Turkish incursion into northeastern Syria imminent
Tensions between Turkey and the United States are re-escalating. Washington is inclined to delay the Aug. 7 agreement on the creation of a safe zone in northeastern Syria. In other words, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) is effectively ignoring U.S. President Donald Trump's pledge to establish a 20-mile safe zone and seeks to stall the process – as it did in Manbij.
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Political parties in search of updated road maps
With Parliament back from summer recess, Turkey's political scene is heating up. The Good Party (İP), part of the opposition-led Nation Alliance, announced that it will leave the alliance if the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) joins it.
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Israel's occupation of Palestine and constant attacks to the unarmed civilians prove the harm the country causes to the World peace, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said
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 CHP's electoral alliance with the Good Party (İP) and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) scored victories in Istanbul and Ankara, breathing new life into Turkey's political opposition. Opposition figures are not yet over the anger that built up over many losing election cycles, but they have become cocky in light of recent wins.
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
HDP a heavy burden for CHP, İP
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).
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Opposition must help HDP distance itself from PKK terror
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
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Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AK Party) turned 18 earlier this week. In power for 17 consecutive years under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's leadership, it has arguably outperformed all other movements in the multiparty era.
Tensions between Turkey and the United States de-escalated thanks to a recent agreement on the proposed safe zone in Syria. If Washington sticks to the deal, joint steps could follow in Syria and Iraq.
There is an ongoing debate on Syrian refugees in Istanbul, who are being asked to return to the provinces where they were registered. The media extensively covered complaints by Syrians about the 30-day grace period.
The Istanbul rerun election fueled new developments in Turkish politics. There is an ongoing discussion on a range of issues including the presidential system and the prospect of new political parties. The newfound "self-confidence" of Kurdish nationalists deserves particular attention in this context. The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) takes credit for the Republican People's Party's (CHP) success in the March 31 and June 23 elections. As a matter of fact, it dates its influence back to the June 2018 elections.
Building on its victory in the rerun Istanbul mayoral elections, Turkey's opposition just launched its campaign to reverse the country's transition to the presidential system. Their current effort is a prelude to a pending call for early elections.
The Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) poll defeat in the Istanbul mayoral election has accelerated political analyses for the coming period. Indeed, the fact that Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu could secure 54 percent of the vote is not just a twist of the alliance system, but also a result achieved by those aspiring to end the 17-year AK party rule through trial and error.
The mayoral race in Istanbul ended in democratic maturity as Republican People's Party (CHP) candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu finished at the top.
Both Istanbul mayoral candidates devised new campaign strategies and reoriented their election discourses to attract new voters in the critical elections rerun
The Western media's interest in Turkey has steadily increased, and this has two dimensions. First, they are establishing new media outlets in Turkey and becoming entrenched in the domestic market. Lately, the launch of a joint Turkish-language YouTube channel called +90 by the public international broadcasters of Germany, France, Britain and the U.S. has drawn attention. Another interesting development was the launch of a Turkish news website by the British online newspaper, The Independent.
The level of polemic in Istanbul's mayoral election campaign remained limited in the month of Ramadan. The general campaign discourse, though, is built on positive messages for both sides.
Istanbul's June 23 local election is about two weeks away. On the occasion of the Ramadan Bayram, or Eid al-Fitr, election campaigns have moved out of Istanbul, with the mayoral candidates preferring to address fellow citizens in various Anatolian provinces.
A head of next month's rerun elections in Istanbul, mayoral candidates from both electoral alliances are seeking to further an affirmative agenda.
The most distinct feature of the upcoming June 23 re-election for the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality is its function as a second round of elections.
