TESTS CONFIRM SUICIDE BOMBERS’ IDENTITIES
DNA tests have confirmed the identities of the perpetrators of recent suicide terrorist attacks on British targets in Istanbul as Ilyas Kuncak and Feridun Ugurlu, Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler announced yesterday. Stressing that the deadly attacks seemed to be connected to the al Qaeda terrorist network, Guler added that investigations were ongoing and that an official statement would be made after their completion. In related news, over the weekend 22 people wanted for questioning about both the Nov. 20 attacks and two earlier Nov. 15 attacks on Istanbul synagogues were turned over by Syria to Turkish security forces. On Saturday, a Turkish court charged a man identified as Yusuf Polat in connection with the synagogue bombings in Istanbul. Polat was captured trying to flee into Iran at a Turkish border crossing, police said. /Turkiye/

TURKISH ENGINEER ONAL RELEASED IN AFGHANISTAN
Turkish engineer Hasan Onal, who has been held by kidnappers in Afghanistan since the end of October, was freed on Saturday and brought to the Turkish Embassy in Kabul yesterday. Officials said that Onal was in good health, adding that he would soon return to Turkey. Onal is an employee of Gulsan-Cukurova, a Turkish company carrying out a project in Afghanistan. /All papers/

BAYKAL: “TERRORISM IS ONE OF OUR MOST DIRE PROBLEMS”
Appearing on television yesterday, opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal called terrorism one of the nation’s most dire problems. Though Turkey had been targeted by recent terrorist attacks, added Baykal, it has long experience in battling terrorist groups. He also criticized the government’s foreign policy, charging that it had paved the way for terrorists putting Turkey in the crosshairs. /Cumhuriyet/

GREEK FINANCE MINISTER VISITS TURKEY
Greek Economy and Finance Minister Nikolaos Christodoulakis yesterday arrived in Istanbul to pay an official visit at the invitation of Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan. During his scheduled meetings with Turkish officials, including State Ministers for the Economy Kursad Tuzmen and Ali Babacan, bilateral trade relations are on the agenda, and a Double Taxation Prevention Pact is also expected to be signed. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is also set to receive the Greek minister. /Turkiye/

CLERIDES: “GREEK CYPRUS GOT EU MEMBERSHIP BY REFUSING TO MAKE CONCESSIONS”
We achieved our upcoming European Union membership by making no concessions on the Cyprus issue and by not accepting the United Nations’ plan for the island, said former Greek Cypriot leader Glafcos Clerides yesterday. The longtime former president further claimed that if no resolution is reached by next May, when his nation is set to join the EU, this would both end prospects for a settlement for the foreseeable future and frustrate Turkey’s own hopes to get a date to begin accession talks next December. /Aksam/

EUROPEAN GREENS VOICE SUPPORT FOR TURKEY
The Greens Party's 22nd annual congress in Dresden, Germany ended yesterday with an address by Claudia Roth, the nation's human rights commissioner and a prominent party member In her speech, Roth lashed out at a statement by Wolfgang Bosbach, an official in Germany’s ruling Christian Democrats, claiming that European Union membership for Turkey would “import” terrorism into the EU. Roth branded Bosbach’s comments, made in the wake of recent terrorist attacks in Istanbul, as “immoral.” Also during the meeting, The Greens passed a resolution expressing solidarity with and support for Turkey. /Sabah/

ITALY POSTPONES MEETING IN ISTANBUL
Following the recent deadly terrorist attacks in Istanbul, the Italian government announced yesterday that “due to security concerns” it was postponing a meeting set to be held in the city to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s pontificate. A future date for the meeting was not announced. /Turkiye/

WORLD AIDS DAY OBSERVED IN ISTANBUL
A meeting on “AIDS and the Media” was held yesterday in Istanbul’s Dedeman Hotel in observance of Dec. 1, World AIDS Day. Participants at the gathering accused the media of sensationalizing the immune system syndrome. Organizers estimated that this year alone 40 million people had been infected worldwide and that that number could double by 2010. /Star/

ISTANBUL STOCK EXCHANGE RECORDS RECORD YIELD
The Istanbul Stock Exchange (IMKB) announced over the weekend that this October, it had achieved the highest yield among all world bourses in both index and trade volume. That month, shares traded on the IMKB gained an average of 20 percent in value. While 53 exchanges worldwide rose for the month, Shanghai’s fell about 1.38 percent and after Turkey, Oslo scored the highest yield, with 12 percent. /Star/