Skip to content

Türkiye

UN Overwhelmingly Votes To Sanction Israel, Impose Arms Embargo

The UN General Assembly voted on 18 September overwhelmingly in favor of ending Israel’s illegal occupation in the West Bank. The Palestinian-drafted resolution called on Israel to end “its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” within 12 months, including the presence of illegal settlements and hundreds of thousands of illegal settlers. The vote passed with 124 in favor and 43 abstentions. Washington and Tel Aviv voted against the resolution, along with 14 others. The resolution urged states to “take steps towards ceasing the importation of any products originating in the Israeli settlements, as well as the provision or transfer of arms, munitions and related equipment to Israel ... where there are reasonable grounds to suspect that they may be used in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

Turkish Masses Protest Presence Of US Navy Ship At Izmir Port

The Turkish Communist Party (TKP) alongside other Turkish political groups and masses took to the streets on Tuesday, September 3, near İzmir port to protest the anchoring of the United States’ Navy multi-purpose amphibious assault ship, USS Wasp (LHD-1) at the port. The arrival of the US Navy ship at İzmir Port followed a joint training exercise that took place in the Mediterranean sea between August 13-17 with Türkiye’s first amphibious warship TCG Anadolu. The exercise has been considered an indicator of military cooperation between Türkiye and the United States, which provoked the outrage of Turkish political groups and activists.

Lavrov Opens BRICS Meeting In Russia, First After New Members Joined

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov opened the two-day BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting as its chair in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod from June 10 to 11. Among those attending are: China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Dr. Naledi Pandor, Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, and Brazil’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mauro Vieira, while Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is attending in the extended format of the meeting. This marks the first after the bloc was joined by new members – Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, as its original members are Russia, China, India, Brazil, and South Africa.

Dozens Arrested In Istanbul Demanding End To Turkiye-Israel Trade

Police in Istanbul on 6 April used brutal tactics to detain 43 Turkish protesters demanding the end of trade between Turkiye and Israel amid Israel's ongoing war on Gaza. Video of Turkish riot police harshly forcing protesters into police vans near the famous shopping district on Istiklal Street spread on social media under the hashtag "#israilleticaretedurde." A video released by Turkish activists following the protests stated, "More than 30 of our friends were tortured and detained by the police. The occupying state of Israel continues a genocide in Palestinian lands."

Arab World Calls US Top Security Threat, No Peace With Israel

A new opinion poll conducted in 16 Arab countries shows that Washington's continued support for Israel's campaign of genocide in the Gaza Strip has dramatically hurt its image across West Asia and North Africa, as 94 percent of respondents describe the US position as "bad." At the same time, more than half say the US poses the biggest threat to regional security. Other western states fared almost as poorly, with more than three-quarters of those polled saying the position of the UK, France, and Germany in relation to Gaza is "bad” or “very bad.” In contrast, Iran received a surge in recognition, with 48 percent of respondents expressing a positive view of the Iranian position, while 37 percent held a negative view.

‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 83: Israel Wages West Bank Invasion

As Israel continues their ruthless bombardment campaign against Gaza’s population, its residents are still being denied access to adequate supplies of food, medical supplies, fuel, and other life-saving necessities. Nobody in Gaza is safe. Israel has continued to target everybody, including children, civil defense workers, ambulances, medical facilities, and journalists. Following yet another Israeli attack on the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), this time on their compound in Khan Younis on Tuesday, the International Committee of the Red Cross in Israel and the occupied territories reiterated, “Humanitarian workers, vehicles and buildings must be protected during conflict.”

Blinken’s Humiliation

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has ended his four-day excursion to the Middle East where he was publicly rebuffed by Israel, schooled by Egypt and Jordan and protested in Turkey. Blinken will arrive back in the United States where hundreds of thousands of Americans, including many Democratic Party voters, are in the streets eviscerating the Biden Administration for its role in genocide. He returns to a State Department where one official resigned over the administration’s unconditional support for Israel, and a second Department employee accused Joe Biden on social media of being “complicit in genocide.”

Turks Demonstrate At Incirlik Air Base Against US Support For Israel

Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on 5 November outside the Incirlik Air Base in southeastern Turkiye to protest US support for Israel’s bombing campaign in Gaza that has now killed almost 10,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children. Sunday’s protest was organised by the IHH humanitarian relief fund, which in 2010 led a flotilla of ships full of peace activists to Gaza to break the Israeli blockade on the enclave. Israeli forces attacked the flotilla, raiding its ships from helicopters and killing ten Turkish activists.

