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Tag: Turkey

  • Coup: Turkey reinstates nearly 60,000 passports revoked

     

    Turkey on Friday lifted passport restrictions on nearly 60,000 people with alleged ties to failed coup in 2016, the Interior Ministry said.

    A total of 57,191 passports are now clear of restrictions following investigations, the ministry said on its website.

    It added that a total of 212,541 passports had been reinstated so far since the abortive coup attempt.

    The government had placed passport restrictions on tens of thousands to prevent them from leaving the country as part of a crackdown following the failed putsch on July 15, 2016.

    It is not clear how many passports in total were initially affected.

    Among the reasons for the restrictions were alleged ties to U.S.-based Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen, whom Turkey blames for the coup attempt by a faction in the military.

    The retired cleric and businessman, who once a close ally of President Recep Erdogan, denies the allegations, Gülen movement is designated as a terrorist organisation by the Republic of Turkey.

    In July 2016, a coup d’état was attempted in Turkey against state institutions, including the government and President Erdoğan.

    Read Also : ‘Eaglets ‘ll be ready for Turkey contest’

    Gülen has suggested the coup was in fact a “self-coup” carried out by Erdoğan to consolidate his grip on power, a belief shared among some analysts and Turks.

    During the coup, more than 300 people were killed and more than 2,100 were injured.

    Many government buildings, including the Turkish Parliament and the Presidential Palace, were bombed from the air.

    Mass arrests followed, with at least 40,000 detained, including at least 10,000 soldiers and, for reasons that remain unclear, 2,745 judges.

    Also 15,000 education staff were suspended and the licences of 21,000 teachers working at private institutions were revoked as well after the government alleged they were loyal to Gülen.

    More than 77,000 people have been arrested and more than 160,000 fired from their jobs, on accusation of connections to Gülen.

  • Toyota to start mass production in Turkey

    Japanese car maker Toyota will start mass production of its new Corolla hybrid in Turkey in January.

    “A hybrid car in this segment will be produced in Turkey for the first time,” Mustafa Varank, Turkish technology and industry minister, said during his visit to Toyota’s factory in the northwestern province of Sakarya.

    The country’s foreign trade gap will be reduced as hybrid and electric vehicles become widespread in the country, Varank said.

    “The new model which has 50 per cent less fuel consumption per vehicle would be exported to 100 countries from Turkey,” Varank said.

    The new Corolla – a trademark car of the brand – will be put up for sale in the first quarter of 2019 in Turkey, according to a statement from Toyota Turkey.

    “The new locally-made Corolla will be our brand’s pioneer in the automotive market with cut-throat competition,” Toyota Turkey’s Chief Executive Officer Ali Haydar Bozkurt said.

    The 2019 Corolla Saloon Hybrid will be the model’s 12th generation which made its debut in 1966.

    The company said Toyota Corolla is still the bestselling car worldwide with 46 million units sold since its debut.

    Corolla will be available with two types of engines, 1.8 liter self-charging hybrid and 1.6 liter petrol.

    Toyota Turkey launched its first hybrid vehicle, C-HR, a sport utility vehicle (SUV) in October 2016 in Turkey.

  • Saudi minister pledges full probe into Khashoggi killing

    Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Tuesday the kingdom was committed to a thorough and complete investigation to obtain the truth behind the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.

    Saudi Arabia had sent a team to Turkey for a joint investigation and “uncovered evidence of a murder” in the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, the minister told a news conference in Indonesia during a state visit.

    “We expressed commitment to see to it that the investigation is thorough and complete and the truth is revealed and those responsible will be held to account.

    “We will see to it that procedures and mechanisms are put in place to ensure that something like this can never happen again,” al-Jubeir said at the joint news conference with his Indonesian counterpart.

    Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and critic of the Saudi government, disappeared after he entered the consulate in Istanbul on October 2, to obtain documents for his marriage.

    Saudi Arabia initially denied knowledge of his fate before saying he had been killed in a fight in the consulate, an explanation that has drawn international skepticism.

    Read Also: Iran arrests groups planning attacks on pilgrims – Minister

    Foreign Minister al-Jubeir said 18 people had been detained and six senior government officials had already been dismissed as a result of the investigation.

