Turkish opposition wants to know if war crimes were committed with aid sent to Al Qaida fighters in Syria

Source : World Tribune

ANKARA — Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has been questioned over Turkey’s links to Al Qaida in Syria.

The parliamentary opposition has formally submitted a request for the Erdogan government to detail alleged links with Al Qaida-aligned militias in Syria.

The opposition has sought to determine whether the purported Turkish aid facilitated war crimes by Islamist rebels, particularly the Nusra Front for the Defense of the Levant.

“Do you think that the foreign policy you are pursuing in Syria is responsible for the crimes committed by Al Qaida-linked groups such as Al Nusra?” Veli Agbaba, a parliamentarian from the main opposition Republican People’s Party, asked.

The parliamentary demand came amid reports in both Ankara and Washington that Turkish intelligence was either tolerating or supporting Al Qaida recruitment and financing for operations in Syria. The reports asserted that authorities were turning a blind eye to recruitment of young Turks for Al Qaida militias.

“It is known that the Turkey-Syria border has no security,” Agbaba said. “At this point, do you think that Turkey will be accused of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes for providing weapons and other supplies to opposition groups — which is claimed in HRW’s report?”

Erdogan aides have several times denied any Turkish support for Nusra or the new Islamic State of Iraq and Levant. But human rights groups asserted that Turkish authorities were allowing Al Qaida rebels to transport weapons and fighters into Syria and then return for medical treatment.

Agbaba also cited the U.S. Human Rights Watch, which asserted in an Oct. 11 report that Turkey was a leading facilitator of Islamist rebel militias that routinely abduct and torture civilians. HRW urged the Erdogan government to increase patrols along the 900-kilometer Turkish border with Syria.

“According to Syrian security officials, media reports, Western diplomats, and observations by journalists and humanitarian workers, foreign fighters in these groups enter Syria from Turkey, from which they also smuggle their weapons and obtain money and other supplies, and to which they retreat for medical treatment,” HRW said in a report titled “You Can Still See Their Blood.”

Agbaba addressed his questions to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, deemed an ally of Erdogan. The opposition deputy, in remarks supported by Kurdish and Western sources, suggested that the Foreign Ministry was ignoring Al Qaida’s use of Turkey as a haven.

“Is there any work being done by the Foreign Ministry over the claims that Turkish citizens have entered Syria from Turkey’s eastern and southeastern provinces and have participated in crimes carried out by Al Qaida-linked groups in Syria?” Agbaba asked. “Is the silence of the Foreign Ministry over the crimes carried out by Al Qaida-linked groups in Syria the result of the ‘precious isolation’ policy of Turkey?”

For its part, the government has denied any Turkish link to Al Qaida. Officials dismissed allegations that Turkey was cooperating with Nusra or ISIL in arms and other smuggling.

“The Turkish republic would never open a border gate on the demand of a terrorist organization,” Interior Minister Muammer Guler said.

The Kurdish community has echoed allegations of a Turkish-Al Qaida link. The High Kurdish Council in Syria, which met the Turkish Foreign Ministry, asserted that more than 50 percent of the rebel militias supported by Turkey were attacking civilians.

“More than half of the groups which Turkey supports have come under the control of gangs,” council spokesman Ilham Ahmed said. “The situation is very dire, and if precautions are not taken these groups will create serious problems mainly for Turkey.

Turkish police break up demonstration in Ankara

Source : Strategic-Culture.org

Police in Turkey have used water cannon and smoke grenades to disperse hundreds of anti-government demonstrators in the capital, Ankara.

On Tuesday night, several people were injured in the clashes between the protesters and the police in Turkish capital.

Also in Istanbul, thousands of people, who were chanting slogans against the government, marched toward now-iconic Taksim Square to denounce a court decision that freed a police officer accused of killing an anti-government demonstrator in Ankara.

The police surrounded the square and blocked the protesters’ from reaching it.

At least 20 people were detained during the rally.

Meeting in Luxembourg earlier in the day, European Union foreign ministers supported a German proposal to delay the new round of Turkey’s membership negotiations, which had been scheduled to resume on Wednesday.

Germany, Austria and the Netherlands, among other EU member states, blocked the talks in criticism of the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for its handling of the anti- government protests.

The unrest in Turkey began on May 31 after police broke up a sit-in held at Taksim Square to protest against a proposal to redevelop Gezi Park, which is a traditional gathering point for rallies and demonstrations as well as a popular tourist destination.

The demonstrators say the park is also one of Istanbul's last green public spaces.

Four people, including a police officer, have died in the recent clashes between the Turkish protesters and security forces, and more than 5,000 protesters and 600 police officers have been injured

Turkey to Hold Pro-Government Rallies Next Weekend

Source : RIA Novosti

MOSCOW, June 9 (RIA Novosti) – Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is expected to hold pro-government rallies next weekend in Ankara and Istanbul in a bid to fight back against mass anti-government protests, local media said on Sunday.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has earlier held two rallies in Adana and Mersin, on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, the Hürriyet Daily News has reported.

"We are going to show patience, but patience has a limit as well. Those who hide behind the protestors should first learn what politics is," Erdogan said on Sunday showing no signs of cancelling a redevelopment project in Istanbul despite mass protests.

The Turkish prime minister rejected on Saturday the protestors’ demand for snap elections, saying that "you don't decide on early elections because people are marching on the streets."

The civil unrest in major Turkish cities was sparked by the government’s plans to demolish Gezi Park in central Istanbul and replace it with a rebuilt Ottoman barracks and a shopping mall.

