20 February 2006

1. "Kurds clash with Turkish police on Ocalan arrest anniversary", demonstrators marking the seventh anniversary of the arrest of Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan clashed with police Saturday in the eastern Turkish city of Van, security sources said.

2. "It Is Time For Israel To Embrace PKK", Mesha'al met Thursday with Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, prompting Israel's government spokesman Ra'anan Gissin to condemn the visit in an interview with Turkey's private NTV television. "How would you feel if we got together with Abdullah Ocalan?" Gissin asked NTV, referring to the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group fighting for autonomy in Turkey's southeast.

3. "Police say ‘Yesil’ still alive", Police spokesperson avows possibility that notorious figure associated with deep state may be still alive, belying Istanbul police chief’s denial

4. "Judiciary say 'JITEM' aloud for first time", a court in Diyarbakir on Wednesday confirmed the existence of the ghost organization JITEM and clearly linked it to the military. Several former PKK members allegedly joined JITEM and served as informers and "counter terror specialists" in the unit.

5. "Christians on Turkey's Fringes", an EU report on minorities in Turkey has raised concerns over the country's treatment of its Christians. Since the Halki seminary closed in the seventies, the Church in Turkey has had no center for clerical training.

6. "Thousands protest cartoons in Turkey", tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Istanbul Sunday to protest cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed, chanting slogans against Denmark, Israel and the United States.

7. "5 Kurdish Demonstrators Killed In Iran-Kurdistan", at least five people were killed and dozens injured or arrested in the course of clashes between Kurdish demonstrators and government forces in Iran’s Kurdistan and West Azerbaijan provinces, according to a statement emailed to Iran Focus by Kurdish activists.

8. "Mass killings committed by military forces of the Islamic Republic", the number of death after the attack of the Islamic military forces in eastern Kurdistan reached nine, local sources reported to KurdishMedia.com.

1. - AFP - "Kurds clash with Turkish police on Ocalan arrest anniversary":

DIYARBAKIR / 18 January 2006

Demonstrators marking the seventh anniversary of the arrest of Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan clashed with police Saturday in the eastern Turkish city of Van, security sources said.

Turkish police on Saturday arrested 24 people after clashes with Kurdish demonstrators, security sources said.

The arrests came after some 150 people threw stones and blocks of ice at police, who dispersed them with teargas, the sources said. Security sources had earlier spoken of 10 arrests.

Ocalan, leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), was captured in Kenya on February 15, 1999 after he was forced to leave the Greek embassy where he had been taking refuge.

The 57-year-old rebel leader was condemned to death in 1999 for the armed campaign the PKK has waged since 1984 in southeastern Turkey.

The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 2002 after Ankara abolished capital punishment as part of efforts to align with the norms of the European Union.

Ocalan has since been kept in solitary confinement on an island in northwestern Turkey.

Kurdish activists have long been calling for an end to Ocalan's isolation and his transfer to an ordinary jail, but their appeals have so far fallen on deaf ears in Ankara.

Some 37,000 people have been killed since 1984 when the rebels first took up arms for self-rule in mainly Kurdish southeast Turkey.

2. - AP - "It Is Time For Israel To Embrace PKK":

Turkey Rejects Israeli Criticism Over Hamas

18 February 2006

A visit by the exiled political leader of Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, to the Turkish capital has triggered a new diplomatic rift between US allies Israel and Turkey, two years after the Turkish premier accused Israel of engaging in state terrorism against Palestinians. Turkey yesterday rejected Israeli criticism of the visit of Khaled Mesha'al and said an Israeli spokesman's comparison of the Palestinian group to Kurdish guerrillas in Turkey was an "unfortunate statement."

Mesha'al met Thursday with Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, prompting Israel's government spokesman Ra'anan Gissin to condemn the visit in an interview with Turkey's private NTV television. "How would you feel if we got together with Abdullah Ocalan?" Gissin asked NTV, referring to the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdish guerrilla group fighting for autonomy in Turkey's southeast.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said yesterday that the Israeli spokesman had made "an unfortunate statement." "We think the comparison in this statement is totally baseless and wrong," the ministry said. "We relayed our discomfort and dissatisfaction with this statement to Israel yesterday." The ministry also suggested that the Israeli remarks were prompted by Israeli "domestic political concerns."

