Turkey

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey removed four more mayors from their posts on Saturday as part of a widening government crackdown against the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), and replaced them with state appointees.

President Tayyip Erdogan and his government accuse the HDP of having links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, leading to prosecutions of thousands of its members and some leaders. The HDP denies such links.

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey bought S-400 missile defense systems from Russia to use them, not put them aside, the head of the Turkish Defense Industry Directorate said on Saturday, days after talks between President Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump.

Erdogan and Trump held talks in Washington on Wednesday to overcome increasing differences between the NATO allies, ranging from Syria policy to sanctions threats over Turkey’s purchase of the S-400s, which Washington says pose a threat to its Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets.

ANKARA, 15 Nov 2019; AA: Scores of people and representatives of non-governmental organizations convened in front of Israel's embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara on Thursday to protest against Israel's attacks on Palestinians. 

Ahmet Sanver, chairman of the Ankara branch of the Anatolia Youth Association, delivered a speech on behalf of the protesters.

ERZURUM, 15 Nov 2019; AA: An observatory in eastern Turkey will receive the first light from space by the end of 2021.

Construction of Eastern Anatolian Observatory (DAG), which continues only five months a year due to harsh winter conditions, is nearly complete, Director Cahit Yesilyaprak told Anadolu Agency.

The observatory is located at an altitude of 3,170 meters (10,400 feet) in the Karakaya Hills in Konakli village of eastern Erzurum province.

14 Nov 2019; MEMO: Turkey will not give up on Russian S-400 air defense system to acquire US Patriots, the Turkish president said on Wednesday, stressing his country “can buy Patriots too”, Anadolu Agency reports.

“It is out of question to completely leave Russian S-400 to buy US Patriots. We can buy Patriots too. However, we will buy S-400 as well,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters in his flight en route to Ankara from Washington.

ANKARA, November 13. /TASS/: More than 2,000 Turkish forces are taking part in a new operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Kurdish militant group, in southeastern Turkey, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.

Operation Kiran-6 is carried out in the provinces of Van, Hakkari and Sirnak. Its goal is to prevent the PKK’s preparations for winter, when its members set up fortifications and create infrastructure in order to ensure activity on Turkish soil. The operation involves 2,360 personnel from police and regional security forces.

by Elif Selin Calik

After being vetoed twice for membership of the European Union in 1967, the United Kingdom was finally admitted at the third attempt in 1973. Today, the British government is negotiating to leave the EU, with the so-called Brexit.

12 Nov 2019; MEMO: Turkey planted over 13 million saplings on Monday as part of a massive tree-planting campaign in hope for a breath for the future in a greener country.

The forestation campaign for a greener Turkey began with the declaration of November 11 by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the National Forestation Day to be marked annually.

ANKARA, November 12. /TASS/: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that negotiations on his country joining the European Union may ‘eventually stop’ at a news conference in Ankara on Tuesday ahead of his flight to the US.

"[The EU] has levied sanctions against us since 1959. We’ve always been distracted by promises to be accepted [into the EU]. However, these promises have never been kept. You should know that today Turkey is a country that sits at the negotiation table with you, but this table is not tied to us and [the negotiations] may end soon," the Turkish president warned.

11 Nov 2019; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed the return of 365,000 Syrians to homes in the “safe zones” setup by his forces in northern Syria.

In a speech delivered in Ankara yesterday, Erdogan said that Turkey’s military operations against armed factions in Syria had been successful and led to securing an area of ​​more than 8,100 square kilometres.