ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on April 1st, 2007. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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TURKEY ON WINGS
Number of domestic passengers in Turkey who have preferred airlines travelling has made a significant increase over the last years and reached 28.8 million in 2006 from just 9.1 million in 2003. Meanwhile, the number of passengers in international flights increased from 34.4 to 61.7 over the same period.

IRAQI GOVT. PASSES LAW ON KIRKUK IMIGRATION FOR ARABS
As Iraqi Kurds brace up for a referendum to determine the future status of Kirkuk, the Baghdad government approved a law which offers compensation for Arabs living in Kirkuk in return for "voluntary immigrating" from the oil-rich city. Accordingly, the Iraqi government would pay Arabs up to 15,000 USD and give them land if they left their homes in Kirkuk.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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MOSQUE GESTURE FROM YEREVAN
After the restoration of the Akdamar Church in Van, Armenian officials informed Turkey that they will restore a mosque in Yerevan.

WARM MESSAGES FROM ERDOGAN
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed warm messages during his address to the nation last night. "There could be differences of life styles, ideas and thoughts. However, such differences are not an obstacle for us to unite under fundamental values of our republic," stressed Erdogan. Erdogan praised the Turkish Armed Forces during his speech televised on Saturday evening.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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JUST LIKE A PRESIDENT
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has underlined Turkey's targets and national spirit in his televised address to the nation just like a president. In his previous addresses, Prime Minister Erdogan used to talked about the government's actions.

EUROPEAN MPs OF TURKISH ORIGIN IN TRNC
European parliamentarians of Turkish origin have come together in Girne, and called on the EU and current EU president Germany to keep the promises they made for the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), put an end to the isolation of Turkish Cypriots, ratify the Direct Trade Regulation, open the Ercan Airport to the international direct flights, and acknowledge Turkish as one of the official languages of the EU.

VATAN (INDEPENDENT)
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TURKISH AIRLINES GROWS BY 25 PERCENT IN FIRST QUARTER
Turkish Airlines (THY) grew by 25 percent in the first quarter of 2007, carrying over 3.9 million people despite a tough competitive sector, company head said. The latest increase in the numbers of passengers came after three consecutive years of 20 percent growth, Temel Kotil, director general, said.
"THY reached a 67.8 occupancy rate over the first three months of 2007 and it will be the fourth biggest airlines company of Europe in 2009," Kotil added.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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U.S. SUPPORTS PKK
According to opponents of President George Bush, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates looks at Turkey as an enemy. The group calling itself "Conservative Voice" stressed that Gates and his assistant Eric Edelman are firm supporters of PKK. "Gates is attacking Turkey. Gates and Edelman want to divide Turkey by using north of Iraq against Turkey," said the internet site of the "Conservative Voice".

ARINC: "WE WILL DO WHAT WE HAVE TO DO"
In reference to recent remarks made by the Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit that there are terrorists with connections to the Turkish parliament, speaker of the Turkish parliament Bulent Arinc indicated that "it is really sad to believe that there are terrorists with connections to the parliament. If this assertion is correct, we will do what we have to do."

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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BABACAN URGES WISDOM IN RELATIONS WITH EU
"We do not need emotional reactions in the way, and we have to act wisely to take the advantage of the European Union accession process," Babacan told reporters in the southeastern city of Gaziantep. Babacan said that Turkey was not just a candidate country but a one which had started membership talks with the Union.
"We have stepped in from the doors of the EU," Babacan said.

QUALITY AWARD FOR TURKISH SOFTWARE COMPANY
Turkish software company Otonom Corp. was awarded with Trophy For Technology and Quality 2007 by the international business magazine Editorial Office and international Trade Leaders' Club.

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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TENSION ESCALATES IN GULF
King Abdallah bin Abd al-Aziz al Saud of Saudi Arabia has called Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadi-Nejad and warned him not to further escalate tension in the region. He said that the United States had been taking extremely serious measures, adding that Iran should not underestimate the possibility of a military attack.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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SNATCH-AND-RUN-THIEVES BECOME DRUG DEALERS
Snatch-and-run theft has become one of the most common crimes in Turkish metropolises recently. However, a recent survey carried out by the Security Department revealed that thieves became drug dealers to increase their income and prevent from imprisonment sentences.

90 KG OF HEROIN IMPOUNDED IN ISTANBUL
Counter-narcotics teams have impounded 90 kg of heroin, 1.2 tons of hashish, 76 kg of cocaine and 1.2 million drug pills in 1,712 operations in Istanbul in 2006.

YENI SAFAK (CONSERVATIVE)
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625,000 APPLICATIONS FOR HAJJ
Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate said that it received 625,000 applications to travel to the holly city of Mecca to perform the Hajj in 2007, with 99 thousand applications from Istanbul only. Number of women applying for the Hajj exceeded that of men, the Directorate added.