Author: Daily Sabah With Agencies

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed on Wednesday to uphold bilateral cooperation founded on mutual respect and trust Fidan called Rubio to congratulate him on his new position and to discuss bilateral relations, according to Foreign Ministry sources. Both ministers reaffirmed the importance of collaboration as two allies, stressing the significance of coordination on regional issues. Türkiye and the U.S. are expected to focus on cooperating in areas varying from trade, energy and defense industries to investments during President Donald Trump’s second term. Efforts to improve bilateral relations between the two countries, despite certain…

A devastating fire broke out early on Jan. 21 at the 11-story Grand Kartal Hotel, located in the Kartalkaya Ski Resort in Bolu province in northwestern Türkiye. The fire tragically claimed the lives of 76 people and left 51 others injured. The treatment of those who survived the fire continues, with several individuals still hospitalized in critical condition. According to the Ministry of Health, 51 people were injured in the fire. As of now, 22 individuals remain under medical care, while 29 others have been discharged after receiving initial treatment. The injured have been transferred to hospitals across the region,…

Messages of condolences poured after a devastating fire at a ski resort in Türkiye’s Bolu province claimed at least 66 lives on Tuesday, as the country announced a day of mourning for the tragic disaster. Arab nations extended their condolences to Türkiye for the victims of the hotel fire. A statement from the United Arab Emirates Foreign Ministry expressed the country’s “sincere” condolences and solidarity with Türkiye over the hotel fire. Kuwait’s emir, Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, sent a message of condolences to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, offering prayers that “the victims be granted mercy and forgiveness and that the…

Defending NBA champion Boston Celtics dominated the Golden State Warriors 125-85 on Monday, while league leaders Cleveland cruised to victory over the Phoenix Suns. Jayson Tatum scored 22 points with nine rebounds and seven assists before sitting out the entire fourth quarter for the Celtics, who handed the Warriors their worst home defeat since a 149-104 loss to Dallas in 1985. Kristaps Porzingis added 18 points and Jaylen Brown chipped in 17 for Boston, who took full advantage of the absence of Draymond Green, the latest Warriors injury victim after he strained his left calf on Saturday. “Those are some…

Defending NBA champion Boston Celtics dominated the Golden State Warriors 125-85 on Monday, while league leaders Cleveland cruised to victory over the Phoenix Suns. Jayson Tatum scored 22 points with nine rebounds and seven assists before sitting out the entire fourth quarter for the Celtics, who handed the Warriors their worst home defeat since a 149-104 loss to Dallas in 1985. Kristaps Porzingis added 18 points and Jaylen Brown chipped in 17 for Boston, who took full advantage of the absence of Draymond Green, the latest Warriors injury victim after he strained his left calf on Saturday. “Those are some…

Officials hoisted Turkish flag to country’s consulate building in Aleppo, a key Syrian city, as diplomatic mission reopened 12 years later on Monday. Ambassador Burhan Köroğlu, the interim charge d’affaires of the Turkish Embassy in Damascus, which was reopened earlier, accompanied Consul General Hakan Cengiz and dignitaries as the consulate was reopened. Locals also attended the reopening ceremony, chanting celebratory slogans. Türkiye maintains close ties with the new administration of Syria and was one of the first countries to open its embassy in Syria on Dec. 14 after the fall of the Baathist regime. The embassy was forced to shut…

Turkish Süper Lig giants Beşiktaş unveiled Sunday former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as the club’s new coach. Solskjaer, who has not held a coaching role since leaving Old Trafford in 2021, takes over at the Istanbul side who have been without a head coach since letting Giovanni van Bronckhorst go last month. The Norwegian, who arrived in Istanbul Friday, was formally presented to the press at a ceremony at the club’s home Sunday. He has agreed a 3.6-million euro ($3.7 million) deal until the end of the 2025-2026 season, with a one-year extension option. Earlier Saturday, a statement…

Turkish Süper Lig giants Beşiktaş unveiled Sunday former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as the club’s new coach. Solskjaer, who has not held a coaching role since leaving Old Trafford in 2021, takes over at the Istanbul side who have been without a head coach since letting Giovanni van Bronckhorst go last month. The Norwegian, who arrived in Istanbul Friday, was formally presented to the press at a ceremony at the club’s home Sunday. He has agreed a 3.6-million euro ($3.7 million) deal until the end of the 2025-2026 season, with a one-year extension option. Earlier Saturday, a statement…

The U.S.-backed terrorist group YPG cannot retain its own bloc within the broader integrated Syrian armed forces, the defense minister said on Sunday. Speaking to Reuters at the Defense Ministry in Damascus on Sunday, Murhaf Abu Qasra said the heads of YPG fighters were procrastinating in handling the complex issue. The YPG, the Syrian wing of the terrorist group PKK – which has killed thousands in Türkiye in more than four decades, established itself as a semi-autonomous entity in Syria’s northeast, exploiting the security vacuum amid the civil war. When 14 years of civil war came to an end last…

The PKK’s U.S.-backed Syrian offshoot, the YPG, is courting Iraqi Kurds in an apparent push to garner support at a time when the political upheaval in Syria has left the terrorist group facing an uncertain future. Hoshyar Zebari, a senior Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) official, said KDP leader Masoud Barzani and YPG leader Ferhat Abdi Şahin, code-named “Mazloum Abdi,” met in Irbil, the capital of the semiautonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq. Zebari said the meeting was a “significant achievement to strengthen Kurdish unity and position” during Syria’s transitional phase. The meeting came weeks after the fall of the regime…