Category Archives: Turkey

‘Waste colonialism’: world grapples with west’s unwanted plastic

Posted on by

Germany and UK are big exporters of plastic, much of which lies rotting in ports in Turkey, Vietnam and other countries

One hundred and 41 containers filled with rotting plastic waste have been on a journey for more than a year. Scattered between Turkey, Greece and Vietnam, far from their origins in Germany, the containers’ voyage sheds light on the hidden global trade in plastic waste.

Arriving in Turkey in late 2020, shortly before a ban on mixed plastic waste imports came into force, the containers quickly became the centre of a battle between traders, a shipping line, multiple governments and environmental campaigners demanding their return.

Continue reading...

At least 16 dead after third migrant boat in three days sinks in Greek waters

Posted on by

People still missing despite major rescue effort as smugglers switch to more perilous route from Turkey

At least 16 people have died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late Friday, bringing to at least 30 the combined death toll from three accidents in as many days involving migrant boats in Greek waters.

The sinkings came as smugglers increasingly favour a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, which avoids Greece’s heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that for years were at the forefront of the country’s migration crisis.

Continue reading...

‘There’s jobs but no money’: Turkey’s economic crisis begins to bite

Posted on by

As the value of the lira plummets and inflation soars, Turkish citizens are struggling to adapt and survive

In a jewellery shop close to Istanbul’s Taksim Square, Seda unzips an elegant black leather pouch and piles her gold jewellery on the counter to discuss selling it all. The shop owner gently places gold chains, rings and a pendant on a small scale, before immediately calling a trader to discuss the latest rates.

“I used to look at the price of gold once a week. Now I look roughly 50 times a day,” says the owner, who asks that his name is withheld. He advises Seda to wait – perhaps the price will stabilise.

Continue reading...

Dining across the divide: ‘He’s such a nice guy but supports Brexit. He’s young; it’s not normal’

Posted on by

Both have experienced being treated as outsiders in the UK, but can they broach one of Britain’s most divisive topics?

Batuhan, 22, Bournemouth

Occupation Support worker and neuropsychology master’s student
Voting record Batuhan is not eligible to vote in the UK. In the last Turkish local government elections, he voted for the centre-left Republican People’s party
Amuse bouche Huge fan of basketball; supports any team LeBron James is playing for

Continue reading...

Batman loach returns: fish feared extinct found in Turkey

Posted on by

Scientists working on the Search For The Lost Fishes project have spotted the freshwater Batman River loach, which has not been seen since 1974

A freshwater fish that scientists thought was extinct has been found in south-east Turkey, after an absence of nearly 50 years.

“I’ve been researching this area for 12 years and this fish was always on my wishlist,” said Dr Cüneyt Kaya, associate professor at Recep Tayyip Erdoğan University. “It’s taken a long time. When I saw the distinctive bands on the fish, I felt so happy. It was a perfect moment.”

Continue reading...

One of suspected killers of Jamal Khashoggi held in Paris, say reports

Posted on by

Khalid Aedh al-Otaibi reportedly arrested as he was about to board flight to Riyadh

French police have reportedly arrested a former member of the Saudi royal guard suspected of involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Khalid Aedh al-Otaibi was said to have been taken into custody at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport as he was about to take a plane to the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

Continue reading...

Lives lost at Europe’s borders and Afghan MPs in exile: human rights this fortnight – in pictures

Posted on by

A roundup of the struggle for human rights and freedoms, from Mexico to Manila

Continue reading...

Refugees forced to claim asylum in ‘jail-like’ camps as Greece tightens system

Posted on by

Aid agencies fear plans to scrap applications via Skype are an attempt to control and contain rather than help asylum seekers

When Hadi Karam*, a soft-spoken Syrian, decided to leave the war-stricken city of Raqqa, he knew the journey to Europe would be risky. What he had not factored in was how technology would be a stumbling block once he reached Greece.

“I never thought Skype would be the problem,” says the young professional, recounting his family’s ordeal trying to contact asylum officers in the country. “You ring and ring and ring. Weeks and weeks go by, and there is never any answer.”

Continue reading...

Trucks overturn and buildings collapse as extreme winds hit Turkey – video

Posted on by

Four people, including a foreign national, were killed and at least 19 were injured in Istanbul on Monday as extreme winds battered Turkey's biggest city and its surrounding regions, the governor's office said. The wild weather caused at least two lorries to overturn, blocking traffic on a busy highway in Istanbul. The winds have knocked down buildings and lifted concrete slabs off roofs and walls

Continue reading...

Turkey accused of using Interpol summit to crack down on critics

Posted on by

Campaigners claim Ankara is abusing its position as host, by pressuring the police body to harass dissidents living abroad

Human rights activists have accused Turkey of using its role as host of Interpol’s general assembly to push for a crackdown on critics and political opponents who have fled the country.

The alert came after the Turkish interior minister, Süleyman Soylu, said his government would use the three-day event in Istanbul to persuade the international criminal police organisation’s officials and delegates to find, arrest and extradite Turkish dissident citizens – particularly those it labels terrorists – abroad.

