Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (L) and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso hold a news conference after a meeting in Brussels January 19, 2009. REUTERS/Yves Herman (BELGIUM)
"Turkey tries to revive EU drive
Month: January 2009
And a Gaza roundup below…
Today is the second anniversary of Hrant Dink's murder….
Commemoration ceremonies for slain journalist Hrant Dink ISTANBUL – Slain Turkish- Armenian journalist Hrant Dink will be commemorated on the second anniversary of his murder. ‘Dink murder a vicious attack on freedom of expression’ By YONCA POYRAZ DOĞAN on Interviews Sir Geoffrey Bindman, a British legal expert on human rights issues, has said … Read more
Ceasefire in Gaza…
Palestinian militant group Hamas declares a one-week ceasefire to allow Israeli soldiers to withdraw from Gaza.
We will not go down (a song for Gaza) by Michael Heart
Evidence issue in the Ergenekon case.
Forensic officers search for weapons in a wooded area in central Ankara January 9, 2009. More than 40 people, including three retired generals, nine military officers, a state prosecutor and a former chairman of the higher education board, were detained for their suspected links to a right-wing group. The military, which has unseated four … Read more
Henry Jenkins: Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide
Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide (Revised with a New Afterword) by Henry Jenkins This book has been my top recommended book for a while. I finally got the book and will start reading…
"Gaza, a virtual war zone
Gaza, a virtual war zone
Description: The 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict began on December 27th when the Israeli forces bombed Gaza. In this conflict, digital tools have been used by the Israeli government, main stream media, human rights activists, residents in Gaza, and pro Israel and pro Hamas groups.
Tools: Twitter, blogs , You Tube and Face Book. It seems Twitter was the “star” of digital media in this conflict.
Turkey rejects Israeli FM’s visit if no talks on ceasefire proposal
Turkey’s foreign minister told his Israeli counterpart that she could visit Turkey on the condition that the terms of a ceasefire be on the agenda of the meeting, diplomatic sources said on Tuesday.
Tamirane
Foto//Photo – Okşan Mete One cool café I frequent at santralistanbul is Tamirane. They just launched their newly designed website… Very possibly,the next blog party will take place in Tamirane! Slowly and amateurishly and without much seriousness, I am looking for new lines of posts for the blog. One should be cafés and restaurants I … Read more
Egemen Bağış: Turkey's new chief EU negotiator
Turkey’s new chief EU negotiator Egemen Bagis (R) and Foreign Minister Ali Babacan pose for the media during a takeover ceremony in Ankara January 11, 2009. Bagis has been appointed as the country’s first full-time EU negotiator in an effort to revive its flagging drive to join the European Union. Entry negotiations were previously headed by Babacan, who was criticised in some quarters for a lacklustre performance on EU ties and is preoccupied with the Middle East crisis and Turkey’s two-year stint as a member of the U.N. Security Council. [REUTERS/Umit Bektas]
"Turkish judges" -so anxious…
Turkey’s Judges and Prosecutors Association (YARSAV) is particularly anxious with Ergenekon related developments and it was harshly criticizing the government today. There is a link below to that news.
There are rumors that Ergenekon case prosecutor is under intense pressure by the Judiciary establishment who proved itself to be more politically conservative the military itself in recent years…
Weapons and explosives, dug up from a hidden cache during an investigation into an alleged coup plot, are displayed at the local police headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2009. A Turkish court formally arrested nine people on charges being part of an alleged secularist plot to bring down the Islamic-rooted government and police detained 33 more suspects while displaying weapons, dug up from a hidden cache. Prosecutors say the alleged plot aimed to destabilize Turkey through a series of attacks and trigger a coup in 2009. (AP Photo/Ibrahim Usta)
"Gaza, Europe and empty gestures
Georges Braque, Vase de Feuilles found in Priceless Treasures Drawn from Local Private Art Collections Star in Long Island Collects
On Israeli comparisons between the PKK and Hamas
Every time Ankara protests Israel’s atrocities against the Palestinians, Israeli spokesmen counter not only by claiming that Turkey, which suffers from terrorism itself, should understand Israel’s position, but also that "What the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is to Turkey, Hamas is to Israel."
Gaza and Turkey
Turkey could prevent neither the refusal of Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal to extend the cease-fire nor the cruel attacks of Israel, which has been preparing for this war for six months.