Has the Iran war already begun?

This week's attack on the facilities of Aramco, Saudi Arabia's national oil company, was no mere skirmish among proxies. Iran has allegedly fired missiles, loaded on drones, to strike at the heart of the Saudi oil industry. Although Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed the attack, already some fingers are pointing to Tehran. Hence a series of questions: have tensions in the Gulf, which have been escalating since May 2018, already spun out of control? Is the policy of "maximum pressure" on Iran giving way to war? Why did U.S. President Donald Trump escalate tensions right after sacking John Bolton, his hawkish national security adviser? What will be the Trump administration's military response to an attack that it considers a casus belli? As world leaders pack their bags for the United Nations General Assembly's opening session, the world is still trying to answer those questions.

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Has the Iran war already begun
Turkey Russia and Iran continue to shape Syria's future

Turkey, Russia and Iran continue to shape Syria's future

Çankaya Palace in Ankara was home to a historic trilateral summit on Monday. The presidents of Turkey, Russia and Iran met for the fifth time in two years to discuss the situation in Idlib, refugees, the most recent developments in northeastern Syria and the proposed constitutional committee.

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An important meeting was held between the leaders of Turkey, Iran and Russia in Ankara on Sept. 16. The three actors' positions were close in the last trilateral meeting. The leaders of the three countries agreed on the structure of the constitutional commission and reiterated their commitment to the territorial integrity of Syria. They also supported the idea of reducing the tensions in Idlib province.

Despite its ups and downs, the Astana Process is the only serious option currently playing a decisive role to create a permanent solution in the Syrian crisis

Kurdish mothers are cursing the PKK, the HDP and their 'Kurdistan cause' today. History won't kindly judge any politician who fails to live up to their responsibilities.

The Syrian crisis is not something that can be handled solely through Turkish efforts; the region's biggest problem needs to be confronted by both external and internal stakeholders

Experts discuss Turkey-US safe zone deal

Experts stress probability of Turkish military intervention in east of Euphrates as expectations from US not fulfilled yet

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Experts discuss Turkey-US safe zone deal
Military activity in Syria must be boosted by diplomacy

Military activity in Syria must be boosted by diplomacy

Experts discuss consequences of possible unilateral intervention by Turkey east of Euphrates River

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The Kurdish mothers' protest in Diyarbakır teaches valuable lessons to the opposition, which is busy playing the three monkeys and seeing no evil

Kurdish mothers, who have been staging a sit-in protest that is above all political ideologies and stances, demand their sons back from the PKK no matter what

For the last two weeks, the news of a group of Kurdish mothers protesting the abduction of their children by the PKK has dominated the headlines in Turkey. It all started a few weeks ago when Hacire Akar launched a sit-in protest in front of the pro-PKK Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) headquarters in Diyarbakır, over the abduction of her youngest son.

Hacire Akar, a mother from Diyarbakır, is the symbol of a new protest movement against the PKK terrorist organization and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in Turkey. Her 22-year-old son Mehmet was taken to the HDP building in Diyarbakır by some of his "friends." To her dismay, she learned that her son joined the ranks of the PKK.

The second half of September will be a busy season. Turkey, Russia, and Iran will hold a trilateral summit on Sep. 16. Five days later, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will fly to New York for the U.N. General Assembly's opening session.

For the last several weeks the Bashar Assad regime forces have relaunched and gradually intensified airstrikes in northwestern Syria's Idlib..

The U.S. and European actors' indifference in Syria and pressure on Turkey weakens Ankara's position vis-a-vis Moscow in the political deal for Syria

A new conversation with strategic perspective, realistic goals and achievable outcomes needs to be restarted between Turkey and the U.S.

Considering the military capability of Russia and the U.S. and the game-changing capacity of Turkey, it will take time to reach a real solution in the Syrian crisis

Turkey's opposition parties see the replacement of three elected mayors with independent trustees as "part of the government's political game." They claim that this measure was intended to "drive a wedge between the Nation Alliance's components." In other words, the opposition says that the Turkish government sought to plant seeds of discord between the Republican People's Party (CHP), the Good Party (İP), and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP).

The public debate over the dismissal of three mayors rages on in Turkey. Observers concentrate on the various legal and political dimensions of what happened..

The CHP and the Good Party (İP) have a responsibility to help the HDP distance itself from terrorism – as opposed to blaming the government and encouraging the HDP to stick to its guns

Turkey and the United States are setting up a joint operations center at Şanlıurfa in Turkey under a recent agreement. That U.S. European Command (EUCOM), as opposed to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), commanders are involved in negotiations reflects both sides' commitment to the deal.