Middle East

Turkey likely to halt energy exploration pending talks with Greece

Editorial Bureau July 28, 2020

ANKARA (TURKEY) – Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said on Tuesday that Ankara could put on hold energy-exploration operations in the eastern Mediterranean Sea for a while pending talks with Athens. Kalin told CNN Turk that President Tayyip Erdogan had requested that operations be

Middle East

Turkey, Greece trade barbs over prayers in Hagia Sophia

Editorial Bureau July 25, 2020

ISTANBUL (TURKEY) – Turkey and Greece traded harsh words on Saturday over the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque. This comes a day after Islamic prayers were held for the first time in the monument which is sacred for both Christians and Muslims. Greece came out with scathing criticism of the move to convert […]

Middle East

Turkey parliament passes controversial bar association legislation

Editorial Bureau July 11, 2020

ANKARA (TURKEY) – The Turkish parliament on Saturday passed a law changing the structure of bar associations. This controversial move would undermine judicial independence, said lawyers. In Ankara, Istanbul and other cities, thousands of lawyers protested against the proposal, saying it would silence the remaining few institutions that criticises the government over

Middle East

Boat that sank on Turkey’s Lake Van had up to 60 migrants onboard: minister

Ren Leen July 1, 2020

ISTANBUL (TURKEY) – A boat that sank on Lake Van in eastern Turkey is reported to have been carrying 55-60 migrants, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said on Wednesday, adding that bodies of six people had been found so far. Soylu said authorities had detained 11 people with regard to the incident, which the provincial governor’s […]

Middle East

Weekend lockdown nixed in Turkey by Erdogan over public backlash, cases rise

Jim Stein June 5, 2020

ANKARA (Middle East) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday he decided to cancel a weekend lockdown announced late on Thursday after a public backlash, but he warned of a rise in the number of daily coronavirus cases. On Thursday, Turkey’s interior ministry announced the stay-at-home order in 15 cities to prevent the spread […]

Middle East

Turkey’s Grand Bazaar, cafes reopen; flights resume

Jim Stein June 1, 2020

ISTANBUL (Middle East) – Flights and car travel resumed between Turkey’s big cities on Monday while cafes, restaurants and Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar reopened in the country’s biggest step to ease restrictions taken to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Traffic levels jumped in the commercial hub of Istanbul, with many Turks returning to work as the

Middle East

Coronavirus measures in Turkey eased with restaurants, parks reopened

Ren Leen June 1, 2020

ANKARA (Middle East) – Restaurants, cafes and parks had been reopened in Turkey on Monday. Inter-city travel curbs have also been lifted as Turkey eases its coronavirus restrictions. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s government has been easing the restrictions at a gradual pace over the past few weeks. Authorities in the country claim that the coronavirus […]

Middle East

Turkey’s intercity train services resumed with easing of curbs

Jim Stein May 28, 2020

ANKARA (Middle East) – Turkey begun operating intercity trains on Thursday after a two-month gap, as it gradually eases coronavirus curbs in a bid to restore normal life and reopen an economy facing the threat of recession. To fight the virus, Turkey had imposed weekend stay-at-home orders, halted most travel between large cities, shut restaurants […]

Middle East

Turkey attempts to heal damaged relations using medical diplomacy

Jim Stein May 11, 2020

ANKARA (Middle East) – Emblazoned with Turkish flags and presidential seals, crates packed with medical equipment are loaded onto planes, part of a major aid campaign by Ankara which has dispatched supplies to dozens of countries since the new coronavirus pandemic erupted. “There is hope after despair and many suns after darkness,” says a message […]

Middle East

Seven people charged by Turkey over Ghosn escape

Ren Leen May 8, 2020

ISTANBUL (Middle East) – Turkish prosecutors have prepared an indictment charging seven people, including four pilots, over former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn’s escape via Istanbul to Lebanon after fleeing Japan, a lawyer for one of the suspects said on Friday. The lawyer said the indictment, accepted by an Istanbul court late on Thursday, formally charged […]