Turkey gives go-ahead for first new church in 90 years
ANKARA — Turkey’s Islamic-rooted government has authorised the building of the first church in the country since the end of the Ottoman empire in 1923, AFP has learned. The […]
Vast 5,000 year-old underground city discovered in Turkey’s Cappadocia region
Vast 5,000 year-old underground city discovered in Turkey’s Cappadocia region The city may be the biggest in the world, officials say JON STONE Wednesday 31 December 2014 PRINT A A A A 5,000 year-old underground city thought to be the largest in the world has been discovered in central Turkey. The subterranean […]
Erdogan to chair Cabinet in unprecedented move
ANKARA: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday announced he would chair a Cabinet meeting in January, a move unprecedented for a Turkish head of state in recent times. Erdogan […]
Turkey orders extradition of president’s rival Fethullah Gulen over terrorism claims
LAMIAT SABIN THE INDEPENDENT Saturday 20 December A Turkish court has issued an arrest warrant for dissident and self-imposed exile Fethullah Gülen as he is accused of running an “armed terrorist group” to allegedly overthrow the government. Mr Gülen, who was once an ally of current president […]
ACCIDENTAL TOURISTS: Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees
12.14.14 On scene at what’s becoming Italy’s makeshift Ellis Island. Will Europe learn to accept Syria’s huddled masses yearning to breathe free? AUGUSTA, Sicily—“There is a little office near the port where a broker takes your money and gives you a password,” said Ali Saed, explaining how he and his […]
Erdoğan laments Turkish youths know Einstein but not Muslim scientists
Turkish youths know about foreign scientists and pop stars but they are not informed when it comes to Muslim scholars and local musicians, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during an address at an education conference. Erdoğan said a main objective of the education system should be to instill self-confidence in […]
Do you know the difference between a Holocaust and a holocaust? The Armenians do Despite what some sub-editors might think, the genocide of 1.5m Armenian Christians in 1915 was not a holocaust
BY ROBERT FISK, THE INDEPENDENT What’s in a name? Let’s start with the Persian Gulf. Or the Arabian Gulf. Or just the Arab Gulf. I’m indebted to reader (and surgeon) Ross Farhadieh for complaining to me last week about my use of “The Gulf” – bland, dull and historically anaemic […]
Pope and patriarch condemn Mid-East ‘persecution’
Epigraph: There should be no compulsion in religion. Surely, right has become distinct from wrong; so whosoever refuses to be led by those who transgress, and believes in Allah, has […]
Pope ends Turkey trip seeking unity with Orthodox
ISTANBUL: Pope Francis wrapped up his three-day visit to Turkey on Sunday with a liturgy alongside the spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians and a meeting with young refugees who have fled Syria, Iraq and other conflict zones. by Nicole WinfieldSuzan Fraser| Associated Press The Daily Star, Lebanon Hypnotic […]
Pope Francis prays in Istanbul’s Blue Mosque
BY REUTERS 11/29/14 AT 5:54 PM Pope Francis prayed silently alongside a senior Islamic cleric in Istanbul’s Blue Mosque on Saturday, in a gesture of inter-religious harmony in a country […]
Pope Francis urges religious tolerance on rare Turkey visit
By Laura Smith-Spark and Arwa Damon, CNN Ankara, Turkey (CNN) — Pope Francis called Friday for religious tolerance and dialogue to counter extremism in the Middle East as he met […]
Pope Francis to visit Turkey in most challenging mission of papacy so far – Pontiff to try to tackle relations with Islam, Christian persecution in the Muslim world and the Catholic-Orthodox schism
Constanze Letsch in Istanbul, John Hooper in Rome and agencies The Guardian, Thursday 27 November 2014 16.30 GMT Pope Francis embarks on one of the most delicate missions of his […]
Turkey president Erdogan: Women are not equal to men
Source: BBC Related Stories Erdogan’s ‘New Turkey’ drifts towards isolation Muslims found Americas, says Erdogan Turkey Erdogan palace costs to soar Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said women cannot […]
Pope Francis visit: Turkey’s Christians face tense times
BBC: It tells of a city where empires, cultures and religions collided. A building that bears mosaics of Jesus and the Virgin Mary beside calligraphy reading “Allah” and “the Prophet […]
Muslims found Americas before Columbus says Turkey’s Erdogan
BBC News: Muslims discovered the Americas more than three centuries before Christopher Columbus, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said. He made the claim during a conference of Latin American Muslim leaders in Istanbul, pointing to a diary entry in which Columbus mentioned a mosque on a hill in Cuba. […]
Archaeologists dig at ancient site next door to Islamic State
By Mohammed Rasool and Deb Riechmann The Associated Press GAZIANTEP, Turkey —Archaeology and war don’t usually mix, yet that has been the case for years at Karkemish, an ancient city […]
New Alignments: The Kurds’ Lonely Fight against Islamic State Terror
By Ralf Hoppe, Maximilian Popp, Christoph Reuter and Jonathan Stock SPIEGEL.DE The headquarters of one the world’s mightiest terrorist organization is located in the mountains northeast of Erbil, Iraq. Or […]
United Biscuits sold to Turkey’s Yildiz for £2bn
The UK company behind the McVitie’s, Jaffa Cakes and Penguin brands has been bought by Turkish food group Yildiz Holdings for a reported £2bn. United Biscuits (UB) was put up […]
Kobane: US drops arms and aid to Kurds battling IS
US military aircraft have dropped weapons, ammunition and medical supplies to Kurdish fighters battling Islamic State (IS) militants in the key Syrian town of Kobane. US Central Command said C-130 transport aircraft had made “multiple” drops of supplies provided by Kurdish authorities in Iraq. US air strikes have helped push […]