Elected Kurdish mayors are handcuffed while taken to the court. That was not necessary. Probably it is the work of an officious local police chief….
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Patriarchate is all right. Crisis seems to have been resolved.
Patriarchate clarifies: ‘Crucifixion’ means sorrow, hardships
Today’s Zaman
A statement from the İstanbul-based Greek Orthodox Patriarchate said that Patriarch Bartholomew’s words on a CBS television program broadcast in the United
After all, assasination claims might be right…
Last night, Chief of Staff İlker Başbuğ stated that there are 8 soldiers under custody in relation to assassination claims of Bülent Arınç There had been a search going on at the Special Forces headquarters. Mr. Arınç is one of the State Ministers of Turkey and Vice-Prime Minister today…. In other developments: Why do soldiers … Read more
And Muslim Turks make peace with Christmas
My older sister loves all kinds of decorations on special days. This was always an annoyment for the rest of kids in the family. Now she is married and I hear that she takes her hobby to a new level. They have a Christmas tree and had worked on decorating it. Of course, they do this to welcome the new year. Christmas and new year practices are blended in many Turkish minds into new year celebrations. Surprisingly enough, my sister always criticises me for consuming alcohol. She is not veiled at all but she is quite a practicing religion woman and I am frequently subject to her anger that I am not a good Muslim. Funny.
Santa movie spotlights Turkey’s east-west divide
CNN
ISTANBUL, Turkey (CNN) — It may be the first modern Christmas movie ever made for audiences in Turkey, a mostly Muslim country that does not celebrate
EurasiaNet Eurasia Insight – Turkey: Istanbul Gets in the Christmas Spirit
Domestic intelligence wars continue; was there an assasination attempt or not?
Suspected Turkish Coup Plotter Kills Self – Report – NYTimes.com
Yet another ?unconvincing? statement
by FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK
Following its days-long silence regarding an assassination plot to kill Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç allegedly devised by military officers, the General Staff broke its silence on Wednesday and responded to criticism.
Institutional warfare
by YAVUZ BAYDAR
Turkey exits 2009 in a mood of profound internal suspicion, with mistrust between the various key decision-making circles, anxiety and fear. Lately, every event that has unfolded has raised new, powerful questions about the future of politics and whether or not Turkey will ever be democratically manageable.
“The top 100 most costly EU regulations” and more
Cold weather, post Copenhagen blues etc and more from the European agenda…
The top 100 most costly EU regulations
by Open Europe blog team
Open Europe has today published a list of the top 100 most costly EU regulations, detailing the annual cost of the laws, the cumulative cost of them by 2020, and the article base in the Lisbon Treaty for each regulation . We estimate that these laws will in total cost the UK economy a staggering £184 billion by 2020. To put that figure in context: for the same amount, the UK Government could abolish the country’s entire budget deficit and still leave the Exchequer with some £6 bn. All cost estimates are based on the UK Government’s own impact assessments so the figures are instructive.
One step further, Turkey opens environment chapter
Turkey opens environment chapter in EU accession talks
Turkey opens environment chapter in EU accession bid – Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu smiles as he briefs the media after an accession conference at the European Union Council headquarters in Brussels December 21, 2009. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir
RATM rocks
I still recover a two-day hiatus of not blogging. In the mean time, RATM rocks again….
Rage Against The Machine top UK singles chart
Rock band Rage Against The Machine have beaten Joe McElderry to become the UK’s official Christmas number one, following one of the biggest battles in the history of the UK Singles Chart. Their song Killing in the Name pushed the X Factor winner’s new single The Climb into second place.