback within its borders.

More:'A dangerous cocktail' is brewing in Turkey - Business Insider

Turkey's Snap Elections: Erdoğan is forcing his people to take sides | Informed Comment

Turkey’s Snap Elections: Erdoğan is forcing his people to take sides
By contributors | Aug. 27, 2015 |

By Bahar Baser and Ahmet Erdi Öztürk | (The Conversation) | – –

Ever since the June 2015 elections, which thwarted the proposed presidential system that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has long craved, Turkey has been hurtling into one of its most turbulent periods in decades. And with a snap election called for November 2015, the country’s political factions are facing off in an ever more violent and bitter fashion.

More:Turkey's Snap Elections: Erdoğan is forcing his people to take sides | Informed Comment

Insight - Renewed Kurdish conflict angers Turks, overshadows election | Reuters

Insight - Renewed Kurdish conflict angers Turks, overshadows election
ISTANBUL | By Daren Butler

Clinging to his brother's coffin, draped in the red Turkish flag, Lieutenant Colonel Mehmet Alkan's outburst was a rare public show of defiance from a serving officer as Turkish jets bombard Kurdish militants.

More:Insight - Renewed Kurdish conflict angers Turks, overshadows election | Reuters

The gambler | The Economist

The gambler
The president rolls the dice by calling new elections
Aug 29th 2015 | ISTANBUL | From the print edition

WHEN he became Turkey’s first popularly elected head of state last year, Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to be no “ordinary president”. Departing from political tradition once more, he has now called early elections for the first time in the country’s modern history after his Justice and Development party (AK) lost its 12-year majority in parliament on June 7th and failed to form a coalition government.

More:The gambler | The Economist

Turkey's Kurdish militants 'funded by drug trafficking' Anadolu Agency

Turkey's Kurdish militants 'funded by drug trafficking'

27 August 2015 17:49
Official says Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) takes up to $2.5 billion annually from drug trade

ANKARA

The Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) is partly financing its renewed armed campaign against the Turkish state through drug trafficking, a senior Turkish government official said Thursday.

More:Turkey's Kurdish militants 'funded by drug trafficking' Anadolu Agency

Islamic State takes 5 Syrian villages near Turkish border - The Globe and Mail

Islamic State takes 5 Syrian villages near Turkish border

BEIRUT — Reuters

Published Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015 4:23AM EDT

Islamic State has seized new territory from Syrian rebels in northern Syria, advancing in an area where Turkey and the United States are planning to open a new front against the group.

More:Islamic State takes 5 Syrian villages near Turkish border - The Globe and Mail

America’s Dangerous Bargain With Turkey - The New York Times

America’s Dangerous Bargain With Turkey

WASHINGTON- AFTER a year of intense diplomatic negotiations, the Turkish government is now permitting the United States to use Turkey’s Incirlik Air Base, which will allow American aircraft to fly missions in Syria and Iraq with greater operational effectiveness and economic efficiency.

More:America’s Dangerous Bargain With Turkey - The New York Times

Thai police look into Turkish connection in Bangkok blast | Reuters

Thai police look into Turkish connection in Bangkok blast
BANGKOK | By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Aukkarapon Niyomyat

Thai police said on Thursday they were looking at arrivals of Turkish nationals in the days before a Bangkok bomb attack that killed 20 people, but authorities in Turkey said they had received no request for assistance with the investigation.

More:Thai police look into Turkish connection in Bangkok blast | Reuters

Election Poll Shows Turkey's Ruling Party Unlikely To Gain Majority

Election Poll Shows Turkey's Ruling Party Unlikely To Gain Majority

ANKARA, Aug 26 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu invited high profile opposition figures to join an interim cabinet on Wednesday, two months before a snap election at which his ruling AK Party may not recover its parliamentary majority.

More:Election Poll Shows Turkey's Ruling Party Unlikely To Gain Majority

‘Erdoğan saved you from the army, who will save you from Erdoğan?’ My answer... - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

‘Erdoğan saved you from the army, who will save you from Erdoğan?’ My answer...

The question in the title was asked by veteran journalist Metin Münir in an article published on online news portal T24.

Münir, a friend and a colleague who I respect a lot, had never trusted the Justice and Development Party (AKP). That is why he was one of the first journalists to be fired by the newspaper where he worked, penning articles with solid criticism based on concrete facts - rather than on empty rhetoric or insults. When he left active journalism in Turkey and settled in Turkish Cyprus, the AKP was still in its “glory years.”

More:‘Erdoğan saved you from the army, who will save you from Erdoğan?’ My answer... - BARÇIN YİNANÇ

The transformation of Turkey’s state identity - FOLDED CORNER

The transformation of Turkey’s state identity

William Armstrong - william.armstrong@hdn.com.tr

‘National and State Identity in Turkey: The Transformation of the Republic’s Status in the International System’ by Toni Alaranta (Rowman, 192 pages, $75)

The title of this book by Finnish academic Toni Alaranta may be very dull, but its content is tightly argued and full of food for thought. Its argument is powerful: The ascendance of the populist Islamist movement that still dominates Turkey’s politics was crucially aided by the post-Cold War, post-9/11 international political landscape, favorable economic headwinds, and the overwhelming academic trend of postmodern relativism. Backed by a formidable bibliography, Alaranta shows how for the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and now-President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a tale of democratization and liberalization at home and abroad conveniently masked a crude power-grab. The result is the authoritarian and paranoid state we see today.

More:The transformation of Turkey’s state identity - FOLDED CORNER

Erdogan Gives Turkey Preview of Collapse Before It Votes Again - Bloomberg Business

Erdogan Gives Turkey Preview of Collapse Before It Votes Again
Onur Ant Benjamin Harvey
August 26, 2015 — 7:01 PM EDT

His dream of becoming Turkey’s most powerful president in a century on hold, Recep Tayyip Erdogan is giving voters a preview of what he says is at a stake.

More:Erdogan Gives Turkey Preview of Collapse Before It Votes Again - Bloomberg Business

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Erdogan’s war backfires - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Erdogan’s war backfires

Turkey is heading to snap elections Nov. 1 after a coalition or minority government could not be formed in the wake of the June 7 elections that ended the parliamentary majority of the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Under constitutional rules, a cross-party interim government, which is yet to be formed, will rule the country until the elections.

More:Erdogan’s war backfires - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

35,000 tons of Turkish citrus to sell next season

35,000 tons of Turkish citrus to sell next season

R&F Import Export BV is a new company that was founded February 1, 2014. From Massland, the Netherlands Frans Schwiebbe and his partner organize the sales of Turkish citrus, in the European retail sector, from nine growers. R&F Import Export owns the Agromall packaging center and growers' cooperative in Mersin, Turkey, where the citrus is packaged according to Western standards. The new Turkish citrus season is about to begin, "We have to sell 35,000 tons of citrus this upcoming season (from September to May)!"

More:35,000 tons of Turkish citrus to sell next season

Politics and diplomacy in Turkey: time to talk | openDemocracy

Politics and diplomacy in Turkey: time to talk
William Gourlay 26 August 2015

The news coming out of Turkey at present is hardly cause for optimism. The political arena is paralysed with the failure of coalition talks in the wake of the inconclusive election of 7 June. Society is increasingly polarised and incidents of vigilante violence appear to be escalating. The military conflict against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), in abeyance for several years, has reignited, and there is confusion over Turkey’s role in the international fight against ISIS. This spiral of unfortunate circumstances has prompted some to query whether Turkey is heading towards civil war.