Ocalan's rebels have been fighting for autonomy in the largely Kurdish southeast since 1984 in a war which has claimed more than 37,000 lives. Both Ocalan's Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, and Hamas are branded as "terrorist organizations" by the US State Department.

Turkey, which has close ties with both Israel and the Palestinians, has been urging Hamas - which won a landslide victory in legislative elections last month - to reject violence as it assembles a new Palestinian government. The US and the European Union have threatened to cut off aid to the Palestinians unless Hamas - which has called for Israel's destruction and killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings - recognizes Israel and renounces violence. Hamas has given no indication it will change its ideology, but has said it would stick to a long-term cease-fire if Israel reciprocates.

Turkey said Thursday it had urged Mesha'al to meet international expectations and adopt a more conciliatory and flexible attitude. Israel and Turkey, an overwhelmingly Muslim state, have long had strong military ties and important trade links. But relations grew strained in 2004 when Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose party has its roots in Turkey's Islamic movement, accused Israel of state terrorism in an interview with Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper.

Asked whether he considered Israel's actions against the Palestinians "state terrorism," Erdogan responded: "How else can you interpret it?"

Relations thawed after both Gul and Erdogan visited Israel last year, expressing hope that Turkey could act as a mediator between Israel and the Muslim world.

But Deniz Baykal, leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party, said yesterday that the visit by the Hamas delegation would damage Turkey's image severely. "It would lead to questioning of Turkey's determination against violence and terrorism in the world," Baykal told a news conference. "It would have grave consequences for Turkish foreign policy."

Ilnur Cevik, editor in chief of The New Anatolian newspaper, said Turkey should have kept its contacts with Hamas silent and avoided contact with Mesha'al. "But it seems someone in Ankara couldn't resist the temptation to conduct the contacts with Hamas so openly and thus win points with the conservative masses of Turkey, who have deep sympathies for the Palestinian cause," Cevik said

The Foreign Ministry on Thursday said the Hamas delegation was allowed to visit Turkey "as the representatives of a group which won elections," as part of Turkey's efforts to further peace process. "If Turkey doesn't get the clout of the EU behind itself and can't arm itself with the consent of the US and Israel, then how it can perform the function as 'interlocutor valuable'," asked Cengiz Candar, a political analyst with The New Anatolian.

"It, all of a sudden, may find itself in the awkward position of promoting Hamas rather than playing such a role."

3. - The New Anatolian - "Police say ‘Yesil’ still alive":

ANKARA / 19 February 2006

Police spokesperson avows possibility that notorious figure associated with deep state may be still alive, belying Istanbul police chief’s denial.

Name Mahmut Yildirim, or so-called Yesil, marks shadowy era in Turkey when security forces allegedly took extrajudicial measures to counter Kurdish rebels upraisng in southeast

The police's spokesperson yesterday confirmed that the wanted criminal Mahmut Yildirim, who goes by the code name "Yesil" (Green), is alive, contradicting a statement made by Istanbul's police chief during the week who categorically denied that Yesil is alive.

The name Yesil appeared in the Turkish dailies which claimed he escaped when police conducted an operation against a gang in Istanbul this week, but both the security forces and government members denied the reports, stating it wasn't Yesil but his son the raid was aimed at. The police detained Murat Yildirim, Yesil’s son, and 13 others in the operation.

“The police have no proof that Yesil is dead,” said Ismail Caliskan, spokesperson of the General Directorate of Security, responding to claims about Yesil.

However Istanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah said,“Why would the police be searching for a dead man? If he'd been there, could he have escaped?” in a statement after this week's operation.

The news raised a significant amount of interest among both the public and political circles as eyewitnesses reportedly said that Yesil left the house right before the police raid. Tacidar Seyhan, Adana deputy of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), promptly submitted a question motion on whether it's true that Yesil escaped from the house right before his son was taken into custody.

In related news, Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler also confirmed that they have no conclusive information on whether Yesil is dead or alive.

“The police have received no tip-offs or information about Yesil for 10 years,” said the governor at a press conference with Cerrah.

Yesil; a mystery

The name Mahmut Yildirim, or Yesil, marks a shadowy era in Turkey when the security forces allegedly took extrajudicial measures to counter terrorism in the southeast.

Several people, including Yesil, are alleged to have been trained in secret military camps established by the Turkish *forces so that they could work for the security forces, but then they were allegedly involved in illegal activities such as assassinations, smuggling or secret operations abroad.