Continue reading...

Erdoğan gambles on economy amid protests and rocketing inflation

Posted on by

Analysis: push for interest rate cuts has divided party and left Turkish president in precarious position, say experts

Turkey’s president is gambling that a strong economic recovery from the pandemic will stay on track despite rocketing inflation that has hit living standards and sparked protests in major cities.

The $750bn economy is on course to expand by 9% this year following a return of tourism and a surge in demand for exports that has pushed factory output to pre-pandemic levels.

Continue reading...

Pandemic hits mental health of women and young people hardest, survey finds

Posted on by

Survey also finds adults aged 18-24 and women more concerned about personal finances than other groups

Young people and women have taken the hardest psychological and financial hit from the pandemic, a YouGov survey has found – but few people anywhere are considering changing their lives as a result of it.

The annual YouGov-Cambridge Globalism Project found that in many of the 27 countries surveyed, young people were consistently more likely than their elders to feel the Covid crisis had made their financial and mental health concerns worse.

Continue reading...

Migrant caravan and Qatar’s tarnished World Cup: human rights this fortnight – in pictures

Posted on by

A roundup of the struggle for human rights and freedoms, from Pakistan to Poland

Continue reading...

Omar Souleyman: singer held by Turkey over alleged militant links is freed

Posted on by

Syrian questioned by police after reports he has ties to banned Kurdish People’s Protection Units

Celebrated Syrian singer Omar Souleyman, who has performed at festivals around the world, has been released after being detained over alleged links to Kurdish militants.

Souleyman was freed at 10.30pm (19.30 GMT) after a confusing day during which he was released in the morning before being taken back to a detention centre.

Continue reading...

Syrian musician Omar Souleyman held on terrorism charges in Turkey

Posted on by

Arrest relates to alleged membership of Kurdistan Workers’ party, which is proscribed by Turkey and the west

The Syrian musician Omar Souleyman, who has performed at festivals around the world, has been arrested in Turkey on terrorism charges related to alleged membership of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK).

The singer and DJ was taken into custody by officers who searched his home in the south-eastern province of Şanlıurfa, his son Muhammad told a Syrian news outlet on Wednesday. An official in the Şanlıurfa governor’s office confirmed the arrest to the Guardian.

Continue reading...

Turkey jails Kurdish politician’s wife over miscarriage form ‘typo’

Posted on by

Başak Demirtaş and her doctor sentenced over ‘falsified’ medical report on her miscarriage

The wife of a jailed Kurdish politician has been sentenced to two and a half years in a Turkish prison over a typo in a medical report on a miscarriage, in a case denounced as an “appalling” political persecution.

A court in Diyarbakır handed down sentences of 30 months each for Başak Demirtaş, a teacher, and her doctor on Thursday for submitting a falsified medical report, a local Kurdish news agency reported.

Continue reading...

‘Killing us slowly’: dams and drought choke Syria’s water supply – in pictures

Posted on by

The dwindling flow of the Euphrates River combined with Turkey’s occupation of Alouk water station has disrupted access to water for 460,000 people

Continue reading...

‘A moment in history’: making a perilous sea-crossing with refugees – photo essay

Posted on by

Ahead of a UK exhibition of her photo series Journey in the Death Boat, Güliz Vural describes travelling with Syrians being smuggled to Greece from Turkey

Standing on a Turkish beach ready to join a group of Syrian refugees on an inflatable boat bound for Greece, the photojournalist Güliz Vural’s biggest fear was that the people traffickers organising the illegal crossing would not let her onboard.

If she had known that within a few hours of leaving Turkey she would be under arrest, accused of people trafficking herself, she would have thought twice about the journey.

The migrants carry the inflatable boat they will travel in down to the beach. They had to leave all their possessions as they crammed themselves in. Nearly 50 Syrians made the crossing in a boat designed to carry 12 people, adding to the anxiety felt by the children in particular.

Continue reading...

Greece accused of ‘biggest pushback in years’ of stricken refugee ship

Posted on by

Cargo ship, carrying 382 migrants, was towed across the seas for four days before Athens was forced into a rescue after mayday call

It was hailed as the biggest search-and-rescue operation in the eastern Mediterranean for a decade. But the bid to save hundreds of refugees on a stricken ship in the Aegean Sea has led to allegations that the operation bore all the hallmarks of an illegal pushback before the Greek coastguard was forced to change tactics.

Only days after 382 asylum seekers disembarked on the island of Kos, criticism has mounted over their “unnecessarily prolonged” ordeal at sea.

Continue reading...

Ethiopia-Turkey pact fuels speculation about drone use in Tigray war

Posted on by

Reports say Ethiopia wants to buy Bayraktar TB2 drones after military cooperation agreement was signed with Ankara

Ethiopia’s government has forged an alliance with Turkey, amid reports that it wants to deploy armed Turkish drones in its bitter war against forces from the region of Tigray.

Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopia’s prime minister, signed a military cooperation agreement on a visit Ankara in August with Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Continue reading...