ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on May 14th, 2008. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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WELCOME, HER MAJESTY
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom arrived in Ankara together with Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. This is the first time the Queen is visiting Turkey in 37 years. President Abdullah Gul, who welcomed the Amir of Qatar and the King of Saudi Arabia at the airport, welcomed the Queen at the Presidential Palace as the Queen did not want a full honors at the airport.
During the dinner, Queen Elizabeth said Turkey had become a bridge between the East and the West in a very critical time for the European Union (EU) and the world. The Queen also said President Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan did great things.
IS BANKASI RECORDS 555 MLN YTL PROFIT
Turkish Is Bankasi`s net profit was 51 percent up in the first quarter of 2008 over the same period of 2007. The bank`s assets reached 84 billion new Turkish liras (YTL), and its net profit was 555 million YTL in the first three months of 2008.
MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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BRITISH QUEEN VISITS TURKEY
Queen Elizabeth II arrived in the Turkish capital, Ankara to pay her first formal visit to Turkey in 37 years. The Queen and her spouse Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip visited Ataturk`s Mausoleum and observed a minute of silence. The Queen was later welcomed by Turkish President Abdullah Gul with full military honors at the Cankaya Presidential Residence. Gul hosted a luncheon in honor of the Queen, who previously visited Turkey in 1971.
ELEVEN TERRORISTS KILLED IN SOUTHEAST TURKEY
Turkish security forces killed 11 more PKK terrorists on Monday after a series of operations following a PKK attack on a military outpost in the southeastern province of Hakkari. Security forces killed 19 terrorists during operations launched after the attack.
SABAH (LIBERAL)
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"IT IS AN HONOR TO PAY MY RESPECTS TO YOU"
Queen Elizabeth II, 82, arrived in Turkey on a state visit after 37 years. British Queen first visited Anitkabir, Ataturk`s mausoleum, and wrote on the special notebook of Anitkabir.
"It is an honor to pay my respects to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, a much valued friend of the United Kingdom and one of the great figures of modern history," she wrote. Later on, Queen Elizabeth met with Turkish President Abdullah Gul.
SMOKING STEALS 3 WEEKS A YEAR FROM WORK
An extensive ban on smoking indoors will take effect on May 19th. Sales of cigarettes are expected to drop 5 percent after the ban. Lost working time of a smoking worker is 21 days a year and it costs about 1,500 euros.
VATAN (INDEPENDENT)
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MODEST QUEEN
The visit of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom to Turkey began on Tuesday. A British Airways plane which brought Queen Elizabeth II and consort Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, to Ankara landed at the airport without any delay. State Minister Mehmet Aydin and his wife welcomed Queen Elizabeth and Prince Consort. She shook hands with everyone who welcomed her at the airport.
BAYKAL: "WE WILL SUBMIT CENSURE MOTION IN REGARD TO SALE OF SABAH-ATV"
Deniz Baykal, chairman of the main opposition Republican People`s Party (CHP), said, "we will submit a censure motion in regard to sale of Sabah-ATV tomorrow and we will have opportunity to discuss the sale in detail next week."
CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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A QUEEN IN ANKARA
British Queen Elizabeth II and her spouse Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip arrived in Ankara on Tuesday as the official guests of Turkish President Abdullah Gul. The Queen visited Ataturk`s Mausoleum and then attended a luncheon given in her honor at the Cankaya Presidential Residence. "Turkey is a very important country both at the global and the European Union levels. Turkey and the United Kingdom are strategic partners," she said during the luncheon.
ELEVEN TERRORISTS KILLED
Security forces killed 11 PKK terrorists on Tuesday in Semdinli town of the southeastern province of Hakkari. Terrorists attacked last week a military outpost in Semdinli, killing 6 six Turkish troops. Nineteen terrorists were killed on Monday during the operations launched after the terrorist attack.
RADIKAL (LEFT)
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TURKEY TOOK GIANT STEPS
British Queen Elizabeth II and her spouse Prince Philip began their tour of Turkey, covering Ankara, Bursa and Istanbul. At the Presidential Palace, the Queen said Turkey had took giant steps on the road to democracy, and added that Turkey was a unique bridge between the East and the West in a critical period.
ELEVEN PKK TERRORISTS KILLED IN OPERATIONS
Security forces continue their hot pursuit against the terrorist organization PKK after six soldiers were killed in an attack on a gendarmery outpost in Akturun village in Semdinli town of the southeastern province of Hakkari. Security forces killed 11 terrorists in the operations they launched after the attack.
TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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OPPOSITION RESISTS CHANGE
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that main opposition Republican People`s Party (CHP) was resisting change.
"Mr. Baykal says `we are what we were 30 years ago`. Then, he may keep going on spinning," Erdogan said.
1.6 TONS OF GIFTS
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, who travels abroad twice a year, arrived in Turkey for her first visit in 2008 together with her 25-person entourage. She has brought 1,600 kg of gifts to Turkey.
ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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AFRICA SUMMIT BEGINS
The 3rd Summit of "Turkey-Africa: Foreign Trade Bridge" hosted by the Confederation of Businessmen & Industrialists of Turkey began at Istanbul WOW Convention Center. Nearly one thousand businessmen from 45 countries, 20 African ministers and 70 bureaucrats are attending the summit. Speaking at the opening of the summit, State Minister Kursad Tuzmen said trade volume between Turkey and African countries amounted to 5.4 billion USD in 2003 and it became nearly 13 billion USD at the end of 2007, he stated. "We aim to increase trade volume with African countries to 50 billion USD by the end of 2012," Tuzmen said.
QUEEN SUPPORTS TURKEY`S EU MEMBERSHIP
Turkey is hosting Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom after 37 years. President Abdullah Gul hosted a banquet in honor of Queen Elizabeth II. Speaking at the banquet, Queen Elizabeth qualified the relations between Turkey and Britain as "strategic partnership" and expressed her support for Turkey`s EU bid.
YENI SAFAK (CONSERVATIVE)
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A TURK LOCKED INSIDE TOILET ABOARD A PLANE
Gokhan Mutlu, a Turk living in the United States, wanted to travel from San Diego to New York. But tickets for all flights were sold out. So, he called a friend of his who was working at jetBlue Airlines and asked his help. An empty seat which was allocated only for airline employees was given to Mutlu.
However, upon the complaint by the flight attendant, the pilot of the plane told him that he was not allowed to sit there and then shut him in the toilet. Mutlu remained locked in the toilet for 3 hours. He sued the pilot and the airlines company for damages, demanding 2 million USD.
TERRORISTS TRAPPED
Turkish military stroke a heavy blow on the PKK terrorists who attacked an outpost in Hakkari`s Semdinli town and killed 6 Turkish soldiers. Special forces were brought to the region with Sikorsky helicopters to block the terrorists. 11 terrorists were killed in the operation which was backed by Cobra helicopters.
(TÇ-EÖ-MS)