Turkey

Some 65 percent of tourism facilities on Turkey’s coasts need to be renovated to compete with other facilities around the Mediterranean, even though nearly half of Turkey’s hotels are less than 10 years old, according to a recent report by the Touristic Hoteliers Association of the Mediterranean (AKTOB).

The triggerman who shot dead Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink almost eight years ago has finally decided to “speak up” about the murder, according to a news report.

More than 100 of the 600 Turkish citizens that have gone to fight for jihadist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have perished in battle, according to intelligence estimates, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said late Nov. 24.

Syrian regime air raids on Raqa city, which the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has proclaimed as its capital, killed at least 23 civilians on Nov. 25, a monitoring group said.
      

Turkish President Erdoğan attacks a recent court ruling halting a contentious port privatization, arguing that the ruler - not necessarily the laws - ensures justice in a country The laws of a country are relatively unimportant provided that the ruler who applies them is just, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Nov.

A creative Turkish-German artist who handcrafts accessories in the Ottoman Style has turned into a successful entrepreneur who now owns a fashion line that bridges East and West.

Zemra Acarlı, born to a Turkish family of immigrants in Germany, says she has always dreamed of a label bringing together her Western upbringing with her Turkish background.

"You cannot bring women and men into equal positions, that is against nature because their nature is different," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.

During a Monday meeting dedicated to women and justice he reminded of the special status attributed to women by Islam, saying women should strive to be "equivalent, rather than equal."

Kurdish fighters gained ground from jihadists of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in fierce battles in the Syrian town of Kobane overnight, a monitoring group said on Nov. 24.
      

Miscalculating the capabilities, resources or probable course of action of their opponents can pose serious difficulties for a political leader. While trying to make the best use of an opportunity, a political leader may become cornered by their mistakes or failed undertakings.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed a Syrian transition of power away from the Bashar al-Assad regime during a four-hour meeting in Istanbul on Nov. 22.