    On Monday, al-Jubeir met Indonesian President Joko Widodo who called for a “transparent and thorough” investigation of the killing.

    U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler on Sunday.

    Trump said on Monday that he was still not satisfied with what he has heard from Saudi Arabia about the killing of journalist Khashoggi in Turkey, but did not want to lose investment from Riyadh.

    He had told reporters on Monday that he has teams in Saudi Arabia and Turkey working on the case and would know more about it after they returned to Washington on Monday night or Tuesday.

    Central Intelligence Agency Director Gina Haspel was traveling to Turkey on Monday to work on the Khashoggi investigation, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

    “I am not satisfied with what I’ve heard,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “I don’t want to lose all that investment that’s been made in our country. But we’re going to get to the bottom of it.”

    He later told U.S.A. Today that he believed the death was a “plot gone awry.”

    Trump has expressed reluctance to punish the Saudis economically, citing the kingdom’s multi-billion-dollar purchases of U.S. military equipment and investments in U.S. companies.

    Saudi state media said that Prince Mohammed met with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in Riyadh and discussed “the importance of the Saudi-U.S. strategic partnership.

    Mnuchin’s spokesman said on Twitter the two discussed the Khashoggi investigation as well as Iran sanctions and Saudi economic issues.

    In another development, Turkey Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday that Turkey had not yet shared any information with any country from its probe into the killing of Khashoggi.

    Cavusoglu made the comment in a televised interview with the state-run Anadolu news agency; hours before President Tayyip Erdogan was due to reveal what he has said were details in the case.

    He said that Turkey is ready to cooperate with any international investigation into Khashoggi’s killing.

    Authorities have been investigating Khashoggi’s disappearance after he entered the consulate on Oct. 2. After weeks of denial, Saudi Arabia at the weekend said the journalist had been killed at the consulate.

    Erdogan has said that he would share the information of the investigation in a speech on Tuesday.

    Saudi Arabia brushed off a Western boycott over Khashoggi case as it prepared to launch an investment conference on Tuesday that has been overshadowed by the withdrawal of dozens of top business and government leaders.

    Hundreds of bankers and company executives are still expected to join officials at a palatial Riyadh hotel for the Future Investment Initiative.

    The initiative is an annual event designed to help attract billions of dollars of foreign capital as part of reforms to end Saudi dependence on oil exports.

    The 2017 inaugural conference drew the global business elite, earning it the informal title “Davos in the Desert”.

    However, the 2018 event has been marred by the pullout of more than two dozen high-level speakers following an international outcry over Khashoggi’s killing.

  • Two children die after migrant boat sinks

    Two children died after a boat carrying migrants sank just 50 meters off Turkey’s western coast near Bodrum on Monday, the coastguard said.

    Seventeen people on the boat were rescued from the sea and seventeen others were found on the shore, the coastguard said.

    Reuters television footage from the scene showed attempts being made to resuscitate a girl on the beach and an unconscious child being carried from the water to a nearby ambulance.

    The coastguard did not specify the migrants’ nationalities.

    Read Also:Healthcare for immigrants in 30 languages

    Two children later died at hospital, he said, adding that search and rescue activities were continuing.

    Turkey became one of the main launch points for more than a million migrants taking the sea route to EU territory in 2015, many fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East and Africa.

    The influx of migrants was drastically curtailed by a 2016 accord between Ankara and the EU, after hundreds died crossing to Greek islands a few miles off the Turkish shore.

    Mediterranean arrivals to the bloc, including refugees making the longer and more perilous crossing from North Africa to Italy, totaled 172,301 in 2017, down from 362,753 in 2016 and 1,015,078 in 2015, according to UN data.

    NAN

  • Truck carrying migrants in Turkey kills 22

    Twenty-two migrants were killed and 13 others were injured yesterday when a truck carrying them overturned, Turkey’s state-run news agency Anadolu reported.

    The accident occurred as the truck was heading from Aydin province to Izmir. Details of the incident were not immediately available.

    Children were among those killed, Anadolu said.

    The local prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation, according to the report.

