Author: Daily Sabah
Ertan Yıldız, a figure close to Istanbul’s former Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, decided to collaborate with authorities and alleged that Imamoğlu ran a ring of corruption. Yıldız’s confessions may help the incarceration of Imamoğlu, who was arrested last March along with dozens of figures from Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) and businesspeople. Prosecutors accuse Imamoğlu and others of profiting from rigged tenders and bribery in exchange for permits the municipality issued to businesses in Türkiye’s most populated city. Yıldız served as head of the IBB department in charge of subsidiaries and was an adviser to Imamoğlu before he was arrested. A report…
Jailed PKK terrorist group leader Abdullah Öcalan had two visitors on Sunday. Pervin Buldan, a lawmaker from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), and Özgür Erol, a lawyer for Öcalan, traveled to the island prison Imrali in the Marmara Sea to meet him. This is the first visit to Öcalan after the PKK announced that it would dissolve, per Öcalan’s call in February. Buldan was part of the DEM Party delegation that visited Öcalan a few times since the terror-free Türkiye initiative was launched last year. Devlet Bahçeli, leader of government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), was the…
The Turkish Foreign Ministry on Sunday issued a statement to honor those uprooted under the Soviet regime 81 years ago, as May 18 marks the beginning of the forced exile of Crimean Tatar Turks in 1944. “Crimean Tatar Turks, the indigenous people of Crimea, were forcibly uprooted from their homeland 81 years ago today (May 18) and exiled under inhumane conditions. A significant number of those exiled lost their lives as a result of the conditions they were exposed to,” the statement said. “Although decades have passed, the usurped rights of the Crimean Tatar people have not been restored and…
May 19 Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day, along with Youth Week, is being enthusiastically celebrated across the country under the organization of the Ministry of Youth and Sports. Engineering students from universities throughout Türkiye will travel to Samsun aboard the pride of the nation, the TCG Anadolu warship. Meanwhile, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will meet with young people as part of the celebrations. Various events are being organized across the country under the coordination of the Ministry’s General Directorate of Youth Services, continuing through May 21. Celebrated as the national day of youth and sports, May 19 is…
Türkiye is in talks with authorities in Baghdad and Irbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), on how the PKK terrorists will hand over their weapons, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said following the terrorist group’s decision to disband. “Talks are being held with our neighboring countries on how the weapons of terrorists outside our borders will be handed over. There are plans regarding how the Baghdad and Irbil administrations will take part in this process,” Erdoğan said, according to a transcript of remarks he made to journalists on his return flight from Albania overnight. The PKK, which…
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed Türkiye’s pride in “carrying the banner of humanitarian diplomacy” and taking the lead in global peace efforts, as he vowed to continue to defend the rights of the oppressed. The president also reiterated Türkiye’s determination to eliminate terrorism once and for all. Addressing a youth-oriented event in Ankara, Erdoğan said Türkiye is both shaping and managing regional developments, while also building a resilient, secure future grounded in its civilizational roots. “We are working tirelessly, one by one, for peace and cease-fires,” Erdoğan told Gençfest, a gathering with youth in Istanbul on Friday. He noted that…
A ruling party official on Thursday said Türkiye is fulfilling its responsibilities on all platforms to ensure Palestinians do not experience a second Nakba, the term referring to the mass expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland during the creation of Israel in 1948. Speaking at a parliamentary session in Ankara, Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Group Deputy Chair Abdulhamit Gül remarked on Israel’s continued bombardment of the Gaza Strip and military operations in Palestinian territories. Palestinians mark on May 15 the 77th anniversary of their expulsion from their towns in historical Palestine after Israel’s creation in 1948. These events,…
The PKK terrorist group’s decision to disarm and disband can be valuable if it’s successfully completed, according to Turkish opposition leader Özgür Özel. The Republican People’s Party (CHP) has historical consistency regarding the “terror-free Türkiye” initiative, CHP Chair Özel told a private newscaster on Thursday evening. The PKK declared its dissolution on Monday as part of the terror-free Türkiye initiative launched last year by Devlet Bahçeli, head of government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). It is now required to lay down arms. “If the initiative succeeds, there willbe no more martyrs, neither Turkish nor Kurdish mothers will cry, and billions…
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Türkiye is ready to host Ukrainian and Russian leaders, as he emphasized the urgent need for a negotiated solution through direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, stressing that reaching a consensus on minimum common ground is critical to preventing further loss of life, as he met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Ankara on Thursday. The Presidential Communications Directorate said Erdoğan described the current moment as a historic opportunity to launch negotiations, expressing Türkiye’s strong support for dialogue both at the technical and leadership levels. He reiterated Türkiye’s readiness to host a potential summit between President Vladimir…
Ankara has reason to hope for the success of the Istanbul talks, which would be the first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine in over three years, to end the conflict, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Thursday. Speaking at a news conference after an informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in the southern Turkish province of Antalya, Fidan also underlined that they had to encourage the sides to compromise so they could reach a settlement. “If the parties’ positions are harmonized and trust is established, a very important step toward peace will have been taken,” Fidan told reporters. “We have…