Turkey is in the process of recovering from a major blackout that has brought the country to a relative standstill. Almost the entire country has been affected by the massive power cut, according to some media reports out of Turkey. Officials are considering the possibility that they were hit by a major cyber attack directed at its critical infrastructure.
Puerto Rico bankruptcy may be imminent, potentially a ‘seminal event’; Israel releases tax revenue collections to Palestinian Authority; Mideast nations line up for and against Saudi airstrikes in Yemen; Mideast countries opposed to Saudi intervention in Yemen
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged his full support to the Sunni Arab coalition currently fighting the Shiite Houthi rebels that have taken over Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. Stating that Iranian attempts to “dominate the region” have “begun annoying us,” Erdogan noted that Turkey is ready to further involve itself in the conflict “if there is a role to play.”
Adımlar Magazine, a radical Islamist publication headquartered in Istanbul that has publicly supported ISIS, has lost a writer and three of its editors were injured this week in a blast at their headquarters. Responsibility for the attack is disputed in several publications, though the editor in chief of Adımlar insists the bombing was the work of “the CIA or the Mossad.”
Iran will not be the last Middle Eastern nation to get atomic weapons after President Obama formalizes the collapse of Western resistance to nuclear proliferation. Also, they probably won’t be the first.
The Islamist government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sentenced two cartoonists to 11 months in prison for drawing a magazine cover in which some claim it is implied that Erdogan is homosexual. The cartoon also overtly depicts Erdogan discussing killing journalists.
The Turkish Parliament is considering an extensive Internet regulation bill that has been expanded this week to include a ban on sharing content prohibited by the state–not just punishment for those who publish the content originally.
Chinese officials visited Baghdad this weekend to vow cooperation with the Iraqi government in eradicating the Islamic State and rebuilding the oil-rich Iraqi economy. Outlets differ on the sparse details, though the message of resolve to participate in the fight against ISIS appears throughout.
For the Kurdish New Year, rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan asked his followers to end a rebellion against Turkey. The conflict between the Kurdistan Workers’s Party (PKK) and Turkey is over three decades long.
Fuat Özgür Çalapkulu, the head of Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AKP), raised many eyebrows when he tweeted that Turkey, a member of NATO, needs to be ready for ‘Caliph’ Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Hurriyet Daily News caught Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan holding forth about his role in shaping American health care at the inauguration of a new health complex in Ankara.
The story of Tairod Nathan Webster Pugh is disturbing, but not entirely unique, as a report from NJ.com notes. A federal indictment charges that the New Jersey man–a born-and-bred American who served four years in the Air Force–began following the Islamic State online and decided to join the jihad by arranging a “vacation” to Turkey, with an eye toward slipping across the border into Syria.
At press time, President Obama has not yet congratulated the new Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry denounced on Saturday a recent report adopted by theEuropean Parliament that called on European Union member states to recognizeArmenian claims of genocide at the hands of the late Ottoman Empire.
Turkish education officials are pulling a textbook from grade schools featuring a children’s story in which hyenas dismiss the idea of women being freely able to choose their own careers for fear that they will “not even want to start a family.”
A female Quran teacher is on the hot seat after she told some female students at a middle school they “deserve rape” when they attended class without a headscarf.
Fears grow of Shia revenge killings in Iraq; Russia plans military development, including nuclear weapons, in Crimea
The Turkish government has announced plans to expand Internet access to the nation’s poorest families. The announcement follows a blanket ban on more than 68,000 websites and years of attempts at Internet censorship under the ruling AK Party, led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The persecution of individuals speaking ill of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues, as more stories surface of people silenced or punished for disagreeing with the president. In an incident this week, a young cleaning lady in a private firm was fired after allegedly posting insults against Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Facebook.
Two teenage boys were stopped by Aussie authorities while they were attempting to fly out of Sydney Airport and join the Islamic State’s (ISIS) jihad in Syria and Iraq.
The Spanish government has arrested a woman, identified as Samira Yerou, after Turkish authorities sent her back to Spain, suspecting she was attempting to enter Syria and join the Islamic State (ISIS). Spanish authorities have noted that evidence exists indicating Yerou was also working to recruit new members for the terrorist group.
Libya’s two rival governments in unity talks to fight ISIS; UAE may replace Saudis as Egypt’s most important Arab ally; Boko Haram kills 58 in multiple bombings in Maiduguri, Nigeria; Boko Haram declares allegiance to ISIS
A group of 5,000 pharmacies in Istanbul, Turkey, released a letter explaining their refusal to provide free drugs to refugees of the Syrian Civil War.
Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan seek ‘Sunni unity’ versus Iran; Turkey’s Erdogan shuts out Al-Sisi and Egypt from discussions; After a year, experts still guessing about Malaysia Airlines 370
Turkish newspaper Today’s Zaman reports that the government has officially confirmed that an Islamic State commander is receiving treatment for his battle wounds at the Pamukkale University Hospital.