More:Politics and diplomacy in Turkey: time to talk | openDemocracy

A Kurdish Political Star in Turkey Confronts Escalating Violence - The New York Times

A Kurdish Political Star in Turkey Confronts Escalating Violence

By CEYLAN YEGINSUAUG. 26, 2015

ANKARA, Turkey — Emerging from a daylong meeting with party officials, Selahattin Demirtas was anything but the dynamic Kurdish politician whose coolness and rhetorical skill have evoked comparisons to President Obama. He was frazzled as he paced back and forth, addressing his advisers before charging into his next meeting, vowing to bring an end to the reignited war between the Turkish state and Kurdish militants.

More:A Kurdish Political Star in Turkey Confronts Escalating Violence - The New York Times

Turkey's Election Appears to Be All About Erdogan

Turkey's Election Appears to Be All About Erdogan

Jamie Dettmer

August 26, 2015 10:59 AM
ISTANBUL—

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s name won’t appear on any of the ballot papers Turks will be presented with on November 1 but no one here doubts that the parliamentary elections — the second this year — will be dominated by Turkey’s controversial leader and his often-stated aim to grab more power for himself.

More:Turkey's Election Appears to Be All About Erdogan

Turkey PM invites pro-Kurdish MPs into caretaker cabinet | GulfNews.com

Turkey PM invites pro-Kurdish MPs into caretaker cabinet

If accepted it will be first time in Turkish history pro-Kurdish party members sit in cabinet

Ankara: Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Wednesday invited three lawmakers from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) to join an interim government to take Turkey to November 1 elections.

More:Turkey PM invites pro-Kurdish MPs into caretaker cabinet | GulfNews.com

Emerging Markets: A Do-Over in Turkey? - NASDAQ.com

Emerging Markets: A Do-Over in Turkey?
By Peter Kohli, August 26, 2015, 09:56:46 AM EDT

Sometimes I get the feeling that the political and economic situations in Turkey are beginning to unravel at the hands of one man. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was Turkey’s prime minister three times and is now president, appears to be upset that back in June when parliamentary elections were held, the voters “had the temerity to deny his ruling Justice and Development Party a fourth consecutive parliamentary majority,” as the Financial Times put it. It seems that he wants one-party rule.

More:Emerging Markets: A Do-Over in Turkey? - NASDAQ.com

Turkish poverty line jumps TL 366 amid rising food prices

Turkish poverty line jumps TL 366 amid rising food prices

August 26, 2015, Wednesday/ 16:41:02/ TODAY'S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL

The poverty threshold for a family of four has risen from TL 4,014 at the end of last year to TL 4,378 in August, primarily due to a protracted surge in Turkish food prices, the Confederation of Turkish Labor Unions (Türk-İş) said in a report on Wednesday.

More:Turkish poverty line jumps TL 366 amid rising food prices

Young Kurds take up arms as clashes increase in south-east Turkey - FT.com

Young Kurds take up arms as clashes increase in south-east Turkey

Piotr Zalewski in Cizre

In Kurdish parlance, “going up to the mountains” has always meant joining the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK), the armed group ensconced in the highlands of northern Iraq. But in Cizre, a Turkish town on the border with Syria, the phrase may be losing its meaning amid a violent stand-off between Kurdish militants and Turkish security forces.

More:Young Kurds take up arms as clashes increase in south-east Turkey - FT.com

Erdogan says Turkish interest rates must fall to boost investment | Reuters

Erdogan says Turkish interest rates must fall to boost investment
ANKARA

Aug 26 President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday Turkish interest rates must come down to boost investments, returning to a theme which he addressed repeatedly before a June election, when he called for lower rates to boost growth.

More:Erdogan says Turkish interest rates must fall to boost investment | Reuters

Turkey’s election fatigue | Middle East Eye

Turkey’s election fatigue

Turkey emerged from the 7 June 2015 election with a hung parliament. As this election terminated Turkey's governing AK Party's uninterrupted 13-year rule, the business of forming a coalition government was once again in play.

More:Turkey’s election fatigue | Middle East Eye

Turkey ready for anti-IS strikes: Pentagon | The New Age Online

Turkey ready for anti-IS strikes: Pentagon

Turkey is now ready to fully participate in coalition strikes against the Islamic State group and may do so within days, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

More:Turkey ready for anti-IS strikes: Pentagon | The New Age Online

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Turkish hoteliers’ last minute hope continues with local travelers

Turkish hoteliers’ last minute hope continues with local travelers

Tuesday, 25 August 2015 12:42

From the first months of 2015, Turkish tourism professionals have predicted the decline in tourist arrivals especially from Russia which is one of the most important source markets of the Turkish tourism industry. In parallel to tourist arrivals, tourism income figures also decline. However, Turkish tourism industry had hopes of recovery with the last minute sales.

More:Turkish hoteliers’ last minute hope continues with local travelers

A Power Grab in Turkey - WSJ

A Power Grab in Turkey
Erdogan blocks a coalition government to force another election.

Aug. 25, 2015 7:14 p.m. ET

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called snap parliamentary elections on Monday, more than two months after voters deprived his Justice and Development Party, or AKP, of an outright parliamentary majority. That vote was a repudiation of his bid to transform the country into a presidential system. Now he gets a chance at an unprecedented redo.

More:A Power Grab in Turkey - WSJ

Turkish Stocks End Worst Rout Since Graft Probe as Lira Advances - Bloomberg Business

Turkish Stocks End Worst Rout Since Graft Probe as Lira Advances
Constantine Courcoulas
August 25, 2015 — 4:33 AM EDT

Turkish stocks ended their worst rout in 20 months and the lira strengthened after China’s steps to stimulate its economy bolstered appetite for riskier assets.

More:Turkish Stocks End Worst Rout Since Graft Probe as Lira Advances - Bloomberg Business

U.S. works with Turkey on ISIS but is wary of its politics - CNNPolitics.com

U.S. works with Turkey on ISIS but is wary of its politics

By Laura Koran

Updated 7:33 PM ET, Tue August 25, 2015

Washington (CNN)Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has placed the Obama administration in a delicate position -- stepping up his country's involvement in the war on ISIS at precisely the moment he is making a power play to solidify his position as Turkey's leader.

More:U.S. works with Turkey on ISIS but is wary of its politics - CNNPolitics.com

Will Erdogan’s big gamble pay off? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Will Erdogan’s big gamble pay off?

Despite his weakened position following the June 7 elections, which saw the Justice and Development Party (AKP) he once led lose its parliamentary majority, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is continuing with his efforts to show who is boss when it comes to crucial political decisions in Turkey. In doing so, however, he is also continuing to disregard the Turkish Constitution and the political propriety required of him as president.

More:Will Erdogan’s big gamble pay off? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Is Erdogan afraid of poking the IS bear? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Is Erdogan afraid of poking the IS bear?

On Aug. 17, news broke that the Islamic State (IS) released a video threatening Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the seven-minute video, three men with rifles sit cross-legged in rocky terrain. Only the one with the graying beard, known by the alias Abu Ammar, speaks in fluent Turkish, with carefully repeated Arabic sayings spread throughout the message.