As the number of people protesting the mooted demolition of the park gradually increased, police moved in to disperse the crowds last Saturday by using tear gas. Outraged protesters reportedly responded by hurling stones and bottles at policemen. Over 3,000 people have been injured and at least three people have died in demonstrations across the country in the past week.

Most of the casualties were reported in Istanbul, where demonstrations began before spreading to Ankara, Antalya, Izmi Adana and other Turkish cities. Erdogan blamed the protests on extremists.

Israel: “Reconciliation With Turkey Enabled Us To Strike Syria”

Source : International Middle East Media Center

Senior Israeli military and security officials stated that the reconciliation with Turkey, and the progressing relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv, enabled Israel, over the last few days, to carry out several air strikes against Syrian targets.

Israeli Yedioth Aharonoth quoted Israeli officials stating that the apology made by Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for the death of nine Turkish activists on board the MV Marmara solidarity ship, on May 31 2010, allowed Israel to operate freely in the north without fearing a confrontation with Ankara.

The officials said that the reconciliation and good relations with Turkey would eventually lead to a future regional cooperation “against Iran and terrorist groups in the region”.

They also said that the current relations with Turkey also granted Israel an enormous international support regarding air strikes carried out, last Sunday and Thursday, against Syrian targets, especially U.S. and British support.

Meanwhile, Israeli media sources reported that Tel Aviv and Ankara are about to sign an agreement for financial compensation for the victims of the Israeli attack on MV Marara.

Furthermore, senior Israeli Foreign Ministry officials held a meeting, Monday, in an attempt to determine the amount of the proposed financial compensation.

The Israeli paper further reported that the meeting was described as positive, and that both parties managed to reach a draft agreement, but added that “there are other related issues that need to be addressed before the final deal is sealed.”

An Israeli official said that Israel estimates the compensation amount to reach five or six million USD, and in return, Turkey vows to void all lawsuits filed against Israeli military officials, and soldiers, involved in the attack and the death of the nine Turkish solidarity activists.

In addition, Turkey reportedly promised to approve an amendment that allows the Turkish government to prevent Turkish citizens from suing Israel or its soldiers in the future.

Turkey police 'foils Al-Qaeda US embassy plot'

Source  :  Maan News Agency

ANKARA (AFP) - Turkish police have uncovered and foiled an alleged plot by Al- Qaeda to bomb the US embassy in Ankara, as well as a synagogue and other targets in Istanbul, Turkish media reported on Friday.

As a result of a February raid in Istanbul and the northeastern city of Corlu, police had arrested 12 people, including eight Turks, two Azeris and two Chechens, and seized 22 kilogrammes of explosives, CNNTurk reported.

Police also found documents that allegedly revealed plans by the group, which they described as a Turkish cell of Al-Qaeda, to attack a synagogue and a museum in Istanbul.

The embassy in Ankara was the target of a suicide bombing on February 1, which killed a Turkish security guard. That attack was claimed by a radical Marxist and anti-US armed group, The Revolutionary People's Liberation Front (DHKP-C), blacklisted by the US and the European Union as a terrorist organisation.

News Analysis: Turkey, Egypt bolster ties to address regional challenges

Source : Xinhua | English.news.cn

ANKARA, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) --Turkish president's recent visit to Egypt was seen as part of growing efforts on both sides to shore up their alliances against regional challenges.

President Abdullah Gul has paid a visit to Egypt at the invitation of his counterpart Mohamed Morsi earlier this week while attending the 12th summit of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

"Egypt has been facing economic and social problems as well as political polarization at home while Turkey is concerned with the spillover effect of Syrian crisis and governance issues in Iraq," Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, a professor of international relations at Ankara-based Gazi University, told Xinhua by phone, stressing that these problems force both countries to join their strengths.

Turkey has thrown a loan worth 2 billion U.S. dollars last year to Egypt to support country's ailing economy amid rampant unemployment and sharp reduction in government revenues, and Cairo is exploring ways to learn from Turkey's successful experience in economy growth and trying to lure Turkey in trade and investment.

Battered by the political crisis and mass protests at home, Morsi also banks on Turkish support to relieve domestic tension as well, observers said.

On the other hand, Turkey, fears the uncertainty in 22-month- long Syrian crisis, needs Egypt's help to facilitate the transition in its southern neighbor led by embattled President Bashar al-Assad as Ankara believes that Morsi, the former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, the most organized religious group across the Middle East, could have significant impact on Syria, where the Brotherhood is also strong.

"An Egypt that steps forward into democracy and development would benefit Turkey," Sedat Laciner, the president of 18 Mart University and professor of international relations, said, underlining that both countries could benefit from stability in the region.

Attending the OIC summit, both Gul and Morsi called for a quick solution to Syrian crisis. Morsi urged all OIC members to support the Syrian opposition's efforts to unite and bring about change. Gul echoed similar remarks.

Meanwhile, Turkish-Egyptian relations have also improved in the military field. The Turkish Navy and Egyptian Navy completed a joint naval military exercise, the "2012 Sea of Friendship," in the eastern Mediterranean last year. Turkey's trade volume with Egypt stood at 5 billion U.S. dollars last year and both governments want to double that figure in near term. Hundreds of Turkish companies in construction, manufacturing, textile and health care fields have invested in Egypt.

Egypt has also come to Turkey's rescue when a transit route to the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf market through Syria was cut off for Turkey. Ankara had to turn to Egypt to replace the route, starting from Turkish Port Iskenderun to Egyptian port at Alexandria and both countries wish to turn this route to an important trade hub between Europe to Africa.

"Stronger relations between Turkey and Egypt will make the region stronger," Ibrahim Kalin, the chief foreign policy advisor to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, adding that " While improving bilateral relations, Turkey and Egypt are set to develop a common strategic vision for regional and global issues