Author: Daily Sabah
Turkish authorities on Thursday arrested a businessperson accused of smuggling abroad a fugitive wanted in the corruption case against the Istanbul municipality. Adnan Bıçakçı was detained for allegedly helping Emrah Bağdatlı flee abroad and was later arrested on charges of “being a member of a criminal organization.” The arrest is part of the investigation into the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) over allegations of corruption and bribery. During questioning, Bıçakçı admitted to taking Bağdatlı, a man he said he had known for nearly 14 years, to Dedeağaç (Alexandroupolis), a Greek city bordering northwestern Türkiye, for dinner and that Bağdatlı later did…
U.S. President Donald Trump refrained from using the term Armenian “genocide” in his annual message, instead referring to the 1915 events as the “Great Catastrophe.” As in previous years, Trump avoided the politically charged term and instead used the Armenian phrase “Meds Yeghern,” meaning “Great Catastrophe,” in his April 24 remembrance message marking the 110th anniversary of the 1915 events. In the statement, Trump praised the efforts of the American Committee for Relief in the Near East, established in 1915, and expressed gratitude to the thousands of Americans who supported Armenian and Syrian refugees during that time. Türkiye had previously…
Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday reiterated its call for continued support of the normalization process between Türkiye and Armenia, while firmly rejecting statements made about the 1915 events that it said contradict historical facts and international law. In a statement, the ministry emphasized Türkiye’s commitment to advancing the normalization dialogue with Armenia and urged international actors to contribute constructively to the process. “We stress that the efforts of radical circles to draw animosity from history should not be encouraged and reiterate our call to support the ongoing normalization process between Türkiye and Armenia,” the ministry said. The statement also addressed…
On the anniversary of the so-called Armenian “genocide,” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sent a message to Türkiye’s Armenian Patriarch Sahak Maşalyan and extended condolences to the community. April 24 is considered a memorial day by Armenia, which claims the Ottoman Empire committed genocide against its Armenian community in 1915, during World War I. Ankara rejects the allegations, though it acknowledges mass deaths among Armenians. Erdoğan said he regards Ottoman Armenians who died amid the problematic conditions of World War I with respect and extended his condolences to their grandchildren. “We still feel the pain deep in our hearts for lives…
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday that Türkiye would maintain ties with Turkic states in the face of attempts to sever them, saying the states’ cooperation with Greek Cypriots was a family matter they may resolve among themselves. He was speaking in the capital Ankara at a news conference with his Norwegian counterpart, days after several members of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) moved to recognize the Greek Cypriot administration on the divided island of Cyprus, allegedly to secure deals with European Union countries. Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, three full members of the OTS, and observer state Turkmenistan, have…
Türkiye will not abstain from exercising its rights as a guarantor state for Cyprus, Defense Ministry sources said on Thursday, following Greek Cypriot Archbishop Georgios’ Easter remarks that angered Ankara. In an Easter message, the influential cleric in the divided island accused Türkiye of “expansionism” and called for coordination with Greece, another guarantor state for the island, to liberate the island.” Sources said Türkiye would act against any activities by the Greek Cypriot administration that threaten the peace, stability and security of Turkish Cypriots on the island. The archbishop is among the successors of Makarios III, who served two terms…
France appears to be seeking a potential involvement in resolving the Syrian crisis following the ouster of Bashar Assad by anti-regime forces in December. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Wednesday met with Ferhat Abdi Şahin, the leader of the YPG, the Syrian offshoot of the PKK terrorist group, in Irbil in northern Iraq to discuss the latest situation in Syria. His visit to Irbil, the capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), came as part of a broader regional tour, following a stop in Baghdad. Barrot held additional talks with senior Iraqi Kurdish leaders, including members of the…
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan condemned the burning of Turkish and Azerbaijani flags by a nationalist group on Wednesday, his spokesperson said on Thursday. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation, or Dashnaktsutyun, repeated its burning act during a torchlight procession in Yerevan dedicated to the remembrance of the so-called Armenian “genocide.” Pashinyan’s spokesperson, Nazeli Baghdasaryan, quoted by the Armenian media, said that the prime minister defined the act as “irresponsible and unacceptable.” “The burning of the flags of internationally recognized states, especially neighboring states, cannot be tolerated by the leader of the country. It is a provoking and inciting conduct,” Baghdasaryan said.…
The Parliament on Wednesday held a special session on National Sovereignty and Children’s Day to mark the 105th anniversary of its opening, underlining continued growth, development and unity within the country. “We see this Parliament not only as a decision-making body or a competition ground for different ideas, but also as the honor, dignity and conscience of a nation,” the group chair of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) said. “Our goal today, our values and the ideal we are drawing the direction toward is a world where justice prevails, stability is established, human dignity is not violated,…
A plaintiff in the corruption trial against the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) has alleged that the city’s ousted and arrested mayor, Ekrem Imamoğlu, sought to receive a $1 million bribe from him for a construction license. A total of 100 suspects, including Imamoğlu, IBB press adviser Murat Ongun, Imamoğlu’s construction General Secretary Tuncay Yılmaz, businessperson Fatih Keleş, Imamoğlu’s consultant Ertan Yıldız and others linked to the organization, have been implicated in charges related to “being a leader of a criminal organization,” “membership in a criminal organization,” “bribery,” “fraud,” “illegal data acquisition” and “tampering with a tender.” Fuat Keleş claimed that…