Turkey held the penultimate part of the trial in absentia of 26 individuals related to the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Thursday before sending the case to Riyadh, angering rights organisations. On October 2, 2018, the 59-year-old journalist was assassinated inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, in a brutal murder that stunned the … Read more
Turkey said Thursday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba could meet for discussions in two weeks after hosting representatives from both sides earlier this week. “There could be a higher-level meeting, at least at the level of foreign ministers, within about a week or two weeks,” Turkish Foreign Minister … Read more
The ‘1915 Canakkale Bridge’ in Turkey has now become the world’s longest suspension bridge, spanning two kilometers. It runs from Gelibolu on the European side of Turkey’s northwestern province of Canakkale to Lapseki on the Asian side of the Dardanelles Strait. The bridge allows passengers to cross the Dardanelles, which connects the Aegean Sea and … Read more
On his first visit to the country since Russia’s invasion prompted fears of a nuclear disaster, UN atomic watchdog director Rafael Grossi visited a nuclear power facility in southern Ukraine on Wednesday. He has warned repeatedly about the perils of the battle, which is the first in a country with a large nuclear arsenal. On … Read more
Russia has been accused of deploying lethal phosphorous bombs in Ukraine, raising worries that Vladimir Putin may resort to chemical weapons. Footage shows what seems to be white phosphorus blazing ferociously on the ground in Kramatorsk, Ukraine’s eastern metropolis, while additional shots show it lighting in the sky over Kyiv. White phosphorous causes damage and … Read more
ANTALYA, Turkey: Turkey and Armenia have pledged to pursue the normalisation of ties in what the Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu described as a “productive and constructive” meeting on Saturday. After talks with his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, Cavusoglu said that Azerbaijan also “supports the process” of normalisation. Armenia and Turkey have no diplomatic relations, … Read more
KYIV: A mosque in the southeastern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, where 80 civilians were taking shelter, has been shelled by Russian forces, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said on Saturday. “The mosque of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and his wife Roxolana (Hurrem Sultan) in Mariupol was shelled by Russian invaders. More than 80 adults and children are hiding … Read more
ANTALYA, Turkey – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba on Thursday were holding talks in Turkey in the first such high-level contact since Moscow invaded its neighbour. Turkey has for weeks pushed to play a mediation role in the conflict. But analysts fear there are only the lowest chances of a … Read more
KIEV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for negotiations aimed at resolving the conflict with Russia, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Wednesday. “The war must end. We must sit down at the negotiating table,” Zelensky was quoted as saying. The talks should be “honest, objective, in the interests of the people,” he said in … Read more
ANKARA: Gold has a central place in Turkish customs from birth to weddings. As the country is battling economic woes and low foreign currency reserves, the authorities want to draw the yellow metal stored by citizens into the banking system. As Turkey’s annual inflation surged to a two-decade high of 48.7 per cent in January, … Read more
ISTANBUL: Kicked out in the middle of a harsh Turkish winter, 30-year-old Erdem Yilmaz calculated that he spent two and a half months’ salary to urgently relocate to a new home in Istanbul. The father of a two-year-old is not the only Turk in this situation after last year’s currency crisis. Disputes between homeowners and … Read more
Kabul – Management assistance from Turkey and Qatar to keep Kabul’s airport open will help Afghanistan stay connected with the world and stabilise the flow of aid to Afghans enduring a humanitarian crisis, experts said. The agreement is also expected to boost regional cooperation between Afghanistan and its other neighbours, as the Taliban-the nation’s caretaker … Read more
ISTANBUL – Turkish journalist Sedef Kabas begins her second month in detention on Tuesday for “insulting the president”, an increasingly common offence which observers believe is stifling critical voices 16 months before the presidential election. The 52-year-old has already spent longer in jail than any other journalist for this alleged offence, according to the NGO … Read more
LAHORE: The exports of hand-knotted carpets are on the decline due to the dearth of skilled workforce, expensive raw materials and higher cost of doing business. The indifferent attitude of successive governments had also played a key role in the downfall of the carpet industry, which was once vibrant and attracted buyers from across the … Read more
