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REUTERS: Turkey detains 26 in coup plan investigation
Turkish police detained 26 people on Wednesday in connection with an investigation into an alleged plot to overthrow the government, state-run Anatolian news agency said. The raids were part of an operation against the shadowy, ultra-nationalist Ergenekon organisation, which has fuelled uncertainty in Turkey and unsettled financial markets. Eighty-six people have been charged with involvement in the plot against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s government, which hardline secularists accuse of Islamist subversion. Early on Wednesday, police staged simultaneous raids in five provinces from Istanbul in the west to Elazig in eastern Turkey, Anatolian reported. [link to article]
Rule on a case that could well plunge America’s most important (one could almost say only) ally in the Muslim Middle East into political chaos. The case pits Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (the AKP) against the Republican People’s Party (the CHP). What the former stands accused of is violation of Turkey’s secular constitution, and if the court rules against the AKP the government will be overthrown and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, along with scores of his closest associates, will be banned from politics for at least five years. [link to article]
EPOCH TIMES: Turkish Court to Hear AK Party Closure on July 28 ANKARA-Turkey’s highest court will hold a final hearing in a case to close the governing AK Party for suspected Islamist activities on July 28, a court official said on Tuesday. The Constitutional Court’s verdict, nervously watched by financial markets, could be announced on the same day or soon after. Eleven judges will vote and seven votes in favour are needed to shut down the ruling party. The AK Party is on trial on charges of trying to introduce Islamic rule in Turkey, a predominantly Muslim but officially secular state. A chief prosecutor also wants to bar Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, President Abdullah Gul and 69 leading AK Party figures from party membership for five years on charges of seeking to introduce Islamic sharia law in Turkey. [link to article] AP: Emre Belozoglu moves to Fenerbahce on four-year contract from Newcastle ISTANBUL, Turkey: Turkey midfielder Emre Belozoglu signed a four-year contract with Fenerbahce on Wednesday. Fenerbahce announced in May that it had agreed an undisclosed transfer fee with Premier League club Newcastle for Emre, but the signing of the contract was delayed due to the European Championship in Austria and Switzerland. Emre only played one game in five at Euro 2008 due to a leg injury as Turkey reached the semifinals. “I worked for many years to represent Turkish football in Europe,” Emre said. “Now, I’m happy to sign with Fenerbahce and I hope to serve them for many years.” Fenerbahce didn’t announce how much Emre would be paid, but television station NTV reported that he will receive an annual salary of €3.5 million (US$5.25 million). The 27-year-old midfielder transferred to Newcastle from Inter Milan in 2005. [link to article]
TRAVEL POD: It’s Istanbul Not Constantinople
Flying into Istanbul was the start of an amazing realization of the size of this city. We were directly over the city 30 minutes prior to landing, and we still appeared to be in dense urban sprawl 30 minutes later at landing. The sheer awe and astonishment at the size of this city continued as we drove 70 kilometers on a coach to the city center. The entire 70 km drive was through city as densly populated as downtown San Francisco. Istanbul is by far the largest city either of us have been in. Its population is well over 16 million in the city limits proper and well over 20 milion in the metro area. [link to article]
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