GERMANY
EXTRADITES TWO PKK TERRORISTS Germany has extradited two members
of the outlawed PKK. The Justice Ministry said Mehmet İltaş
and Mehmet Eşref Kızılay were jailed upon their arrival from
Germany. What does Germany want from Turkey in exchange for
the terrorists?Watch
TURKISH
PRIEST FREED The Syriac Turkish priest, Father Edip Daniel
Savci, abducted on Wednesday, was freed by his kidnappers after
just two days. Were the kidnappers paid the € 300,000 they demanded?Watch
IMKB
PARALYZED DUE TO SEVERED CABLE The Istanbul Stock Exchange was not able
to trade on Wednesday due to a broken fibre-optic cable. Who
severed the cable and why? Watch
PRINCE
CHARLES IN KONYA Prince Charles, heir to the British throne,
visited Konya on Monday as part of a five-day visit to Turkey.
The prince and his wife, Camilla watched a performance of the
world famous Whirling Dervishes. Watch
TURKISH
ARMY LAUNCHES ATTACK IN NORTHERN IRAQ The Turkish Armed Forces launched the first
‘official’ attack on Iarqi soil. A day earlier, Prime Minister
Erdogan signaled an imminent strike. What is the latest information
about the operation? Watch
22/11/2007- 28/11/2007 Show TV News
TURKEY
AND GREECE LAUNCH PIPELINE PROJECT Turkey's role as an energy corridor
got a major boost with the inauguration of the Turkey-Greece
Natural Gas Pipeline. The pipeline, enabling Caspian natural
gas to reach Europe directly for the first time, was officially
opened with a ceremony at the Ipsala Customs Area. Work on the
pipeline began in mid 2005. When operating at full capacity,
it will be able to carry 11.6 billion cubic meters of gas a
year. Watch
TWO
TOP US GENERALS IN ANKARA US Joint Chiefs vice-chairman Gen. James
Cartwright and the top US commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus,
held talks with the Turkish Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen.
Ergin Saygun.While this meeting renewed speculation regarding
a cross border incursion into Northern Iraq, what statement
did the Turkish General Staff post on its Web site? How did
Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of
Staff comment on this unexpected meeting? Watch
TURKEY
AND IRAN SIGN ENERGY DEAL DESPITE US PRESSURE Turkey and Iran signed a new energy deal
and Turkey pledged to sign further pacts with neighboring Iran,
including natural gas deals. This agreement is in defiance of
US pressure on its allies to avoid economic cooperation with
Iran.What does the 1.5 billion dollar deal include? What did
the Turkish Energy Minister Hilmi Güler say when reminded of
the US Iran Sanctions Act?Watch
ITALY’S
FM D’ALEMA ACKNOWLEDGES TURKEY’S RIGHT TO DEFEND ITSELF Italy's Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema
said Turkey has the right to defend itself against terrorist
attacks originating from Northern Iraq but urged Ankara for
restraint. He said "We are condemning the terrorist attacks
against Turkey. We are in full solidarity with the Turkish government
and the Turkish people." D'Alema's comments have received
a great deal of public attention in Turkey since he was the
Italian prime minister in 1999. Back then, he allowed PKK leader
Abdullah Öcalan to seek refuge in Rome. Öcalan was later captured
and is currently imprisoned in Turkey. Watch
PRO-KURDISH
PARTY FACING CLOSURE The chief prosecutor of the Supreme
Court of Appeals opened a court case against the Democratic
Society Party in the Constitutional Court. The prosecutor claimed
that the pro-Kurdish party is in conflict with the independence
of the state; therefore violating Article 68 of the constitution.
What will happen to the DTP deputies if the party is disbanded
by the Constitutional Court? Is DTP shifting toward radicalization?Watch
TURKEY
MADE IT TO THE FINALS Turkey has grabbed a spot in the2008 European
Championship Finals following a win over Bosnia, which sparked
great joy in the country. Coach Terim has been under intense
pressure from both the public and the media; his capability
of managing the team had constantly been questioned prior to
this latest game. When the Turkish team won, coach Terim's family
was in tears, as was Haluk Ulusoy, the Chairman of the Turkish
Football Federation. Watch
FIRST
TURKISH CLONE Meet Oyali, the first cloned sheep in Turkey!
