Fatih

Turkish international and Barcelona midfielder Arda Turan announced on June 6 that he retired from international football amid a row surrounding his attack on a sports journalist.

After a number of scientific reports raised the alarm that Istanbul's historic Topkapı Palace is sliding steadily toward the sea, officials have launched  a restoration effort that is planned to take around three decades. 

Fatih Akın's "In the Fade," an emotional and powerful film about global terrorism, stands a strong chance at receiving a prize at the awards ceremony of the 70th Cannes Film Festival. The film was viewed by the international press on the morning of May 26, with Akın answering questions from journalists after the screening. 

It is the middle of May, almost two weeks before the end of the month, and high on the agenda came, once again, the issue of the Hagia Sophia. 

A large group of people, who demand Istanbul's monumental Hagia Sophia to be turned into a mosque again, gathered in front of the museum in the early hours of May 13, before offering their morning prayer there. 

A 16th century Turkish bath built by renowned Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan in Istanbul has been put up for sale with an asking price of 3 million euros, daily Birgün reported on May 9.

A master of Turkish photography, Professor Sabit Kalfagil, was laid to rest in Istanbul on May 6.

Kalfagil died in Istanbul's Haydapaşa Albdülhamit Research and Education Hospital on May 5 at the age of 83.
Among the attendees of his funeral ceremony were academics from Marmara University and many photography artists.

Syrian migrants living in Istanbul have brought their rich food culture to the city, with many of them opening restaurants across the city over the past few years. 

One Mecca for this burgeoning scene is Akşemsettin Street in the Fatih district of Istanbul, where a number of restaurants offer a "fusion" of Syrian and Turkish tastes. 

Police on April 15 detained 49 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) suspects allegedly planning a "sensational" act of terror ahead of the constitutional referendum. The suspects, including 41 foreign nationals, were taken into custody during simultaneous raids in seven districts including Başakşehir, Beylikdüzü, Fatih, Esenyurt, Kartal, Küçükçekmece and Pendik, a security source said.

Istanbul's Topkapı Palace Museum is undergoing the most comprehensive restoration project in its history. The ongoing 24 projects are expected to cost 220 million Turkish Liras, Culture and Tourism Minister Nabi Avcı has said in a statement.