Geography of Asia

Saudi-led warplanes struck key targets of Yemeni Huthi rebels in their northern stronghold of Saada, state media said May 8 after Riyadh vowed "harsh" punishment for deadly cross-border bombardments

The raids on May 7 targeted two control centres, a communication complex and a landmine factory, the kingdom's SPA official news agency said.    

A rising number of people in Turkey believe that the free speech and human rights are declining in the country, according to a new survey. 

The opposition, while criticizing the government, can say there are troubles in the economy and oppressive trends are increasing. However, if scientific research also confirms this, then shouldn't the ruling party contemplate "why have we reached this point?" and review their 13-year-old tableau?   

Turkey has said it caught four foreign journalists trying to illegally cross into Turkey from Syria, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported on May 7. One of the detained journalists has been deported, while proceedings for the remaining three are still ongoing.

Turkey has strongly condemned Luxembourg for recognizing the mass killings of Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire during World War I as genocide and has pulled back its ambassador in protest against the European country. 

President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an has hailed Italy?s decision to ban the formation of coalition governments in the name of providing stability, amid predictions that Turkey?s upcoming parliamentary elections might force a coalition government, ending more than a decade of single-party rule by the Justice and Development Party (AKP). 

Increasing numbers of people in Turkey believe that elections in the country are not held fairly and vote counts are not trustworthy, according to an important new survey, which also reveals a sharp difference on the issue between supporters of the government and opposition parties. 

The world's oldest complete copy of the Ten Commandments is on rare display at Israel's leading museum in an exhibit tracing civilization's most pivotal moments.

Four prosecutors and a former commander were arrested on May 6 in the investigation into the halting of Syria-bound National Intelligence Organization (M?T) trucks in January 2014, which led to a nationwide crisis and a series of detentions against top security personnel. 

Headlines galore. Turkey keeps on running the show. The world watches with amusement the rise, rise and rise of the Turkish Empire. Here are more headlines from the Istanbul press in the year 2023: