Ankara-based policy think-tank analyzes YPG/PKK’s terrorist attacks in Turkey and Syria

The report presents the number and time line of the YPG car bomb attacks, elaborates on the different types of car bomb attacks, and discusses the YPG’s strategy of employing a great number of such attacks in Syria.

The new U.S. administration has declared that it intends to follow a “de-Trumpization policy” in the Middle East.

The PKK terrorists' execution of 13 unarmed Turkish citizens in Gara, northern Iraq, will remain the subject of heated political debate for some time. The debate could have an impact on Turkey's foreign policy if it builds on the political consciousness that awakens following events of this nature and supports our fight against terrorism – rather than the opposition’s accusations.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s emphasis on “a fresh mobilization for the economy, the law and democracy” energized the country. The scope, nature and sustainability of “the new chapter” and “reform” remain unclear. For now, there are a number of reform packages on the table that are intended to restore faith in Turkey’s justice system and to attract foreign investors.

A French high school teacher, Samuel Paty, was brutally murdered by a young, Russian-born Muslim of Chechen descent, Abdoullakh Abouyedovich Anzorov. This heinous terrorist attack caused outrage in French society. The murder of Paty was not the country's first such incident. France had also previously suffered Daesh violence and the 2015 Charlie Hebdo attack. Many leaders, including those from Muslim countries, demonstrated solidarity with France in the aftermath of those acts but Muslim communities and institutions were still put under surveillance and heavy pressure.

The Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) will publish its yearly European Islamophobia Report (EIR) on June 20, which sets light to growing racism and anti-Islam sentiment on different fields such as media and politics in various regions.

Social scientists, think tank experts and policymakers are trying to grasp how the coronavirus pandemic and the transformations that may occur in its aftermath will influence life all around the world. Medical experts and scientists in various disciplines of natural sciences are trying to find a remedy for the novel coronavirus. In particular, the medical staff who are struggling ceaselessly to save people’s lives in overcrowded hospitals are the new heroes of our time. They are currently at the front lines of the struggle against COVID-19; however, once the virus' spread is brought under control, the focus will shift to the more complicated consequences of the pandemic. There will be a whole new research agenda for social scientists and policy researchers.

Long-standing tension between Turkey and the Bashar Assad regime just turned into a hot conflict. At this rate, everything else will take a backseat to military operations. The critical question is whether Turkey has moved to the "second" stage in Idlib – holding territory, reinforcing observation posts and exercising control around them, and enforcing a safe zone, 30-40 kilometers deep, for Syrian refugees and displaced persons.

Hardly a day goes by without the Bashar Assad regime bombing hospitals, schools and bakeries in Idlib. Since the Jan. 12 cease-fire, more than 130 civilians have died in military operations that undermine both Astana and Sochi peace deals.

The conduct of German authorities toward terrorist groups varies as the country favors some, such as the YPG, hesitating to hold the terrorists accountable under the law and disregarding judicial requirements.

NATO will celebrate its 70th birthday on Dec. 4 in London. The celebratory summit, which 29 world leaders plan to attend, is expected to be somewhat painful. The trans-Atlantic alliance, which has major accomplishments under its belt, is deeply divided over the diverging interests of its members.

French President Emmanuel Macron told The Economist last week that NATO was "brain dead." He blamed the alliance's supposed problem on the lack of "coordination... of strategic decision-making between the United States and its NATO allies." Macron added that Turkey's actions were "uncoordinated," warning that NATO failed to monitor the actions of its members.

PKK's existence in Turkey, Syria and northern Iraq is the number one national security problem for Turkey. This is the Turkish red line that Western media organs have been refusing to see

Much has been written regarding Ankara's negotiations with Russia and the U.S. and the process and potential outcomes of the accords the countries have reached following intense diplomatic activity.

The PKK/YPG threat in the region is far from over, but the group's nationalist project — the so-called 'cantons' — are now dead in the water

Publication of the “European Islamophobia Report 2018” on the European week of action against Islamophobia