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With its 9 May announcement that it has decided to directly arm the Kurdish-dominated People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria, Washington has inserted itself even further into one of the region’s oldest and bloodiest conflicts: the 33-year-long fight between Turkey and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is the mother organisation of the YPG and a group deemed a terrorist group by not only Turkey but by the US itself.

In fighting the Islamic State (IS), Washington has been supporting the YPG indirectly for several years and meeting with its commanders. But the decision to provide arms directly further elevates the PKK’s Syrian branch’s status.…  Seguir leyendo »

Free Syrian Army fighters gesture as Turkish military vehicles drive in the Syrian rebel-held town of al-Rai while heading towards the northern Syrian town of al-Bab, Syria January 9, 2017. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

For years, as an insurgency raged against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Turkey turned a blind eye while rebels groups, including Islamic extremists, moved weapons and fighters across the Syrian-Turkish border. Jihadist groups like Islamic State established strong networks in Turkish towns to smuggle recruits and supplies into Syria.

Despite pleas from Western allies concerned about militant plots emanating from the border areas, the Turkish government felt that it could contain the jihadists and saw the toppling of Assad’s regime as its priority. But after Turkey was targeted with a series of bombings in mid-2015 linked to Islamic State, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan began cracking down along the southern border and granted the United States access to military bases that would be used for air strikes against jihadist groups in Syria.…  Seguir leyendo »

People take pictures of a makeshift memorial in front of the Reina nightclub on Jan. 5 in Istanbul, four days after a gunman killed 39 people. (Ozan Kose/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images)

Sometimes a tragedy can unite a family — or a nation. Across Europe, the citizens of various countries that have been hit by Islamic State terrorism displayed a heartfelt solidarity in their moment of national grief. There were candlelight vigils, outpourings of sorrow on social media, a general sense of “We are in this together” across the political spectrum.

This is not happening here in Turkey. Each and every terrorist attack over the past year — and there have been at least a dozen — pulled us further apart as a country, threatening identities and lifestyles, triggering dormant fault lines and getting us at each others’ throats.…  Seguir leyendo »

The funeral of an Istanbul nightclub attack victim. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The heinous terror attack in the heart of Istanbul, targeting more than 500 guests celebrating New Year’s Eve in a popular nightclub on the Bosphorus, marked the peak of a series of massacres that has shaken Turkey to its core over the past year. These have partly been attacks against security forces claimed by offshoots of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK); and partly attacks by jihadi groups, imported from Syria.

The bloodbath has now been claimed by Islamic State. But – and it is a big but – there was a particular significance to the target. Jihadi terror has previously targeted Kurds, Alevis and leftists in Turkey, leaving hundreds dead.…  Seguir leyendo »

The funeral of Yunus Gormek, one of the victims of the Reina nightclub attack. Photograph: IBL/REX/Shutterstock

Last year was one of incessant tension and sorrow for Turkey. A series of deadly terror attacks left the entire country fearful, traumatised. There were public funerals in almost every town, but even grief can’t unite a society as polarised as ours.

Failed military coup, foreign policy setbacks and a string of terrorist atrocities have left country reeling.

As a nation we now spend more time talking about death than about the joys of life. “Will it be after a football match? Or maybe when I am returning home from work? When will I become a number?” wrote one person on Twitter, reflecting the sentiments of millions of citizens.…  Seguir leyendo »

Turkish police stood guard outside the Reina nightclub in Istanbul on Sunday. Credit Huseyin Aldemir/Reuters

People had said this would be the Pajama New Year in Istanbul. We would stay home, hang out with friends, keep away from public spaces. I was expecting a cozy night, far away from the crowds and celebrations, and headed to a house party in the city’s Anatolian side. Public gatherings in the squares seemed lame on TV: small crowds of men smoking in front of cameras, wet and cold under never-ceasing rain.

Midnight struck, and then came the news: Two gunmen wearing Santa Claus costumes had entered a nightclub by the sea on the European side and killed at least 39 people in a few minutes.…  Seguir leyendo »

Turkey is so deeply polarized around the powerful persona of its president Recep Tayyip Erdogan that instead of asking why terror attacks are happening and how they can be stopped, the country's pro- and anti-Erdogan blocks are blaming each other.

This leaves me deeply worried about Turkey and its ability to stymie further terror attacks through the vigor of its institutions and unity of its citizens.