More:Is Erdogan afraid of poking the IS bear? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction | Reuters

Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction
ANKARA | By Tulay Karadeniz and Gulsen Solaker

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday called on reluctant opposition parties to join an interim government ahead of new elections, but two refused and the third, a pro-Kurdish party, said it doubted he was serious.

More:Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction | Reuters

Pro-Kurdish Party Seen as Wildcard in Turkey Snap Poll

Pro-Kurdish Party Seen as Wildcard in Turkey Snap Poll

Dorian Jones

Last updated on: August 25, 2015 3:04 PM
ISTANBUL, TURKEY—

Turkey's snap parliamentary election is scheduled to take place November 1, and much attention will be focused on the performance of the pro-Kurdish HDP party.

More:Pro-Kurdish Party Seen as Wildcard in Turkey Snap Poll

Do they have murder in mind? Yes, they do. It's an Istanbul mystery fest in honor of Agatha Christie - LA Times

Do they have murder in mind? Yes, they do. It's an Istanbul mystery fest in honor of Agatha Christie
Pera Palace Hotel Jumeirah

The Pera Palace Hotel Jumeirah in Istanbul opened in 1892 primarily to serve guests of the luxury Orient Express train from Europe to Asia. The modern-day hotel claims that mystery writer and regular guest Agatha Christie wrote her most famous book "Murder on the Orient Express" in the hotel's Room 411.

More:Do they have murder in mind? Yes, they do. It's an Istanbul mystery fest in honor of Agatha Christie - LA Times

Is the majestic and secular Turkey ready for its horde of tourists? – The Express Tribune Blog

Is the majestic and secular Turkey ready for its horde of tourists?
By Khizr Imran 4 hours ago

Essentially, Istanbul closes its doors to no one, and is always willing to accommodate the influx of en masse tourists.

Nearly 42 million tourists flocked to Turkey last year, generating over $36 billion in revenue for its tourism industry and this year, Turkey is expecting more tourists than ever before.

More:Is the majestic and secular Turkey ready for its horde of tourists? – The Express Tribune Blog

Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction | Reuters

Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction
ANKARA | By Tulay Karadeniz and Gulsen Solaker

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday called on reluctant opposition parties to join an interim government ahead of new elections, but two refused and the third, a pro-Kurdish party, said it doubted he was serious.

More:Turkish PM begins work on new cabinet, Kurds see friction | Reuters

Shah Deniz gas pipeline flow halted by explosion in Turkey: officials | Reuters

Shah Deniz gas pipeline flow halted by explosion in Turkey: officials
ANKARA

Gas flow on the Shah Deniz pipeline carrying natural gas from Azerbaijan was halted by an explosion in Turkey on Monday evening, energy sector officials said, with one saying it was thought Kurdish militants had sabotaged the pipeline.

More:Shah Deniz gas pipeline flow halted by explosion in Turkey: officials | Reuters

Turkey’s G20 Summit approaches

Turkey’s G20 Summit approaches
25 August 2015 3:35PM

By Tristram Sainsbury, a Research Fellow in the Lowy Institute G20 Studies Centre, and Hannah Wurf, a Research Associate in the G20 Studies Centre.

Next week, G20 finance ministers and central bank governors will gather for their third meeting during Turkey's presidency. With just two and half months until leaders assemble in Antalya for this year's summit, these meetings give the G20 an opportunity to confirm 2015 outcomes and demonstrate that the G20 remains the premier forum for international economic cooperation.

More:Turkey’s G20 Summit approaches

Gruesome remains of Turkish Cypriot missing uncovered, says ‘foreign ministry’ - Cyprus Mail Cyprus Mail

Gruesome remains of Turkish Cypriot missing uncovered, says ‘foreign ministry’

August 25th, 2015 Cyprus 47 Comments

By Jean Christou

The remains of two Turkish Cypriot men murdered and buried in their car in a charcoal pit outside Kyrenia on Christmas Day 1963 have been uncovered during excavations by the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP), the ‘foreign ministry’ in the north said in a release on Monday.

More:Gruesome remains of Turkish Cypriot missing uncovered, says ‘foreign ministry’ - Cyprus Mail Cyprus Mail

Turkey’s Erdogan fights for his throne by battling Kurds – but will voters buy it? - Cyprus Mail Cyprus Mail

Turkey’s Erdogan fights for his throne by battling Kurds – but will voters buy it?

August 25th, 2015 Comment 3 Comments

If democracy is the art of compromise, then Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no democrat. And if democracy means listening to the electorate and respecting the spirit of parliamentary procedure – then he fails on these criteria as well.

More:Turkey’s Erdogan fights for his throne by battling Kurds – but will voters buy it? - Cyprus Mail Cyprus Mail

Turkish pro-government press cruelly attacking relatives of fallen soldiers

Turkish pro-government press cruelly attacking relatives of fallen soldiers

Relatives of fallen Turkish soldiers who criticize the government for the escalation of violence in recent weeks are the latest targets of the pro-government press and the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) social media army, accusing them of belonging to terrorist organizations.

More:Turkish pro-government press cruelly attacking relatives of fallen soldiers

Orwell’s 1984 comes to life in Erdogan’s 2015 Turkey - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Orwell’s 1984 comes to life in Erdogan’s 2015 Turkey

In his cult novel "1984," George Orwell described a dystopian world of people under constant government surveillance. In a letter to an American trade unionist, Orwell wrote he believed a society similar to the one he imagined could one day become a reality. The world we live in today may not be the exact nightmare the writer imagined, but it often fills us with fear that our lives are closely monitored. This may explain why "1984" has been back on the best-seller list in Turkey in recent years. Its popularity may surge even further after the country’s more than 50,000 mukhtars — leaders of neighborhoods and villages — were tasked with informing the government on fellow residents.

More:Orwell’s 1984 comes to life in Erdogan’s 2015 Turkey - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Turkish men not so worried about worry beads - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Turkish men not so worried about worry beads

There is a strong bond between men and beads in Turkey. Tesbih — worry or prayer beads — are used by men from all walks of life in Turkey and are an essential accessory to long, passionate debates. Tesbih could be the easiest topic of conversation started in male-dominated coffee houses or upscale social clubs in Turkey. Despite growing female interest in tesbihs, they are still an almost-exclusively male domain. The artisans, designers, salespeople and customers are almost all men. It is even seen as a sign of strong masculinity in different communities in Turkey.

More:Turkish men not so worried about worry beads - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Syrian rebels: Turkey tipped al Qaida group to U.S.-trained fighters | Miami Herald

Syrian rebels: Turkey tipped al Qaida group to U.S.-trained fighters

GAZIANTEP, Turkey

The kidnapping of a group of U.S.-trained moderate Syrians moments after they entered Syria last month to confront the Islamic State was orchestrated by Turkish intelligence, multiple rebel sources have told McClatchy.