She was introduced to the press this week at the Istanbul University
Veterinary Faculty. Watch
04/11/2007- 21/11/2007 Show TV News
AN
HISTORIC MEETING Leaders of Israel and Palestine
met in Ankara to ease tense relations ahead of a crucial international
summit in the United States. Will this meeting serve as a stepping
stool for re-launching Israeli-Palestinian peace talks? What
did the two leaders focused on when they addressed the Turkish
Parliament?Watch
“REAL-TIME
INTELLIGENCE” Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said the United
States has begun sharing real-time intelligence with Turkey
against PKK terrorists in Northern Iraq. Is a cross border incursion
into Iraqi territory imminent? The Foreign Minister’s statement
has been linked to reports of ongoing air strikes against PKK
targets. But the commander of the Air Force, Gen. Aydogan Babaoglu,
denied all media reports, saying “They are completely baseless."
Watch
ABDUCTED
SOLDIERS Eight Turkish soldiers freed by the PKK were
sent to prison after testifying before a military prosecutor.
The soldiers are facing charges of disobeying orders that may
result in up to 20 years in jail. The eight soldiers were captured
by the PKK during an ambush in Hakkari on Oct. 23rd, and they
were released 14 days later after US officials and the northern
Iraqi administration negotiated with the PKK. claiming that
the soldiers were members of the pro-Kurdish DTP party, were
completely false.. Watch
LOTTERY
MURDER The head of the Turkish state lottery was
shot dead in his office by a former state lottery inspector,
Ahmet Öztürk. Right after the murder, Öztürk reportedly said
“This is my happiest day.” When he was a lottery inspector,
Öztürk had insisted that General Manager Balak had been misusing
his authority and inappropriately allocating funds to some employees.
What finally led him to being a murderer? Watch
FLOOD…AGAIN… Floods caused by heavy rain swept through
Western Turkey. The residents of Silivri, a province of Istanbul,
were trapped in their flooded homes. Firefighter rescue teams
tried to reach flood victims in boats. Overall, heavy rainfall
led to significant damage in various districts. Watch
24/10/2007- 03/11/2007 Show TV News
Potential
economic measures against Iraq In the face of Iraq's failure
to crack down on PKK terrorists, possible economic sanctions
against Iraq were discussed at a Cabinet meeting. The plan for
sanctions mainly consists of economic measures such as cutting
the electricity supply to northern Iraq. Turkey may eventually
close down Habur, the single and most important border crossing
between Turkey and Iraq. At the moment, the Turkish government
is planning to block only the passage of construction materials
into Northern Iraq; no restriction is expected for medical supplies
and medicine, as such sanctions would be a violation of international
conventions.
Turkey may also close its airspace to flights into northern
Iraq. Kurdish Iraqi Leaders claimed this week that sanctions
concerning the airspace were already in effect; whereas Turkish
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said "We're just discussing
the possible measures. They're not in effect yet".Watch
Talabani
- Way too inconsistent or confused? Iraqi president Jalal Talabani has repeatedly
insisted that Iraqi Kurds cannot extradite outlawed PKK leaders
to Turkey. Last week he had said he wouldn't hand over a Kurdish
cat to Turkey, let alone a Kurd. Then, on Tuesday this week,
during Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan's visit to Iraq,
Talabani said he did not exclude the possibility of handing
PKK leaders over to Turkey, contradicting his earlier statements.
Two days later, he claimed that delivering terrorists was not
an option, for logistical reasons. Talabani's inconsistent remarks
come amid a planned visit by a delegation of Iraqi officials
to Ankara to discuss measures to deal with the PKK presence
in northern Iraq. The talks are regarded as the "final
chance" for diplomacy to prevent an incursion. Watch
Kurdish
residents protest the PKK in Hakkari Residents of Hakkari, where 12 Turkish soldiers
were recently killed in a PKK attack, rallied against terrorism.
Some 15,000 citizens gathered at a stadium and they chanted
"Martyrs don't die," "Turks and Kurds are brothers"
and "PKK, keep your hands off Hakkari." The residents
sang the national anthem and observed a moment of silence. Later,
they walked to the city center, where they prayed for the martyrs.
Watch
Secretary
Rice visit Security measures have been beefed up in
Istanbul just before a visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice. Her Istanbul visit was scheduled long ago, since the Secretary
was due to participate in a meeting with representatives of
countries neighboring Iraq. As a result of the recently escalated
tension between Turkey and Iraq, Rice pushed back the date of
her visit; she'll go to the capital city first, to meet with
Prime Minister Erdogan. US Secretary Rice is coming to Ankara
only days before Erdoğan's meeting with US President George
Bush in Washington on Monday. Rice's talks in Ankara are expected
to be a preliminary negotiation ahead of the two leaders' meeting.