KARACHI: A delegation of nine event managers and wedding planners that had been invited by the Tourism Boards of Turkey and Cyprus, returned to Pakistan after a successful trip, a statement said. The delegation was invited through the efforts of two event companies Tay Istanbul Events and Vision Events based in Pakistan and Turkey, respectively. … Read more
ABU DHABI – Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on business leaders in the wealthy United Arab Emirates to invest in his country during his recent visit to Abu Dhabi for the first time in nearly a decade. The Turkish president said that that trip “started a new era” with the UAE, adding there was … Read more
DUBAI – Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was Monday due to visit the United Arab Emirates for the first time in nearly a decade, to revive relations that were long strained by regional disputes. Turkey and the oil-rich Emirates have backed opposing sides in the Libyan civil war and in a Gulf diplomatic crisis, and … Read more
ANKARA – A Turkish prosecutor on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant for 21 suspects over their alleged links to a network accused of orchestrating a coup attempt in 2016. The warrant was issued as part of an investigation into the Gulen Movement and targeted three lawyers, along with students who were dismissed from the Faculty … Read more
DAMASCUS – A total of 13 people were killed by a U.S. security operation in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib before daybreak Thursday, a war monitor reported. Four children and three women were among those killed by the U.S. operation which included an airdrop of forces and aerial targeting by warplanes in the rebel-held province, … Read more
ISTANBUL – The frozen bodies of seven more migrants have been discovered close to the Greek border, Turkish officials said on Thursday, bringing the death toll in the diplomatically-charged incident to 19. Turkey accuses border guards in neighbour Greece of allowing the migrants to die in the winter cold after stripping them of their clothes … Read more
ATHENS – Activists said Wednesday they filed a UN complaint on behalf of an Iranian asylum seeker who alleged she was tortured and beaten during several detentions in Greece before being repeatedly deported to Turkey. Parvin A, the asylum seeker who now lives in Germany, alleged that not only did she suffer abuse but that … Read more
ANKARA – Turkey on Tuesday reported 102,601 new COVID-19 cases, the highest daily figure since the outbreak of the pandemic, raising its tally of infections to 11,722,483. The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 198 to 87,614, while 87,562 people recovered in the last 24 hours, said the Turkish Health Ministry. A … Read more
PARIS: Wariness and outright hostility to vaccines did not start with Covid-19 but date back to the 18th century when the first shots were given. From real fears sparked by side effects to fake studies and conspiracy theories, we take a look at anti-vax sentiment over the ages: 1796: First jab, first fears Smallpox killed … Read more
LAHORE: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Thursday claimed to have arrested a human trafficker who smuggled a citizen to Iran and extorted money for the victim’s release from illegal detention after he was returned from Turkey’s border. The action against the human trafficker, Aziz Mohmand, was taken on the order of FIA Director KP, Mujahid … Read more
ANKARA – Turkey on Tuesday reported 76,341 new COVID-19 cases, raising the tally of infections to 11,090,493. The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 174 to 86,299, while 82,203 more people recovered in the last 24 hours, according to the Turkish Health Ministry. A total of 418,427 tests were conducted over the … Read more
ANKARA – Turkey on Sunday reported 65,503 new COVID-19 cases, raising its tally of infections to 10,947,129, according to its health ministry. The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 185 to 85,969, while 75,422 more people recovered in the last 24 hours. A total of 392,281 tests were conducted over the past … Read more
ISTANBUL: Turkey’s central bank on Thursday bowed to market pressure and halted a four-month streak of interest rate cuts that saw inflation soar and the currency collapse. The bank left its policy rate at 14 per cent two days after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a fervent opponent of high interest rates, said future reductions could … Read more
ISTANBUL – Turkey has so far administered 140 million COVID-19 vaccine doses as part of the ongoing vaccination campaign, the Turkish Health Ministry revealed on Thursday. According to the ministry’s data, the vaccination rate of citizens aged 18 and over who have received two vaccine doses hit 84.10 percent, and those with one shot reached … Read more