  • 2018 FIBA World Cup: U.S halts Nigeria in quarter-finals

    The U.S senior national women’s team on Friday halted the progression of their Nigerian counterparts, D’Tigress, with a 71-40 stoppage in the quarter-finals of the ongoing 2018 FIBA Women’s World Cup in Tenerife, Spain.

    D’Tigress coming from the streak of three straight wins over Turkey, Argentina and Greece fought hard to book their place in the semi-finals but fell to the super powers of their American opponents.

    D’Tigress recorded a 17-9 lead in the first quarter but fell 16-18 in the second and 12-19 in the third before crashing 5-25 in the third to the nine times world champions.

    However, D’Tigress have by far achieved by all ramification being the first African team to berth in the quarter-finals of the World Cup and look good to restore their quality in the  classifications match.

    Read Also: FIBA WWC: D’Tigress face reigning champions USA

    News Agency of Nigeria reports that so far, it has been an amazing World Cup for the ladies in Green and White, and the first half of this one showed how much they have grown in recent years.

    They will take the two wins over European opposition with great pride, defeating Turkey in Group phase and Greece in the quarter-finals qualifications.

    Ezinne Kalu was all over the floor today, with 8 points, 6 assists (game-high), 5 steals (game-high), and four rebounds.

    Afolabi Oni, the media person with the team in Spain described the match as one that brought the best out of the team and D’tigress deserved a lot of applause.

    “Our girls deserve a lot of credit for reaching the quarter-finals, though they lost but they went down fighting against the very best team in the world.

    “Kudos to the team, they are our true heroes and deserve all the accolades for putting up a good performance in Spain, well done D’Tigress,’’ Oni said.

    The competition which began on Sept. 22 comes to an end on Sept. 30 when the 2018 champions will be crowned.

  • Turkey threatens to abduct Gulenists in U.S., others

    TURKEY has threatened to continue its global manhunt for followers of  Gulen movement.

    Its presidential spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, at a news conference, said the operation could extend to the United State (U.S.) and other parts of the world.

    Kalin said “relevant units” would continue their operations against FETO just like the one in Kosovo, whether it be the in the United States or any other country.

    FETO is an abbreviation for the Gülen movement coined by the Turkish government to label the movement, which it accuses of masterminding an abortive coup in 2016, as a terrorist organisation.

    He said: “Our relevant units and institutions will continue their operations in the countries in which FETO operates whether it be the U.S. or some other country. Rest assured that they will feel Turkey breathing down their necks. I can’t share any details, but anything can happen anytime, anywhere.

    “Mr. President has given very clear instructions on this issue. Our relevant units are working very professionally. Operations similar to the one conducted in Kosovo can be carried out in other countries. Everyone should know that Turkey will not allow FETO to breathe a sigh of relief.”

    In March, Turkey’s National Intelligence Organisation (M?T) abducted six Turkish nationals, one doctor and five educators, working for a group of schools affiliated with the Gülen movement in Kosovo and rendered them to Turkey.

    The abduction of the Turkish nationals sparked a political crisis in Kosovo and Prime Minister RamushHaradinaj dismissed the interior minister along with the secret service chief.

    Executive Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) Kenneth Roth condemned the operation. He said the abductees would face the risk of torture and abuse in Turkey.

    More than 150,000 people have been detained and 90,000 put in pre-trial detention over Gülen links in Turkey since the summer of 2016.

    Meanwhile, Erdo?an called on foreign governments to punish Gülen followers in their countries.

    So far, a number of countries, including Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Georgia and Myanmar, have handed over academics, businessmen and school principals upon the Turkish government’s request despite the fact that some of those victims already had refugee status with the United Nations (UN).

    In some countries, the M?T carried out the arrests itself with or without the involvement of local law enforcement.

  • Turkish Airlines records 85.6 % load factor in August

    Turkish Airlines has announced the results of passenger and cargo traffic in August achieving the highest monthly load factor in its history with 85.6 per cent.

    On top of the strong base effect of August 2017, growth in the number of passengers, revenue per kilometer and load factor, is an important indicator of the continued growing interest in Turkey and Turkish Airlines.