Watch
07/10/2007
- 24/10/2007 Show TV News
MILITARY
GOT THE GO-AHEAD As the Turkish Parliament ratified a motion
authorizing the military to conduct a military incursion into
Northern Iraq, the government is now allowed to order the Turkish
troops into Northern Iraq. Iraqi Vice President Tariq Hashimi
came to Ankara to convince government officials that Iraq can
deal with PKK terrorists within Iraqi territory. Syrian President
Basar Assad who has also been in Ankara, pledged his full support
to Turkey in the event of an incursion; whereas US government
once again warned Turkey that a cross border operation would
not be in Turkey's best interests.Watch
FLOOD-STRUCK
RESIDENTS RALLIED Heavy rainfall resulted in floods in most
parts of Istanbul over the weekend. The residents of Atakoy,
one of the most modern and fairly new residential areas, poured
out in the street to protesting the Municipality. The outraged
people, who claimed the ongoing improvement work on the nearby
stream bed caused the flooding, blocked traffic on the main
road. The tension has escalated as they got engaged in a fight
with police officers.Watch
US
HOUSE RESOLUTION LOSING SUPPORT The efforts to prevent the passage of a US
House resolution on Armenian claims have started to yield results.
A USHouse vote to label the century-old deaths of Armenians
as genocide is in jeopardy. Several Democrats already withdrew
their support. Rep. John Murtha told a conference that if the
US was going to have stability in that part of the world, to
have Turkey as an ally was exteremly important. This week, at
least six Democrats withdrew their sponsorship of the bill and
two other Democrats, Reps. Alcee Hastings of Florida and John
Tanner of Tennessee, asked Pelosi to forgo the vote. Speaker
Pelosi now admits she may not bring the measure to the House
floor, if it fails to gain more support. Watch
BHUTTO
GREETED WITH ‘BOMBS’ On the day she came back to Pakistan after
eight years of exile, Benazir has survived an apparent assassination
attempt which killed 126 people and injured at least 240. As
her motorcade passed by, two bombs exploded. Pakistani President
Pervez Musharraf said he condemned the attack in the strongest
possible words, and that this was a conspiracy against democracy.
Ms Bhutto was making an historic return to Pakistan after years
in exile and had earlier ignored police warnings she would be
targeted by Al-Qaeda or Taliban militants.Watch
ANOTHER
HEINOUS ATTACK BY THE TERRORISTS A deadly attack by the PKK claimed the lives
of 12 Turkish soldiers and injured 16 others. 8 of the soldiers
are still missing. A group of PKK
terrorists infiltrated Turkish territory from northern Iraq
last Saturday after midnight. The attack took placein Daglica,
where the borders of Turkey, Iraq, and Iran meet. Intelligence
reports indicate that the terrorists left from Avashin, one
of the 15 PKK camps in Iraq, and deployed around the only bridge
which connects Daglıca and Yesiltas, in the province of Hakkari.
The firing began just as the Turkish convoy passed the bridge.
The soldiers were attacked from three different directions.
The terrorists blew up the bridge with missiles. Meanwhile,
Iraq's President Jalal Talabani refused to hand over top leaders
of the outlawed PKK to Turkey. Talabani said:"The handing
over of PKK leaders to Turkey is a dream that will never be
realized. We will not hand over a cat to Turkey, let alone a
Kurd." Watch
29/09/2007
- 06/10/2007 Show TV News
TURKEY
MOURNS ITS PATRIOTS... There is outrage over one of the heaviest
losses the Turkish military has sustained in clashes with
the PKK terrorist group. Thirteen Turkish soldiers were
killed in an attack near the Iraqi border. The victims
were members of the Mountain Squad, assigned to temporary
mission in Şırnak, one of the most clash-intense regions
of Turkey. While providing cover for their friends, the
soldiers were ambushed by the terrorists.Right after the
attack, the Turkish military shelled the border area,
attempting to prevent the terrorists from fleeing into
northern Iraq.. Watch
U.S.