More:Syrian rebels: Turkey tipped al Qaida group to U.S.-trained fighters | Miami Herald

Monday, August 24, 2015

Erickson Secures Turkish Firefighting Contract - MarketWatch

Erickson Secures Turkish Firefighting Contract

Published: Aug 24, 2015 6:08 p.m. ET

PORTLAND, Ore., Aug 24, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE via COMTEX) --

Erickson Incorporated EAC, -6.25% a leading global provider of aviation services, is pleased to announce today that it has been selected by Pan Aviation to provide emergency fire suppression support for the Municipality of Istanbul and the surrounding areas of Turkey. The agreement calls for the use of one specialized S-64E Aircrane to assist with regional fire suppression and emergency response operations 365 days a year for two years.

More:Erickson Secures Turkish Firefighting Contract - MarketWatch

Insecurity Threatens Planned Turkey Poll

Insecurity Threatens Planned Turkey Poll

Dorian Jones

August 24, 2015 1:23 PM
ISTANBUL—

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the country will go to the polls again in November, after talks to form a coalition government in the wake of June’s inconclusive election failed. But there are growing concerns over the upcoming vote amid renewed fighting with the PKK Kurdish rebel group and threats from the Islamic State.

More:Insecurity Threatens Planned Turkey Poll

The different faces of Turkey’s economic miracle

The many faces of Turkey’s economic miracle
#Economy

Abdurrahman earns minimum wage - roughly 1,000 Turkish liras ($339) - and has to provide for his wife and four children

More:The different faces of Turkey’s economic miracle

Thailand's Shrine Bombing - The Case For Turkey's Grey Wolves - Forbes

Thailand's Shrine Bombing - The Case For Turkey's Grey Wolves

Susan Cunningham

The most likely perpetrators of the deadly Bangkok bombing last week were militant members of a right-wing Turkish organization infuriated by the Thai government’s forcible repatriation of Uighur refugees back to China. Anthony Davis, a veteran security analyst with IHS-Jane’s, made a persuasive case for the Grey Wolves on a panel at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand Monday evening.

More:Thailand's Shrine Bombing - The Case For Turkey's Grey Wolves - Forbes

Turkey's Erdogan calls parliamentary election, to meet PM Davutoglu - Toledo Blade

Turkey's Erdogan calls parliamentary election, to meet PM Davutoglu
REUTERS

ANKARA — Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has called for fresh parliamentary elections, his office said on Monday, in a widely anticipated move after two months of coalition talks failed to produce a coalition government ahead of a deadline.

More:Turkey's Erdogan calls parliamentary election, to meet PM Davutoglu - Toledo Blade

Turkish Newspaper Accuses 'Jewish Businessman' Murdoch of Spreading Kurdish Terrorist Propaganda | Jewish & Israel News Algemeiner.com

Turkish Newspaper Accuses ‘Jewish Businessman’ Murdoch of Spreading Kurdish Terrorist Propaganda
August 24, 2015 8:16 pm 0 comments

An Islamist newspaper in Turkey accused the Wall Street Journal and its “Jewish businessman” owner Rupert Murdoch over the weekend of spreading “propaganda” for Kurdish terrorism.

More:Turkish Newspaper Accuses 'Jewish Businessman' Murdoch of Spreading Kurdish Terrorist Propaganda | Jewish & Israel News Algemeiner.com

Is Erdogan "Wagging The Dog" Against The Kurds In Turkey? | John A. Tures

Is Erdogan "Wagging The Dog" Against The Kurds In Turkey?
Posted: 08/24/2015 3:17 pm EDT Updated: 34 minutes ago

In 1997, the movie "Wag the Dog" told the tale of an American President who created a fictitious war against Albania to distract from domestic scandals, ensuring reelection. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan must have seen it, as he's following the same script against the Kurds in order to boost his party's flagging fortunes. But will it work?

More:Is Erdogan "Wagging The Dog" Against The Kurds In Turkey? | John A. Tures

As Turkish politics draw global attention, book explores 65 years of national elections | The University of Kansas

As Turkish politics draw global attention, book explores 65 years of national elections
Mon, 08/24/2015

LAWRENCE – Turkey’s complicated political terrain was highlighted this summer when it simultaneously attacked the Islamic State and the Kurdish militants fighting ISIS. Providing fresh insight into the country’s complex political system, a University of Kansas researcher maps the evolution of Turkish elections in a new book.

More:As Turkish politics draw global attention, book explores 65 years of national elections | The University of Kansas

Even coup-makers gave opposition mandate to form gov’t, but Erdoğan refuses

Even coup-makers gave opposition mandate to form gov’t, but Erdoğan refuses

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has announced that he has no intention of giving a mandate to form a government to the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and has called for a snap election, in what is a clear violation of established democratic practices in Turkey.

More:Even coup-makers gave opposition mandate to form gov’t, but Erdoğan refuses

As Turkey Targets Militants, War Grips Kurdish Lands Once Again - The New York Times

As Turkey Targets Militants, War Grips Kurdish Lands Once Again

By TIM ARANGOAUG. 24, 2015

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey — Across the Kurdish lands of southeast Turkey, a bitter war that had long been stilled by a truce has suddenly come roaring back, threatening to undo a hard-won economic turnaround here and adding a new battlefield to a region already consumed by chaos.

More:As Turkey Targets Militants, War Grips Kurdish Lands Once Again - The New York Times

News Analysis: Turkey's politics face struggling interim rule - Xinhua | English.news.cn

News Analysis: Turkey's politics face struggling interim rule
English.news.cn 2015-08-24 22:03:55 [More]

ISTANBUL, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- Turkish domestic and foreign politics have been crumbling while the country is heading towards a snap election on November, analysts said.

More:News Analysis: Turkey's politics face struggling interim rule - Xinhua | English.news.cn

US, Turkey to launch 'comprehensive' anti-Islamic State operation - Business Insider

US and Turkey to launch 'comprehensive' anti-ISIS operation
Reuters

Reuters

Aug. 24, 2015, 9:55 AM 207 1

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey and the United States will soon launch "comprehensive" air operations to flush Islamic State fighters from a zone in northern Syria bordering Turkey, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told Reuters on Monday.

More:US, Turkey to launch 'comprehensive' anti-Islamic State operation - Business Insider

As Turkey Elections Near, Lira Continues Decline

As Turkey Elections Near, Lira Continues Decline
Tugce Ozsoy and Constantine Courcoulas | 24-08-2015, 08:09 AM | Turkey |

The lira extended its slump and stocks dropped as a rout in emerging markets deepened, adding to pressure on Turkish assets as the country heads for its second parliamentary election in six months.

The lira depreciated as much as 2.3 per cent to 2.9865 per dollar on 24 August, before trimming its drop to trade at 2.9521 per dollar at 9:54 a.m. in Istanbul. The currency is the third- worst performing in emerging markets this year with a 21 per cent retreat. The Borsa Istanbul 100 Index of stocks fell 2.1 per cent, and was heading for a bear market.

More:As Turkey Elections Near, Lira Continues Decline

Kurdish hacker hits U.S. sites over Turkey bombings, report says | Washington Examiner

Kurdish hacker hits U.S. sites over Turkey bombings, report says
By Rudy Takala • 8/24/15 9:22 AM

A cyberattack in an Alabama community this month is an outgrowth of growing conflict in the Middle East, according to a new report authored by cybersecurity firm Bat Blue.