He was also accused of committing several unsolved murders, including those of Major Cem Erseven in 1993 and casino owner Omer Lutfu Topal 1996, and his name goes side by side with the deep state, a controversial notion referring to certain illegal power circles and their activities which bypass the legitimate authorities.

According to police intelligence, he used a couple of code names such as “Bearded,” “Terminator” or “Mehmet Kirmizi,” but he's known to the public as Yesil.

He joined an illegal leftist organization, infamous for committing political murders, but then allegedly worked for JITEM, thought to be an illegal Gendarmerie Intelligence and Counter Terrorism Unit the existence of which is denied by the Turkish authorities, and the Turkish Intelligence Agency (MIT) under Mehmet Eymur, the MIT's undersecretary at the time.

JITEM was allegedly founded in the mid-1970s to carry out operations against terrorist organizations mainly in the southeast but its existence has been persistently denied by both the military and political authorities. The unit's involvement in extrajudicial killings and bomb attacks in the southeast has been greatly debated and the public started to refer to it again after a series of bomb attacks in Semdinli, Hakkari in November.

An MIT report published in the Turkish press has confirmed a link between the security forces and Yesil, saying that he was used by Bingol’s Gendarmerie Command in 1973. “He was used against radical Islamist movements in Turkey after the 1980s but he was dismissed in 1989 due to certain complications he caused," the report added but gave no further details about what the complications were.

His name is associated with several other figures such as Abdullah Catli, allegedly used by Turkish intelligence or illegal groups within the military, and was one of the main names linked to the 1996 Susurluk scandal.

There are several questions surrounding Yesil who was also alleged to have been involved in drug and arms smuggling.

The police failed to bring him to court but he was reportedly into custody in 1995 after a street fight.

4. - The New Anatolian - "Judiciary say 'JITEM' aloud for first time":

ANKARA / 18 February 2006

Diyarbakir court to hear case against 10 ex-PKK members confirms their ties to JITEM, transfers case to military court.

A court in Diyarbakir on Wednesday confirmed the existence of the ghost organization JITEM and clearly linked it to the military.

It was hearing the case against 10 Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) informers and decided that those accused were members of JITEM and therefore ruled that they should be tried by a military court.

The informers, who've been on trial for seven years, are charged with involvement in several crimes such as abduction, murder, and bombings.

Several former PKK members allegedly joined JITEM and served as informers and "counter terror specialists" in the unit.

The lawyer for the accused said that all were former PKK members, adding that all had worked for the gendarmerie and above all for JITEM according to eye witnesses testimonies. He emphasized that the court's ruling is the first confirmation of the existence of the organization by the judiciary.

Former Gendarmerie Commander Gen. Teoman Koman denied the that the organization exists as well as any other illegal groups in the gendarmerie, adding certain people use JITEM as a cover for illegal activities.

The case has been transferred to the Seventh Corps Military Court.

5. - www.dw-world.de - "Christians on Turkey's Fringes":

19 February 2006

An EU report on minorities in Turkey has raised concerns over the country's treatment of its Christians. Since the Halki seminary closed in the seventies, the Church in Turkey has had no center for clerical training.

Halki, which belongs to the Orthodox church in Istanbul and is situated on the old-fashioned island of Heybeli, was closed down in 1971 by the Turkish government under a law requiring state control of all higher education institutes involved in religious training. It has never re-opened since.

Dating back to 1844, the school, which is perched on the top of the island, used to turn out well-educated, high-ranking church officials. And although it closed almost 35 years ago, the school is still in pristine condition. Father Dorotheos is one of those responsible for its upkeep.

"When the school was at the peak of its activity, there were never more than 120 students here," he said, adding that the combination of small numbers and quality of the professors ensured that students received an excellent education.

Clergy must be Turkish

When the school closed, it meant the Orthodox Church had to turn to institutions outside Turkey for its leaders. The Patriarchate in Istanbul is a focal point for Turkey's Orthodox Christians, and the headquarters for the Orthodox Church and its 250 million followers, but the Turkish state refuses to recognize the church's status and insists that all members of the clergy be of Turkish nationality.

