News archive of August 2016

Macedonian Election Set for December

After early parliamentary elections had already been postponed twice this year, the leaders of Macedonia's four main political parties finally reached an agreement on Wednesday evening to hold the vote on December 11.

US Allowed To Use Indian Military Bases

US Secretary of State John Kerry has described his just concluded two-day visit to India as a successful one, as New Delhi and Washington signed an agreement that would allow them to use each other's land, air and naval bases for military purposes.

State Dept. Offers $3Mln For ISIS Leader Trained in US

BELGRADE - The US State Department has offered a $3 million reward for any information leading to the arrest of Gulmurod Khalimov, a former Tajik police commander who is currently one of the main leaders of the Daesh terrorist group.

Skopje Sets Date For Early Elections In December

BELGRADE - Macedonia's (FYROM) political parties have agreed to hold early parliamentary elections on December 11 in an effort to resolve an 18-month-long crisis.

The agreement was reached after a U.S. and EU mediated meeting in Skopje on August 31, RFE/RL reports.

Turkey summons US ambassador

BELGRADE - Ankara has summoned the US ambassador to Turkey to explain Washington's "unacceptable" comments about Turkey's anti-ISIS operation in Syria, rejecting any talk of a ceasefire with the US-backed Kurdish militia and vowing to "eliminate all threats."

Would Apple ever have an HQ in Turkey?

Two days ago, I felt really good when I saw Deputy PM Mehmet Şimşek's tweet to Apple. It was an invitation to Apple, saying they should invest in Turkey instead of Ireland and get rid of European bureaucracy. Of course, I did not know about the 14 billion-euro tax punishment that the EU is demanding.

Giving increases happiness and quality of life

Itır Erhart, an academic at Bilgi University, is an inspiration and a role model for me. She was one of the founders of "Adım Adım" (Step by Step). Thanks to her, thousands of people have run; she has changed running into another format. She introduced charity and doing favors into our lives. Now she is presenting "Açık Açık" (Openly).  

The Stanford experiment and headscarves

A psychological experiment was carried out in 1971 at Stanford University. Students were split into two groups; one group wore prison uniforms, the other group wore guard uniforms. Quite unexpectedly, students got carried away in their roles. One-third of the guards started showing unnecessary, cruel and oppressive, even sadistic, behavior; absolute power had ruined them.

Is Adil Öksüz being protected?

Generals have been apprehended but this Adil Öksüz somehow has not been caught yet. He was not only the "imam in charge of the military" of the "Fethullahist Terrorist Organization" (FETÖ), but he was also one of the leaders of the coup attempt, called the "black box." He was the one who tried to make Chief of General Staff Gen.

Did Turkey outmaneuver the US?

Washington is unhappy about Turkey's "Operation Euphrates Shield." The potential for a serious confrontation between fighters from the Peoples Protection Units (YPG), the armed wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), is very real and clearly of deep concern to it.

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