More:Kurdish hacker hits U.S. sites over Turkey bombings, report says | Washington Examiner

Turkey Markets Slide Amid Global Sell-Off as Fresh Vote Looms - Bloomberg Business

Turkey Markets Slide Amid Global Sell-Off as Fresh Vote Looms
Tugce Ozsoy Constantine Courcoulas
August 24, 2015 — 12:18 AM EDT

Turkish stocks headed for a bear market and the lira extended its slump and as a rout in emerging markets deepened, adding to pressure on the nation’s assets as it heads for its second parliamentary election in six months.

More:Turkey Markets Slide Amid Global Sell-Off as Fresh Vote Looms - Bloomberg Business

Shipwrecks Under Istanbul - The New Yorker

The Big Dig
Istanbul’s city planners have a problem: too much history.
By Elif Batuman

When it came to choosing the exact location of the first tunnel spanning the Bosporus—the narrow strait that divides the European and Asian sides of Istanbul and links the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara—one of the principal considerations was how to avoid encountering any archeological marvels. The tunnel was for a new high-speed train called Marmaray (a combination of “Marmara” and ray, the Turkish word for “rail”), connecting to Istanbul’s metro system. Of particular concern was the placement of the main station on the European shore, on the site of ancient Byzantium and Constantinople: everything within the ancient city walls has been designated both by UNESCO and by the Turkish government as a historical site, and all digging must be supervised by the Istanbul Archaeological Museum. The location that was eventually chosen, in the working-class district of Yenikapı, had conveniently spent much of antiquity underwater. In Byzantine times, it was a harbor.

More:Shipwrecks Under Istanbul - The New Yorker

Election Time in Turkey: Tossing the Dice Again - Israel News

Election Time in Turkey: Tossing the Dice Again
By Burak Bekdil August 24, 2015 , 7:00 am

If the AKP can win 276 seats and form a government, it may then seek alliances in parliament to amend the constitution in line with the would-be Sultan’s wishes.

President Erdogan is on a dangerous path. He knows no limits in breaching the constitution — which it is his duty is to safeguard. He is wrong to claim that “whether one likes it or not, Turkey’s administrative system has changed.” It has not changed, although he is trying to change it.

More:Election Time in Turkey: Tossing the Dice Again - Israel News

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Will a 3-lira dollar lead to an economic crisis in Turkey? - ECONOMICS

Will a 3-lira dollar lead to an economic crisis in Turkey?

Mustafa Sönmez - mustafasnmz@hotmail.com
Investors have been leaving Turkey for the last couple of months, pushing the lira, which plunged from 2.75 to around 2.9 in 10 days into the ground

More:Will a 3-lira dollar lead to an economic crisis in Turkey? - ECONOMICS

Turkey’s global competition with China | Global Risk Insights

Turkey’s global competition with China
Turkey’s global competition with China
4 5 2 0
by Jeremy Luedi , August 23, 2015

Anti-Chinese tariffs and sentiments are increasing in Turkey as Ankara’s dependence on Chinese imports grows. Despite this, Turkish firms are taking on China in Africa and Central Asia.

Two weeks ago, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey would again consider an offer by Chinese defense contractor China Precision Machinery Import Export Corp (CPMIEC) for a $3.44 billion air and missile defense system.

More:Turkey’s global competition with China | Global Risk Insights

Turkish soldier slams government at slain brother's funeral | GlobalPost

Turkish soldier slams government at slain brother's funeral

A Turkish soldier whose brother was killed in an attack by Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants launched a stinging attack Sunday on the government's "anti-terror" campaign at his funeral.

More:Turkish soldier slams government at slain brother's funeral | GlobalPost

‘Brothel’ cabarets thrive in Turkish Cyprus: Report - EUROPE

‘Brothel’ cabarets thrive in Turkish Cyprus: Report

NICOSIA - Agence Frence-Presse

A white stretch limousine pulls up outside a northern Nicosia hospital to drop off cabaret girls for their monthly HIV test, in Turkish Cyprus, where officially prostitution is illegal.

More:‘Brothel’ cabarets thrive in Turkish Cyprus: Report - EUROPE

Turkey, US Aim To Broaden Campaign Against ISIS

Turkey, US Aim To Broaden Campaign Against ISIS
By Burak Ege Bekdil 11:14 a.m. EDT August 23, 2015
US deploys 6 F-16s to Turkey for IS fight: NATO mission

ANKARA, Turkey — After nearly 10 months of negotiations, NATO allies Turkey and the United States agreed to cooperate on fighting ISIS jihadists in Syria and Iraq, and are discussing ways to broaden their alliance.

More:Turkey, US Aim To Broaden Campaign Against ISIS

Turkey’s shift on Isis is a mark of US success - FT.com

Turkey’s shift on Isis is a mark of US success

Jeremy Shapiro

Ankara’s vision of an independent Middle East foreign policy has collapsed, writes Jeremy Shapiro

More:Turkey’s shift on Isis is a mark of US success - FT.com

Turkey opposition accuses Erdogan of 'civilian coup' over poll | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Turkey opposition accuses Erdogan of 'civilian coup' over poll

Agence France Presse

ISTANBUL: The leader of Turkey's main opposition party on Sunday accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of seeking to stage a "civilian coup" over plans for snap elections after coalition talks failed.

More:Turkey opposition accuses Erdogan of 'civilian coup' over poll | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Opinion: Turkey′s furious election scramble | Opinion | DW.COM | 23.08.2015

Opinion: Turkey's furious election scramble

Turkey's president has called snap elections for November 1 after talks to form a coalition government failed. But, that is exactly what the president wants, says Seda Serdar.

More:Opinion: Turkey′s furious election scramble | Opinion | DW.COM | 23.08.2015

Downpour hits İstanbul, leads to flash floods

Downpour hits İstanbul, leads to flash floods

A continuous downpour that began late on Saturday in İstanbul caused flash floods and disrupted traffic and daily life in some parts of the city up until Sunday afternoon.

More:Downpour hits İstanbul, leads to flash floods

Turkish home sales up 22pc in H1

Turkish home sales up 22pc in H1
DUBAI, 11 hours, 1 minutes ago

The number of house sales in Turkey to international investors increased 22 per cent in the first half of 2015 compared to the same period last year, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute.

More:Turkish home sales up 22pc in H1

Massive water pipeline from Turkey to Cyprus will open on October 28

Massive water pipeline from Turkey to Cyprus will open on October 28

CYPRUS - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE•
Sunday, 23 August, 2015
THE FULL switch-on of a pipeline pumping water from Turkey to Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus will take place on October 28.

More:Massive water pipeline from Turkey to Cyprus will open on October 28

Turkey's legitimate military operations - Yahoo Maktoob News

Turkey's legitimate military operations
Al JazeeraBy Yasin Aktay | Al Jazeera – 12 hours ago

On July 20, a suicide bomber detonated explosives in a gathering of youth outside a cultural centre in the town of Suruc, killing 32 and injuring more than 100 innocent students.

More:Turkey's legitimate military operations - Yahoo Maktoob News

Turkey jails mayors in Kurdish southeast over 'self-rule' claims | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Turkey jails mayors in Kurdish southeast over 'self-rule' claims

Agence France Presse

ISTANBUL: A Turkish court Sunday remanded into custody three mayors from the Kurdish-dominated southeast on charges of seeking to destroy national unity by allegedly supporting calls for regional self-rule, reports said.