Including last night's attack on a nightclub in central Istanbul, which killed at least 39 people, by my count Turkey has suffered 33 major terror attacks since summer 2015. These attacks, which have killed more than 730 people, are connected to two terror groups: ISIS and the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK.…  Seguir leyendo »

Los atentados terroristas perpetrados por socios y simpatizantes de Estado Islámico (ISIS) en el pasado año han encendido alarmas en Europa, pero todavía no han alcanzado la frecuencia que Europa experimentó en los años 1970, según la Base de Datos del Terrorismo Global. Sin embargo, mientras que las olas previas de terrorismo en Europa surgieron de conflictos internos, la oleada mortal de hoy está asociada a la inestabilidad fuera del continente.

Los últimos atentados surgen del vacío político que dejaron los dictadores depuestos en Oriente Medio y el norte de África. De modo que, de la misma manera que parece no haber un fin a la vista para la violencia en Siria, Irak y Libia, o para la polarización extrema de Egipto, o para la frágil situación de seguridad en Túnez y Argelia, existen pocos motivos para creer que los ataques en Europa terminarán en lo inmediato.…  Seguir leyendo »

Mardi 28 juin, dans la soirée, trois kamikazes se sont fait exploser au niveau du terminal des vols internationaux de l’aéroport Atatürk d’Istanbul. Le bilan s’élève à une quarantaine de morts et à plus de 200 blessés. Le mode opératoire de cette triple attaque rappelle les attentats de novembre 2015 à Paris et ceux de mars à Bruxelles. Les autorités turques suspectent Daech d’être à l’origine de ce massacre, même s’il n’a pas été reven­diqué par l’organisation terroriste.
Il convient de noter que cet événement intervient dans le contexte de la normalisation récente des relations aussi bien avec Israël qu’avec la Russie, qui permettra à la Turquie de reprendre sa place dans le jeu diplomatique et de sortir de son isolement.…  Seguir leyendo »

“I hpoe those who criticize the broadcast ban die in another explosion and understand why the ban is crucial.”

The television anchor sat in shock as she heard these words from the man on the air with her. This man, who was wishing ill on critics of the government, kept talking. Waving his hand at her, he said, “Tell me, what are they going to do when they hear the news, ah, tell me?”

This unfolded on television, approximately 20 minutes after the horrific attacks at the Istanbul airport, and only a few minutes after the government’s broadcasting ban — a routine prohibition on airing too much specific information after such incidents — went into effect.…  Seguir leyendo »

The attack on Istanbul's main airport has underlined President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's increased weakness, a vulnerability that's a product of the actions of Turkey's allies and opponents alike. But it's partly Erdogan's own doing.

From the beginning of the Syrian uprising, Erdogan has used the conflict as an opportunity to crack down on the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), a militant group that has been battling the Turkish state for decades and is listed by NATO, the U.S. and the EU as a terrorist organization.

The government stoked the fires of Kurdish grievances, and the PKK returned the favor in-kind -- ratcheting up its terror attacks on the Turkish state, mainly against security institutions like the police, which have increased in number and frequency over the past five years.…  Seguir leyendo »

Like millions around the world, I grieve in solidarity with Turkey. A place that played a key part in my personal religious journey is suffering again -- this time in Islam's holiest month. Turkey, home of the majestic Blue Mosque, and resting place of the great Muslim love poet Mevlana Rumi, is now under monthly terror attacks.

The suicide bombings at Istanbul airport this week were only the latest.

Denouncing the terrorism that has befallen Turkey is not a sufficient response to the depth of the challenge the country now faces. Too often, our headlines and concerns are only about the spilling of blood and the lives lost.…  Seguir leyendo »

On Tuesday night, just as millions of Muslims here were breaking their Ramadan fasts, three terrorists attacked the city’s busy airport. They fired randomly at passengers with automatic weapons before blowing themselves up. They killed 41 innocent people, most of them Muslims, supposedly in the name of Islam.