    According to August 2018 Traffic Results; the passenger growth trend continued in August, thus total number of passengers carried went up by 2.4 per cent  reaching 7.6 million passengers, and Load Factor went up to 86 per cent.

    Also, in August 2018, Total Load Factor improved by 1.3 points, with a minimal increase of 0.5 per cent  in capacity Available Seat Kilometer, while international Load Factor increased by 1.1 points to 85.3 per cent , domestic Load Factor increased by 2.4 points to 87.6 per cent.

    Excluding international-to-international transfer passengers (transit passengers), number of international passengers went up by 3.4 per cent.

    In August, cargo/mail volume continued the double digit growth trend and increased by 21 per cent, compared to the same period of 2017. Main contributors to the growth in cargo/mail volume, are North America with 32 per cent  increase, Europe with 24 per cent  increase, Far East with 22 per cent  increase and Middle East with 18 per cent  increase. Far East, Domestic Lines and N. America showed load factor growth of 3.1 points, 2.3 points, 2.2 points and 2.1 points, respectively.

    Read Also: Turkish Airlines posts $939m Q3 profit

    According to the January-August 2018 Traffic Results; there was an increase in demand and total number of passengers which was 12 per cent and 13 per cent respectively. Over the same period of last year, total number of passengers reached to 51 million.

    Also, during January-August, total Load Factor improved by 3.4 points up to 82 per cent. While international Load Factor increased by approximately 4 points exceeding 81 per cent  domestic Load Factor went up by  two points exceeding 85 per cent , thus recording the highest load factor in Turkish Airlines history for the period of January-August.

    Excluding international-to-international transfer passengers (transit passengers), number of international passengers went up significantly by 16 per cent. Cargo/mail carried during the seven months increased by 26 per cent and reached 898 thousand tons.

  • Latvia to pay 1.8m euros to EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey

    Latvia will pay almost 1.8 million euros into the European Union Facility for Refugees in Turkey over the next five years, the Latvian government decided yesterday.

    “To ensure continued support for the Syrian refugees in Turkey, Latvia will contribute to the financing of the facility,’’ the Latvian Foreign ministry said.

    According to the ministry, starting from 2019 through 2023, Latvia will pay 240,000 to 520,000 euros per year into the facility.

    Report says the EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey manages over 70 projects.

    The main focus areas are humanitarian assistance, education, migration management, health, municipal infrastructure, and socio-economic support.

    Some 1.3 million Syrian refugees in Turkey are recipients of facility’s emergency social safety net that covers their basic needs.

     

  • Technovation: Air Peace rewards victorious Anambra students

    Air Peace has congratulated five Anambra State students and their teachers on emerging victorious in the recent Technology challenge held in the United States, honouring them with free return Owerri-Abuja tickets to facilitate their visit to the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday.

    The five Anambra students from Regina Pacies Secondary School, Onitsha represented Nigeria and Africa at the World Technovation Challenge in the Silicon Valley in San Francisco, United States and defeated Spain, USA, Turkey, Uzbekistan and China to lift the gold medal in the contest.

    They were billed for a reception by the Federal Government at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday in company with Miracle Igboke, their mentor and Chief Executive Officer of Edufun Technik STEM, Uchenna Onwuamaegbu Ugwu and principal, Rev. Fr Vincent Ezeaka.

    The girls won the technology contest with the mobile application innovation, FD-Detector they developed to assist in checking fake pharmaceutical products in Nigeria.

    A statement signed by Air Peace Corporate Communications Manager, Mr. Chris Iwarah said the carrier was proud of the schoolgirls’ rare feat.

    Read Also: Air Peace launches Kaduna service

    The development, Air Peace insisted, was proof that its effort to develop engineering capacity in Nigeria’s aviation industry was not a misplaced venture.

    “We are very proud of the feat of these young girls from Nigeria. At Air Peace, we believe that given the right environment and encouragement Nigerians will excel in all their undertakings. These girls have proved beyond a doubt that Nigerians possess everything it takes to rank among the best in the world.

    “This is the motivation for the huge investment Air Peace has continued to make in the training of young Nigerians in aviation engineering. We will continue to recognise, encourage and reward excellence,” the airline said.