More:Turkey jails mayors in Kurdish southeast over 'self-rule' claims | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR

Turkish governor alleges PKK kidnapping girls for rape purposes

Turkish governor alleges PKK kidnapping girls for rape purposes

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) not only kidnap and recruit children, but they also abduct and rape women, the governor of the eastern province of Ağrı, Musa Işın, has said.

More:Turkish governor alleges PKK kidnapping girls for rape purposes

Bye bye baby: Newborns abandoned in Turkish hospitals by Syrians en route to Greece | Al Bawaba

Bye bye baby: Newborns abandoned in Turkish hospitals by Syrians en route to Greece

Published August 23rd, 2015 - 05:08 GMT via SyndiGate.info

The desperate leave everything behind. There are 16 newly or recently born children at the hospital in Bodrum, Turkey. They have been left behind, their mothers making a desperate choice. Who knows if the women made it across the five kilometres separating Turkey from Greece and the European Union. Who knows where they are. And who could ever know what it’s like to make a choice like that.

More:Bye bye baby: Newborns abandoned in Turkish hospitals by Syrians en route to Greece | Al Bawaba

Saturday, August 22, 2015

BBC defends report on PKK after criticism from Ankara - INTERNATIONAL

BBC defends report on PKK after criticism from Ankara

LONDON

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has defended its report on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), stating it was only one of the many reports it did on Turkey.

More:BBC defends report on PKK after criticism from Ankara - INTERNATIONAL

PKK threatens Kurdish people's honor: Turkish governor | Fulton News

PKK threatens Kurdish people's honor: Turkish governor

By Kristoff Saunders on August 22, 2015No Comment

AGRI, Turkey – The Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, not only kidnap and recruit children, but they also abduct and rape women, Musa Isin, the governor of the eastern province of Agri, has said.

More:PKK threatens Kurdish people's honor: Turkish governor | Fulton News

Turkey: Foreign investment falls 9.6 pct in first half - ECONOMICS

Turkey: Foreign investment falls 9.6 pct in first half

ANKARA (AA)

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Turkey reached $6.3 billion in the first half of the year, the Turkish Economy Ministry said in a statement on Aug. 21.

More:Turkey: Foreign investment falls 9.6 pct in first half - ECONOMICS

Erdogan Uses Censorship to Cling to Power

Erdogan Enhances Censorship Ahead of Snap Polls
Michael Rubin | @mrubin1971 08.21.2015 - 4:45 PM

As predicted, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had absolutely no intention of abiding by the results of the June 7, 2015 when, for the first time in more than 12 years, his Justice and Development lost its majority in parliament. Joining a coalition means compromising with opposition parties rather than continuing his own tyranny of the plurality.

More:Erdogan Uses Censorship to Cling to Power

Turkish consumer confidence hammered by political uncertainty | Business Recorder

Turkish consumer confidence hammered by political uncertainty
August 22, 2015

Turkish consumers became the latest victims of widening political uncertainty on Friday, with sentiment hitting its lowest in six years, felled by concerns about government stability, mounting militant violence and a tumbling lira. Foreign investor confidence in Turkey's $870 billion economy has unravelled after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu this week failed to find a coalition partner to form a government with his AK Party.

More:Turkish consumer confidence hammered by political uncertainty | Business Recorder

Times Of Oman :: Kurdish leader calls on PKK to halt violence 'without if or buts'

Kurdish leader calls on PKK to halt violence 'without if or buts'
August 22, 2015 | 8:54 PM
by Agencies

Istanbul/Diyarbakir (Turkey): The leader of Turkey's main pro-Kurdish political party on Saturday called on Kurdish militants to halt a month of violence against the security forces "without if or buts".

More:Times Of Oman :: Kurdish leader calls on PKK to halt violence 'without if or buts'

Erdogan will alienate Kurds with gamble | The National

Erdogan will alienate Kurds with gamble

National Editorial

August 22, 2015 Updated: August 22, 2015 05:22 PM

Having received the wrong answer, Turkey’s president has decided to ask the question again. Over the weekend, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would call snap elections for November – even though fewer than three months have passed since the country’s last general election.

More:Erdogan will alienate Kurds with gamble | The National

Turkey’s troubles extend far beyond Erdogan’s ambitions | The National

Turkey’s troubles extend far beyond Erdogan’s ambitions

Caleb Lauer

August 22, 2015 Updated: August 22, 2015 09:13 AM

In Bertolt Brecht’s poem Die Lösung (“The Solution”), written after the 1953 uprising in East Germany, a functionary hands out bulletins informing the people they have cost themselves the trust of the government and now must strive to regain it.

More:Turkey’s troubles extend far beyond Erdogan’s ambitions | The National

Turkey before the elections: Political instability, economic crisis and war - World Socialist Web Site

Turkey before the elections: Political instability, economic crisis and war
By Johannes Stern
22 August 2015

Speaking before the press on Friday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that there would be a new general election on November 1. He is following the proposal of the Turkish electoral commission put forward on Thursday.

More:Turkey before the elections: Political instability, economic crisis and war - World Socialist Web Site

Turkey's IS/PKK Strategy 'in Service of Erdogan's Unbounded Ambition' - Novinite.com - Sofia News Agency

Turkey's IS/PKK Strategy 'in Service of Erdogan's Unbounded Ambition'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is hoping to reverse June's electoral outcome and secure another parliamentary majority and this explains his interest in fighting the Islamic State (IS) group, Politico magazine says.

More:Turkey's IS/PKK Strategy 'in Service of Erdogan's Unbounded Ambition' - Novinite.com - Sofia News Agency

We warn the Turks | The World is Not Enough

We warn the Turks
Charles Richardson | Aug 22, 2015 7:27PM

Turkey is headed back to the polls, in an election that’s unlikely to solve anything but may give the country’s fractious opposition parties another opportunity.

More:We warn the Turks | The World is Not Enough

The Impact of Syria's Conflict on the Turkish Economy - The Market Mogul

The Impact of Syria’s Conflict on the Turkish Economy
Mert Baran Turan | 6 minute read

At the time of writing, the USD has reached a record level of 3 Turkish Liras this morning and it has been renewing its record for the last few weeks. For economists and the banking industry it’s very alarming, however it looks like the Turkish “temporary government” does not seem too concerned. The weakening of the Turkish Lira began with the Syrian conflict and it became even more extreme after the elections which had resulted in literally nothing, as expected uncertainty of post-election Turkey and a lack of government has lowered the value of Lira even more.

More:The Impact of Syria's Conflict on the Turkish Economy - The Market Mogul

Liverpool Food and Drink Festival team up with Turkish tourist board - Liverpool Echo

Liverpool Food and Drink Festival team up with Turkish tourist board

12:00, 22 August 2015
By Jade Wright

Festival tent will offer a chance to win a trip to Turkey

More:Liverpool Food and Drink Festival team up with Turkish tourist board - Liverpool Echo

Friday, August 21, 2015

The ill-fate of Turkish men - BLIND SPOT

The ill-fate of Turkish men

BELGİN AKALTAN - belgin.akaltan@hdn.com.tr

I am a Turkish mother and I have a son. That should explain most of my sentiment. It should tell you where I stand on the current conflict in Turkey.