Fear And Loathing On Air Force One

Joe Biden got what he needed before the NATO summit this week by somehow turning Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan inside out and getting him to rebuff Vladimir Putin by announcing that he would support NATO membership for Sweden. The public story for Biden’s face-saving coup was talk about agreeing to sell American F-16 fighter bombers to Turkey. I have been told a different, secret story about Erdogan’s turnabout: Biden promised that a much-needed $11-13 billion line of credit would be extended to Turkey by the International Monetary Fund. “Biden had to have a victory and Turkey is in acute financial stress,” an official with direct knowledge of the transaction told me.

Bold Gambits On The West Asian Chessboard

West Asia is a region that is currently experiencing a great deal of geopolitical activity. Recent diplomatic efforts, initiated by Russia and overseen by China, secured a long-elusive Iranian and Saudi Arabian rapprochement, while Syria’s return to the Arab League has been welcomed with great fanfare. The diplomatic flurry signals a shift away from the Imperial “Divide and Rule” tactics that have been used for decades to create national, tribal, and sectarian rifts throughout this strategic region. The proxy war in Syria, backed by the Empire and its terror outfits – including the occupation of resource-rich territories and mass theft of Syrian oil – continues to rage on despite Damascus having gained the upper hand.

Pan-Arab Convoy Aims To Break Blockade, Provide Aid To Syria

The Arab and International Campaign to Break Siege on Syria announced plans on 24 February to launch a popular, pan-Arab campaign to confront the western-led blockade against Syria through an aid convoy in light of the devastating earthquake that killed over 50,000 people in Turkiye and Syria. On Saturday, the Syrian news agency SANA reported that the preparations to participate in the Arab Youth Forum in Solidarity with Syria in March are already underway. The campaign, titled “The Arab Unity Convoy to Break the Embargo Imposed on Syria,” is headed by Magdi al Masrawi, former secretary-general of the Arab National Congress, and draws an example from the “Convoy of Arab Unity, Maryam” to break the siege on Iraq in the early 2000s.

Sanctions Hamper Relief And Rescue Work In Earthquake-Devastated Syria

The head of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, Khaled Hboubati, demanded on Tuesday, February 7, that Western countries, specifically the US and its allies, lift their siege and sanctions on Syria so that rescue and relief work can proceed unimpeded, after the country was devastated by a powerful earthquake on Monday. “We need heavy equipment, ambulances and fire fighting vehicles to continue to rescue and remove the rubble, and this entails lifting sanctions on Syria as soon as possible,” Hboubati said at a press conference on Tuesday, as reported by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). A powerful earthquake registering a magnitude of 7.8 struck Turkey and Syria on Monday. Over 5,000 people have been reported dead so far. In Syria alone the death toll was 1,602 on Monday. These numbers are only expected to rise as a large number of people are suspected to be still buried under the debris of houses that collapsed in the earthquake and its aftershocks.

Earthquake Damage In Syria Must Lead To Sanction Relief

Earlier today two large earthquakes have caused widespread damage in south Turkey and north Syria. Some 10 million people live in the affected area. The current count of death is already above 2,500. Whole city blocks have 'pancaked' (vid) and were destroyed. Many dead will likely still be under the rubble. The area is prone to earthquakes. Just days ago an expert had warned that a big one was coming. International support for the areas has started. Turkey is generally earthquake prone and has a lot of rescue stuff. It will now get more. Unfortunately Syria, which is under devastating sanctions, will get little. This would be a good time to lift those sanctions if only for purely humanitarian reasons.

Sweden Hustled Into Military Pact With US

The Biden administration’s efforts to put on fast track Sweden’s accession as a NATO member petered out as Turkey balked, exercising its prerogative to withhold approval unless its conditions regarding Stockholm’s past dalliance with Kurdish separatist elements is fully addressed. President Biden was bullish and insisted publicly that Sweden’s NATO membership was a foregone conclusion. He underestimated President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s tenacity and overlooked the geopolitical ramifications. Biden and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg assumed that all that was needed was a face-saving formula to pander Erdoğan’s vanity — ie., a few Kurdish militants in Sweden would be extradited and Ankara and Stockholm would thereupon kiss and make up.

Leftist Parties In Turkey Form New Political Coalition

On August 20, left-wing organizations in Turkey formed the Union of Socialist Forces, a new electoral alliance. The alliance comprises the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), the Revolutionary Movement (Devrim Hareketi), the Left Party (Sol Party) and the Communist Movement of Turkey (TKH). In a press conference organized in Ankara last week, the Union of Socialist Forces launched its manifesto regarding the 2023 general elections. The press conference was attended by Ozan Yılmaz of TKP, Ercan Bölükbaşı of Devrim Hareketi, İsmail Hakkı Tombul of the Left Party and Umut Kuruç of TKH. The Union of Socialist Forces has resolved to end the conservative regime in Turkey led by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his right-wing Justice and Development Party (AKP).
Sign Up To Our Daily Digest

Independent media outlets are being suppressed and dropped by corporations like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Sign up for our daily email digest before it’s too late so you don’t miss the latest movement news.