The assault on the airport is the latest in a series of horrible traumas in Turkey. In the past year, the country has endured almost a dozen major terrorist attacks. Some were the work of the Islamic State, which kills in the name of God; others were the work of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or P.K.K.,…  Seguir leyendo »

La isla griega de Lesbos convertida en prisión, millón y medio de refugiados atascados en distintos países, cerrazón comunitaria a buscar soluciones al problema y, por último, premio a Turquía de 3.000 millones de euros -duplicables- por colaborar en un problema que no existiría o, cuando menos, no tendría tal magnitud si Turquía no fuera el corazón y santuario del extremismo islamista, origen inmediato tanto de las oleadas de refugiados como de los últimos atentados terroristas en Europa. Los responsables de ambos desastres tienen nombres y apellidos -EEUU, Turquía, Arabia Saudí, Qatar, la OTAN-, con pruebas que llevan años apiladas en despachos ministeriales, agencias de espionaje y medios de comunicación, pero que se callan, unos porque son cómplices en un grado mayor o menor; otros porque no quieren destapar tramas y conspiraciones.…  Seguir leyendo »

All people -- regardless of their political opinions, nationality, religious affiliation and cultural backgrounds -- are united in a desire for peace and justice. Indeed, the history of mankind is, in a sense, also the history of the quest for justice and peace.

Islam has also been part of this quest. The Arabic root of the word Islam, "silm," means peace, and Islam is a faith that commands its followers to promote justice and act justly in political, commercial and social life. As a result, Muslim states in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East attached particular importance to the values of justice and peace for some 1,400 years.…  Seguir leyendo »

A man looks at the Blue Mosque near the site of a blast in Istanbul's tourist hub of Sultanahmet on 12 January 2016. Photo by Getty Images.

The suicide bomb attack that hit Istanbul on Tuesday, resulting in ten, mostly German, fatalities in the tourist district of Sultanahmet, is symptomatic of the innumerable challenges facing the Turkish government.

Top among them is combatting the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group, which Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu implicated as the main culprit.

ISIS militants have perpetrated a number of major, violent attacks in Turkey, including the death of nearly 100 pro-Kurdish and left-wing activists in Ankara in October 2015.

But the Istanbul attack constitutes a wholly different magnitude in its targeting of the vital tourist sector that accounts for a staggering 12 per cent of the Turkish economy, according to a recent report by the World Travel and Tourism Council.…  Seguir leyendo »

Le colloque international qui s’ouvre à Paris sur «la démocratie de la place publique» (1) renforce l’analyse qui doit être menée sur l’événement du 13 novembre et sur son lien avec les attentats d’Ankara, le 10 octobre, et de Beyrouth, le 12 novembre, perpétrés par Daech. Les trois pays visés le sont pour leur implication dans la lutte contre l’Etat islamique : la France dès la formation de la coalition en août 2014, la Turquie beaucoup plus récemment, à l’été 2015, et le Liban à travers le parti Hezbollah chiite qui a été frappé dans son bastion beyrouthin. Mais les similitudes entre les trois événements vont plus loin.…  Seguir leyendo »

A protester is seen through a burning picture of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan (L) and President Barack Obama during a protest against Saturday’s bombings in Ankara, in the northern city of Thessaloniki, Greece, October 12, 2015. REUTERS/Alexandros Avramidis

The date 10/10 is now synonymous with Turkey’s most deadly terrorist attack in history — the day this month when two suicide bombers killed 97 people gathering outside the Ankara train station to attend a peace rally. The greater tragedy will be if the carnage fails to unite the country under a banner of grief, but only serves the bombers’ ends of driving a wedge still deeper into an already divided society.

The other mounting concern is that violence will further fuel a growing authoritarianism in Turkey. In recent months the country has witnessed events incompatible with a democratic market economy.…  Seguir leyendo »

After a year of intense diplomatic negotiations, the Turkish government is now permitting the United States to use Turkey’s Incirlik Air Base, which will allow American aircraft to fly missions in Syria and Iraq with greater operational effectiveness and economic efficiency.

The price of this agreement, however, may well be too high in the long run, both for the success of America’s anti-Islamic State campaign and for the stability of Turkey.

That’s because the Turkish government’s recent change of heart and its sudden willingness to allow American access to the Incirlik base was driven by domestic political considerations, rather than a fundamental rethinking of its Syria strategy.…  Seguir leyendo »

The new details emerging about the threat of ISIS, including the possible use of chemical weapons and the systematic rape of young girls, are dreadful.

But another disturbing development has surfaced: The United States appears to have undercut -- perhaps even betrayed -- Kurdish militias, the only truly effective fighting force so far in the war against ISIS.

The Kurds are now coming under attack not only from ISIS but also from Turkey, a U.S. ally.

Turkey's decision last month to join the fight, which seemed like a boost to the anti-ISIS coalition, looks like it may have been fueled less by the goal of defeating ISIS than by a drive by Turkey to push back against the Kurds' impressive territorial gains.…  Seguir leyendo »