More:The ill-fate of Turkish men - BLIND SPOT

Turkey's Summer Of Discontent - Forbes

Turkey's Summer Of Discontent

By Ali Sokmen

Turkey’s travails continued last week, as the latest round of coalition talks between Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Ahmet Davutoglu and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli concluded on August 17 without success. Davutoglu officially returned the mandate to form a government to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the following day, who declared early elections five days ahead of the constitutional deadline to form government, denying the runner-up Republican People’s Party (CHP) the mandate to conduct coalition talks.

More:Turkey's Summer Of Discontent - Forbes

Turkish kids got an extra two weeks of summer vacation to save the country’s economy - Quartz

Turkish kids got an extra two weeks of summer vacation to save the country’s economy

Hanna Kozlowska

The Turkish government is postponing the beginning of the school year by two weeks, in an attempt to give a boost the country’s crucial tourism industry.

More:Turkish kids got an extra two weeks of summer vacation to save the country’s economy - Quartz

The Real Reason Turkey Is Fighting ISIL - Steven A. Cook - POLITICO Magazine

The Real Reason Turkey Is Fighting ISIL

President Erdogan is playing a game of 12-dimensional chess.

By STEVEN A. COOK

August 21, 2015

On July 23 virtually every news outlet in the United States ran some version of the following headline: “Turkey Joins the Fight Against ISIL; Opens Air Base to Coalition Forces; Washington and Ankara Agree to Safe Zone in Syria.” The media, being what it is, dubbed Ankara’s decision to order up airstrikes on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s forces a “game changer,” which is what journalists say when they have nothing else to say, do not understand a situation and are itching to get back to covering Donald Trump. The only game that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is actually interested in changing is the political one that he has been uncharacteristically losing since mid-June when his Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost the parliamentary majority it has held since November 2002. Erdogan’s military actions against the self-proclaimed Islamic State are best understood as one part a desperate, highly complex attempt by Erdogan to win back the power he lost. If his plan fails, the risky multi-front war Erdogan has just launched may become his undoing.

More:The Real Reason Turkey Is Fighting ISIL - Steven A. Cook - POLITICO Magazine

Turkish Robin Hood orders food for Syrian children, runs off without paying

Turkish Robin Hood orders food for Syrian children, runs off without paying

A Turkish woman in Istanbul’s central Taksim square ordered food and drinks for 35 Syrian refugee children and, after they’d been fed, left to ‘exchange’ her euros to lira to pay for the meal but never returned. The total bill came to TRY 275 (USD 95).

More:Turkish Robin Hood orders food for Syrian children, runs off without paying

Critical codes of the İncirlik deal - VERDA ÖZER

Critical codes of the İncirlik deal

The details of the “İncirlik agreement” signed between Turkey and the United States are taking shape by the day.

More:Critical codes of the İncirlik deal - VERDA ÖZER

Reconciliation process shelved, Erdoğan says - Daily Sabah

Reconciliation process shelved, Erdoğan says
DAILY SABAH
ISTANBUL

Speaking to reporters on Friday President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that the reconciliation process he launched with the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in order to end the 30-year conflict between the terrorist PKK and the state has been shelved after the recent violent attacks by the PKK on security forces and civilians in eastern Turkey.

More:Reconciliation process shelved, Erdoğan says - Daily Sabah

Turkey erects concrete wall along Syria border - ARA News

Turkey erects concrete wall along Syria border
August 22, 2015

Cizre, Turkey – Turkey has started to construct a 45 kilometer-long concrete wall along its border with Syria’s war-torn territory, Turkish media sources reported on Friday.

More:Turkey erects concrete wall along Syria border - ARA News

Turkey to form interim government before snap election on 1 November | World news | The Guardian

Turkey to form interim government before snap election on 1 November

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will ask next week for temporary power-sharing arrangement, possibly including members from outside parliament

More:Turkey to form interim government before snap election on 1 November | World news | The Guardian

Mausoleum and museum dedicated to Rauf Denktash underway

Mausoleum and museum dedicated to Rauf Denktash underway
Rauf Denktash
CYPRUS - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE•
Friday, 21 August, 2015
TURKISH CYPRIOTS are to erect a mausoleum and museum in memory of former leader Rauf Denktash.

Denktash died in 2012. after suffering a partial paralysis caused by an embolism. He had been the leading figure in Turkish Cypriot politics since the early 1960s.

More:Mausoleum and museum dedicated to Rauf Denktash underway

Why Tourists Are Still Flocking to Greece And Avoiding Turkey - Bloomberg Business

Why Tourists Are Still Flocking to Greece And Avoiding Turkey

While visitors are less worried by a bad economy, violence is a different story

More:Why Tourists Are Still Flocking to Greece And Avoiding Turkey - Bloomberg Business

CHP submits proposal to prevent Erdoğan from campaigning during election

CHP submits proposal to prevent Erdoğan from campaigning during election

The Republican People’s Party (CHP) has submitted a proposal to the parliament to prevent President Erdoğan from holding political rallies during election cycles. Erdoğan’s campaigning during the June 7th general election was lambasted as a strict violation of the impartiality of the presidency.

More:CHP submits proposal to prevent Erdoğan from campaigning during election

The poem is on the street

The #siirsokakta movement in Turkey
The poem is on the street
In the wake of the Gezi protests – and through interaction with social media – a movement arose in Turkey that inspired people to write, spray and scrawl snippets of poetry on all kinds of surfaces in public spaces. It became a vibrant part of literary life in Turkey. By Achim Wagner

More:The poem is on the street

Attacks reveal PKK prepared for war during peace talks: Analyst - POLITICS

Attacks reveal PKK prepared for war during peace talks: Analyst

Uğur Ergan - ANKARA

Recent attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which have killed more than 50 Turkish security forces have revealed that the group installed improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on roads while peace talks were continuing, a security analyst has told daily Hürriyet.

More:Attacks reveal PKK prepared for war during peace talks: Analyst - POLITICS

Turkey accuses BBC of ‘openly supporting terrorism’ - POLITICS

Turkey accuses BBC of ‘openly supporting terrorism’

ANKARA

Turkey has accused the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) of “openly supporting terrorism” by making “written and visual propaganda” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) during a broadcast on Aug. 20.

More:Turkey accuses BBC of ‘openly supporting terrorism’ - POLITICS

Turkish poet’s verse quoted by Greek PM Tsipras in announcing resignation - EUROPE

Turkish poet’s verse quoted by Greek PM Tsipras in announcing resignation

Greece’s president has formally asked opposition leaders to form a new government after a party rebellion over a bailout deal forced Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to call early elections next month.

More:Turkish poet’s verse quoted by Greek PM Tsipras in announcing resignation - EUROPE

Thursday, August 20, 2015

News.Az - SOCAR announces reasons for selling stake in Petkim to Goldman Sachs

SOCAR announces reasons for selling stake in Petkim to Goldman Sachs

Thu 20 August 2015 10:55 GMT | 6:55 Local Time

Head of SOCAR Turkey Energy Kenan Yavuz announced reasons for selling 13% stake in Petkim to Goldman Sachs International.