HOUSE COMMETTEE APPROVED RES.106 US House Foreign Affairs Committee
approved the resolution calling for recognition of Armenian
killings at the hands of the Ottoman Empire as genocide.Although
the US Administration had lobbied extremely hard against
the resolution, the Committee voted 27-21 in favor of
the measure. The Turkish Administration sounds cautious
about possible retaliatory moves. The
U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Ross Wilson was summoned to
the ministry to convey Turkey's reaction. A government
statement warned the United States that bilateral ties
could be severely harmed if the bill passes on the House
floor. Watch
NBA’S
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES IN TOWN The Minnesota Timberwolves came to
Istanbul to play Turkey's Efes Pilsen, as a part of the
NBA Europe Live Tour. Some of the players participated
in the opening ceremony of an NBA Cares, Learn and Play
Center at the Avcilar Primary School in Istanbul. Despite
the tension caused by the security measures, students
had a great time with the players who were very friendly.The
Minnesota Timberwolves beat Turkey's Efes Pilsen 84 to
81on Oct 6th, two days after this get-together. Watch
REFERENDUM
CRISIS RESOLVED A first round of parliamentary voting
to change some parts of a constitutional amendments package
was held in the Parliament. The change voted on in Parliament
deletes temporary articles 18 and 19 in the package that
require the new procedure for electing the president to
be applied to the 11th president. The articles have been
dropped since Abdullah Gül, the 11th president was already
elected by Parliament on Aug. 28th. The only party taking
a stand against the changes is the main opposition party,
CHP, who proposes a complete cancellation of the package
and says the Supreme Election Board should determine whether
or not the constitutional modification is essential. Watch
MOTION
FOR CROSS-BORDER OPERATION IN WORKS The recent deadly attacks carried out
by the PKK, triggered a new turn in Turkey's fight against
terrorism. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and the cabinet
have decided to issue a parliamentary motion to authorize
the Turkish Armed Forces to launch a cross border incursion
into Northern Iraq where the outlawed PKK has been enjoying
a safe haven for decades. The objective is to crack down
on PKK bases and to stop the infiltration of the terrorists
intending to carry out attacks in Turkey.The main concern
is the US; since Washington has been constantly declaring
that the US administration is vehemently against such
an operation. The Bush administration sent two high-ranking
officials to Turkey. Eric Edelman, the Undersecretary
of Defense for Policy, who was also a former U.S. Ambassador
to Turkey and Dan Fried, the Assistant Secretary of State
for European Affairs held talks with administration officials
in Ankara and appealed to the Turkish government for restraint.
Watch
21/09/2007
- 28/09/2007 Show TV News
TOP
GENERAL BLASTS GOVERNMENT&PRO-KURDISH DTP Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General
Yaşar Büyükanıt said the Turkish Armed Forces will not
allow any attempt to water down the secular system. The
pro-Kurdish DTP had its share of criticism; General Büyükanıt
called on the government to take legal action against
DTP who had and still does refrain from openly condemning
PKK’s terror attacks. Watch
GÜL’S
FUTURE AS PRESIDENT IS AT STAKE If the constitutional referendum determines
that the 11th president should be elected by the public;
it is unclear what will happen to the ‘sitting’ president
Abdullah Gül, given that he is the 11th name to reside
in the Çankaya Palace. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan argues
that the people will vote for the 12th, and Gül maintains
his presidency; whereas the opposition claims the whole
amendment package should be abolished in order to resolve
the conflict. Whether or not Gül will continue to be the
President, remains to be seen. Watch
PENDING
US HOUSE RESOLUTION THREATHENING RELATIONS As, the House resolution
on Armenian claims of genocide is expected to advance
in the US Congress next week, Turkish warns that US-Turkey
relations will be damaged if it passes. Prime Minister
Erdogan had a telephone conversation with US President
Bush to pronounce the sensitivity of the issue once again.
If the resolution is approved by the Foreign Relations
committee, it would be up to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
to decide whether to bring it to the House floor for a
vote.
Watch
TURKISH
AND FRENCH MINISTERS SEEK 'MORE DIALOGUE' French Foreign Minister
Bernard Koucher spoke with his Turkish counterpart Babacan
during his visit to Ankara. Kouchner, focused on the importance
of improved dialogue and strengthening military and economic
ties between the two countries. In the meantime, Foreign
Minister Ali Babacan informed Kouchner about Turkey's
unwillingness to even discuss the possibility of a status
other than full membership in the European Union, an offer
strongly supprted by the French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Watch
Written & Presented by: Defne Samyeli, News
Director and Anchor of Show TV Evening News
Production: Ümit Temuçin
Editing: Ufuk Kuşhan
Video: Hakan Yıldız
