Turkey

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Turkey’s actions in Syria see PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan go from model Middle East ‘strongman’ to tin-pot dictator Once a cuddly ally of Barack Obama, the Turkish Prime Minister has shown himself to be increasingly authoritarian

BY ROBERT FISK, THE INDEPENDENT Recep Tayyip Erdogan used to be one of Barack Obama’s cuddliest allies. Religious but secular, powerful but democratic, independent but a reliable Nato chum, he was the kind of guy the White House and the Pentagon could rely on to provide a guiding hand in […]

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Turkey losing faith in the European dream

  For the last year, Turkey has been dogged by one of the worst domestic political crises in its history. It started with the countrywide protests sparked by the Gezi Park sit-in and continued with the Turkish government corruption scandal. It was then further exacerbated by the government’s ban on […]

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Turkish Twitter ban

Source: ET Until a day ago, the ban was widely circumvented by Turkish Twitterers, but on March 22, the government blocked Twitter access at the IP level. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE The battle for free speech in the age of the internet is going on across the world. Freedom of speech, these […]

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Turkey passes law tightening control of internet

Source: BBC Turkish protesters used the internet to spread pictures and information in last year’s demonstrations Related Stories Twitter under pressure in Turkey BBC concern at Turkey ‘intimidation’ Dozens arrested over protest tweetsWatch The Turkish parliament has approved a bill that would tighten government controls over the internet. The new […]

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The Suleymaniye Mosque and the great architect Sinan

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Erdogan risks US ties with provocations

Source: Asia Times: The current corruption scandal in Turkey has the potential to diminish hard-earned gains that the United States has recently made in the Middle East from the Iranian nuclear and Syria chemical weapons deal. It could also derail one of the most important partnerships the United States has […]