More:News.Az - SOCAR announces reasons for selling stake in Petkim to Goldman Sachs

Costa Cruises Cancels All Remaining Calls To Turkey For 2015 - World Of Cruising

Costa Cruises cancels all remaining calls to Turkey for 2015
By David Fiske, Digital Content Editor on 20 August 2015 Cruise News

Costa Cruises has become the first cruise line to cancel all remaining calls this year to the ports of Istanbul and Izmir, Turkey, amid security fears.

More:Costa Cruises Cancels All Remaining Calls To Turkey For 2015 - World Of Cruising

US plays politics with Patriot missile removal - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

US plays politics with Patriot missile removal

Author Metin Gurcan Posted August 20, 2015

The United States and Germany have decided to withdraw their Patriot anti-ballistic missile systems, which were deployed in Turkey to defend against possible air and missile threats from Syria. Germany’s intention to remove its system from Turkey’s Kahramanmaras province has been known for a while. But the US decision came as a blow to Ankara.

More:US plays politics with Patriot missile removal - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy?

The pro-Justice and Development Party (AKP) daily Turkiye published on Aug. 13 a controversial column titled “Figen Yuksekdag and Women of Cancerous Souls.” Figen Yuksekdag is the female co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). Targeting the image and reputation of Yuksekdag, the piece reinforces strong prejudices against left-wing women among the Turkish political right, particularly Islamists. It states that leftist women lose their femininity, dress tastelessly and try to act like men to be considered equal — hence their incessant rough, violence-advocating rhetoric. Trying to identify the source of this male anger, the column argues that these women suffer from ugly duckling syndrome and suppress their libido. Then the piece takes a rather insulting turn against Yuksekdag's personality and claims she is advocating violence because she has not been with a man. Twisting Yuksekdag’s own words about her personal life choices from a candid interview, the offensive column declares all leftist women are “bigoted, irrational and despotic.”

More:Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy?

The pro-Justice and Development Party (AKP) daily Turkiye published on Aug. 13 a controversial column titled “Figen Yuksekdag and Women of Cancerous Souls.” Figen Yuksekdag is the female co-chair of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). Targeting the image and reputation of Yuksekdag, the piece reinforces strong prejudices against left-wing women among the Turkish political right, particularly Islamists. It states that leftist women lose their femininity, dress tastelessly and try to act like men to be considered equal — hence their incessant rough, violence-advocating rhetoric. Trying to identify the source of this male anger, the column argues that these women suffer from ugly duckling syndrome and suppress their libido. Then the piece takes a rather insulting turn against Yuksekdag's personality and claims she is advocating violence because she has not been with a man. Twisting Yuksekdag’s own words about her personal life choices from a candid interview, the offensive column declares all leftist women are “bigoted, irrational and despotic.”

More:Have sexism, attacking women become part of Turkish right's political strategy? - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East

Lira at 3 to the Dollar Brings Turkey Recovery No Closer - Bloomberg Business

Lira at 3 to the Dollar Brings Turkey Recovery No Closer

The lira has been in free fall since Turkey’s governing AK Party said last week it had failed to form a coalition government, putting the country on course for a second general election in six months.

More:Lira at 3 to the Dollar Brings Turkey Recovery No Closer - Bloomberg Business

Power of the sun gives Turkey its first solar public bus | Al Bawaba

Power of the sun gives Turkey its first solar public bus

Published August 20th, 2015 - 04:30 GMT via SyndiGate.info

Turkey’s "first solar-powered public bus" will hit the roads of Istanbul on Thursday as part of the Turkish city’s initiative to reduce the impact of carbon emission on the environment.

The Istanbul Electric Tram and Tunnel Company (IETT), the city’s public bus company, introduced the environment-friendly bus project at a press conference in Istanbul on Wednesday.

More:Power of the sun gives Turkey its first solar public bus | Al Bawaba

The many threats of Turkey’s PKK Conflict | Global Risk Insights

The many threats of Turkey’s PKK Conflict

by Riccardo Dugulin , August 20, 2015

Recent back-and-forth violence between the Turkish government and PKK militants has created a situation of uncertainty in many parts of both rural and urban Turkey. The conflict presents a security risk not only to affiliates of the AKP-led government, but to civilians and business operations, as well.

More:The many threats of Turkey’s PKK Conflict | Global Risk Insights

Food prices ‘will increase amid deep loss in Turkish Lira’ - ECONOMICS

Food prices ‘will increase amid deep loss in Turkish Lira’

Güneş Kömürcüler - ISTANBUL

Food prices will increase in the coming months, as it is not possible for agricultural producers to endure such a huge loss in the Turkish Lira, said a sector representative, adding his company’s maximum lira-U.S. dollar parity projection for this year was 2.7 before the election.

More:Food prices ‘will increase amid deep loss in Turkish Lira’ - ECONOMICS

Turkey and illegal immigration | All media content | DW.COM | 20.08.2015

Turkey and illegal immigration

The surge in refugees heading from Turkey to the Greek islands is focusing attention on Ankara’s role in controlling illegal immigration. But the Turkish government is increasingly frustrated at what it says is the EU's failure to share the burden of hosting the 2 million or so refugees on its soil. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.

More:Turkey and illegal immigration | All media content | DW.COM | 20.08.2015

Turkish PM makes last-ditch call for unity as govt deadline looms | Reuters

Turkish PM makes last-ditch call for unity as govt deadline looms
ANKARA | By Orhan Coskun and Ercan Gurses

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made a last-ditch call for Turkey's political parties to agree a working government on Thursday, three days before a deadline that would otherwise see President Tayyip Erdogan call a snap election.

More:Turkish PM makes last-ditch call for unity as govt deadline looms | Reuters

ANKARA, Turkey: Turkish election board proposes new elections on Nov. 1 | World | The Sun Herald

Turkish election board proposes new elections on Nov. 1

The Associated PressAugust 20, 2015 Updated 5 hours ago

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey's high election board has proposed holding a new election on Nov. 1, after efforts to form a government failed.

More:ANKARA, Turkey: Turkish election board proposes new elections on Nov. 1 | World | The Sun Herald

Erdoğan optimizing his power game amid killings - MURAT YETKİN

Erdoğan optimizing his power game amid killings

Right after the news President Tayyip Erdoğan was going to meet Parliamentary Speaker İsmet Yılmaz to discuss an interim government to take the country to another election in six months, the news hit the wires about the killing of eight Turkish soldiers in a bomb ambush near the eastern city of Siirt by suspected militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

More:Erdoğan optimizing his power game amid killings - MURAT YETKİN

PKK Declares Autonomous Region in Turkey's Dersim Province

PKK Declares Autonomous Region in Turkey's Dersim Province
Rudaw
Posted 2015-08-19 17:50 GMT

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has announced a democratic autonomous region in Dersim province, and established checkpoints on the main road in the province Tuesday.

More:PKK Declares Autonomous Region in Turkey's Dersim Province

UPDATE 1-Sinking lira at new low as cbank revives worries of political pressure | Reuters

Sinking lira at new low as cbank revives worries of political pressure

By Nevzat Devranoglu and Behiye Selin Taner

Aug 19 (Reuters) - Turkey's lira plumbed a new record low against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday after the central bank failed to assuage investor concerns about its ability to defy political pressure and lift rates.

More:UPDATE 1-Sinking lira at new low as cbank revives worries of political pressure | Reuters