With the seminary out of action, Archbishop Meliton of the Patriarchate says his religious community is slowly being strangled. "We only have a few clergymen left. We have about 16 bishops, nine of whom are already 75 years old, with the others around 65 or 66. And we only have four or five members of the clergy with Turkish nationality," Meliton said, adding that despite attempts to communicate with the government, "there is no dialogue between the patriarchate and the authorities."

Seeking EU support

So the orthodox community is now looking to the European Union for support. At a recent EU conference organized by the European parliament's Christian Democratic parties, Archbishop Meliton drove his point home. Wilfred Martens, who is head of the Christian Democrats in the parliament, sees the closure of the school as symbolic of a wider problem.

"If the school could be reopened, it would be a positive signal of a fundamental change in Turkey," he said, stressing that "religious freedom is a fundamental right," which Turkey would have to observe if it hoped to become a member of the European Union.

But the EU isn't only concerned about the reopening of the school. Over the years, the Turkish authorities have confiscated property belonging to churches and hospitals, and fresh disputes emerge every month. Until recently, all churches and foundations were banned from receiving donations in the form of property.

Discriminatory practices

In the area around Istanbul's main high street, which was once home to hundreds of thousands of Christians, the sound of church bells used to be as common as the call to prayer. One of the buildings in the district used to belong to a hospital foundation run by Armenian Christians, but it was seized in 1996 after a court ruled the property could not be left to the hospital.

The foundation organizers claim the property seizures are part of a wider pattern of discrimination against Christians in Turkey and are now taking their case to the European court. Their biggest hope is that the EU can be instrumental in putting a stop to discrimination and the domestic mentality which persists in perceiving Christians as outsiders.

6. - AP - "Thousands protest cartoons in Turkey":

ISTANBUL / 19 February 2006

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Istanbul Sunday to protest cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed, chanting slogans against Denmark, Israel and the United States.

The protest was organized by the Islamic Felicity Party, whose organizers shouted over loudspeakers that the massive crowd symbolized the anger of the world's 1.5 billion Muslims and urged them to "resist oppression."

Turkey is a 99 percent Muslim nation and protests of various sizes against the cartoons have been a nearly daily occurrence in the past week.

Turkey is also the only Islamic majority country applying to join the European Union.

The protesters called for a boycott of Denmark, where the cartoons were first published in a newspaper in September, and banners could be seen reading, "The Muslim Turkish nation is with its Palestinian and Iranian brothers."

The Danish cartoons, including one showing Mohammed wearing a bomb-shaped turban with an ignited fuse, have set off sometimes violent protests around the world.

After the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten printed the caricatures, other newspapers, mostly in Europe, followed suit, asserting their news value and the right to freedom of expression.

7. - Iran Focus - "5 Kurdish Demonstrators Killed In Iran-Kurdistan":

TEHRAN / 18 February 2006

At least five people were killed and dozens injured or arrested in the course of clashes between Kurdish demonstrators and government forces in Iran’s Kurdistan and West Azerbaijan provinces, according to a statement emailed to Iran Focus by Kurdish activists.

Iranian Kurds staged several rallies in various towns and cities in the north-western regions of Iran on Thursday and Friday, the report said.

There were street clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces in the towns of Maku, Bazargan, and Sardasht, the report added.

8. - Kurdish Media - "Mass killings committed by military forces of the Islamic Republic":

LONDON / 18 February 2006

The number of death after the attack of the Islamic military forces in eastern Kurdistan reached nine, local sources reported to KurdishMedia.com.

In the city of Mako, there were violent clashes between the Kurdish demonstrators and the Islamic military forces. Hundreds of residence of the town gathered on the streets.

Attacks by the Iranian security forces on the regions of Yolagaly, shot and Bazrgan, left 8 dead, 25 injured and 400 arrested. The name of some of those who lost their lives due to these attacks have been revealed, Ali Karimzade, Adel Makoi, Bayram Arsin and Yousif Kafashi. The two other victims have been identified by their first names Burhan and Burhan.

It was reported to KurdishMedia.com that 20 of the 25 who are injured are in a serious condition and their lives are at great risk. Among the injured are three women and one seven-year-old child. Eleven of the injured who have been located to hospitals around Mako are guarded and watched by the security forces.

It was reported to KurdishMedia.com that the Iranian security forces imposed the families of the dead to burry their dead during the night. Five of the dead bodies have not been returned to their families for proper burial one of this is the body of Ali Karimzade.