Ultranationalists had their day yesterday in Kayseri as the riots approached a pogrom level against Syrian refugees. I understand why many citizens are already tense with the growing refugee crisis, but some political agitators have their own agenda- as usual. In the meantime, anti-Syrian sentiments may increase more with the incidents in Northern Syria: Some … Read more
At the moment, we have to pay 150 TRY when we travel abroad. Rumor has it that it will be increased to 3000 TRY (nearly 90 USD)! After unimaginable levels of extravagance and corruption that still last in government, Mehmet Şimşek is after our already squeezed travel budgets.
There were some debates about “normalization,” but unfortunately, it does not seem applicable to Kurdish politicians. The outcome of the Kobani trial in Turkey resulted in convictions of former pro-Kurdish party officials, including Selahattin Demirtaş, who received more than 40 years in jail for instigating the 2014 Kobanî protests. Prosecutors had initially sought 38 “aggravated … Read more
You will not hear about this in Turkey’s oppositional press. Ekrem İmamoğlu, current Istanbul mayor and a strong candidate for the next presidential election, traveled to Rome with a group of 73 people for the signing ceremony of the 2027 European Olympic Games to be held in Istanbul. The delegation stayed at the five-star Parco … Read more
This week has been overwhelmingly busy. A few days ago, we met in Istanbul for the Istanbul session for our GRADE COST project. My colleague Ivo Furman did a fantastic job of organizing the event in a lovely place in Istanbul (check out the place, Postane). I also participated in organizing a Wikipedia session … Read more
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who arrived in Istanbul, cut doner doner and served it to the guests at the summer residence of the German Embassy in Tarabya 🍴 İstanbul'a gelen Almanya Cumhurbaşkanı Frank Walter Steinmeier, Alman Büyükelçiliğine ait yazlık Tarabya rezidansında döner kesti, davetlilere ikram etti pic.twitter.com/Mi4GnJAg4V — T24 (@t24comtr) April 22, 2024 German president … Read more
Pro-government trolls were vehemently denying trade or at least trying to justify it. After a particular instance of police brutality on pro-Palestine demonstrators who demanded an end to trade with Israel, public outcry may have led to partial restrictions on trade. Turkey imposes export restrictions on Israel amid Gaza conflict One Twitter user has been … Read more
After a travesty of law, Second-placed candidate to be mandated in Van DEM condemns ‘unlawful’ attempts to oust elected mayor in Van I am pretty sure this is what “they” plan to provoke the opposition to. Let’s see how it goes… With the additional decision given by Diyarbakır 5th High Criminal Court on 04.04.2023 regarding … Read more
Akp saw its lowest vote share since it was founded (provincial general assembly results), Chp became the first party for the first time in many years and reached above 30 for the first time in a very long time. Akp kurulduğundan beri en düşük oy oranını gördü (il genel meclisi sonuçları), Chp uzun yıllar sonra … Read more
19:15 The higher Election Council does not allow to announce results yet, but the vibe in opposition is that AKP may be losing. 18:20 Istanbul mayoral contest takes centre stage as Turkey votes in local elections Turkey local elections marred by irregularities in Kurdish provinces As polls close: YSK bans journalists from taking footage of … Read more
Instead of questioning her in Istanbul, she was taken from her home and sent to Mersin. The alleged crime is that she made an interview with a person under investigation (!). Prof. Sirman is a rare kind of anthropologist with a permanent emphasis on the field. I was stunned when I heard that she learned … Read more
Turkish police have recently detained seven people on suspicion of selling information to Mossad, including a private detective. The arrests are part of a wave of detentions in Turkey related to spying activities for Israel. Citations: [1] https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/2/turkey-arrests-seven-suspected-of-selling-information-to-israels-mossad [2] https://apnews.com/article/turkey-suspects-detained-spying-israel-dd76ee759d7ca23c1ab4cb3d33fc920e [3] https://www.timesofisrael.com/turkey-arrests-33-alleged-mossad-agents-as-israel-threatens-hamas-abroad/ [4] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkey-detains-seven-suspected-selling-information-israels-mossad-anadolu-says-2024-03-05/ [5] https://www.timesofisrael.com/7-detained-in-turkey-for-allegedly-selling-intel-to-mossad-via-private-detectives/ A Medium author listed all cases of alleged … Read more
We have been keeping a tab on Turkiye’s elections for years. The whole project is here. It needs a design overhaul, but the content is still valuable. It depends on students’ willingness to contribute, so the data we can collect differs in every election. Still I try to supervise and hopefully it will be more … Read more
Hafize Gaye Erkan resigned last night. In her resignation, she tweeted that she was subject to a character assassination campaign. I am sure there was an infighting going on, and she got caught in it. I just wonder if she works like that in the US: Like a spoiled kid. Keeping her parents right where … Read more
Representation, not for all… Can Atalay loses MP status Despite two rulings from the Constitutional Court declaring a violation of rights, Turkey’s Worker’s Party (TİP) Hatay Deputy Can Atalay, who has not been released, faced a decision from the 3rd Criminal Division of the Court of Cassation, which was announced during the General Assembly of … Read more