IN SANLIURFA, ERDOGAN USHERS IN NEW SCHOOL YEAR
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday attended a ceremony at Sanliurfa’s Vakiflar Elementary School marking the beginning of the school year. Also present at the ceremony were Education Minister Huseyin Celik and Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan. Addressing the gathering, Erdogan said that the government would continue its support for education until Turkey enjoys universal literacy, and he further urged all families to send their children to school. In related news, Erdogan yesterday travelled to Dushanbe, Tajikistan to attend the eighth summit meeting of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO). /Sabah/
GUL: “I’VE SPOKEN TO POWELL ON OUR SENSITIVITIES CONCERNING DEVELOPMENTS IN TAL AFAR”
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said yesterday that he had briefed American officials, including Secretary of State Colin Powell, on Turkey’s sensitivities concerning recent developments in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar, warning that Ankara would no longer cooperate with the US over Iraq if ethnic Turkmen continued to be harmed in US military operations there. Speaking at an Ankara press conference after returning from a Baltic trip, Gul said that he had telephoned Powell to tell him that the US operations had harmed Tal Afar’s civilian population. “I conveyed this very openly,” stated Gul, adding, “Of course we won’t be limited to words. We never shrink from doing what is necessary.” /Milliyet/
TURKEY TO SEND HUMANITARIAN AID TO TAL AFAR
During a meeting yesterday, Foreign Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Ali Tuygan and US Ambassador to Ankara Eric Edelman agreed to coordinate efforts so that Turkey can deliver humanitarian aid to the Turkmen-populated northern Iraqi town of Tal Afar, recently hard hit by US troops. Meanwhile, Edelman and US Consul General to Istanbul David Arnett made statements stressing that the recent US military crackdown in the city had been targeted at insurgents there. In related news, the city has reportedly capitulated to US forces without any serious resistance. Ankara has urged the US to immediately stop operations there after civilian casualties among the Turkmen population came to alarmingly high numbers. /Turkiye/
PARLIAMENT TO DEBATE TCK BILL
Parliament is set to convene this afternoon after being called to session by Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc to debate a new Turkish Penal Code (TCK) bill. The General Assembly is expected to work on the matter until the weekend and then go on recess until Oct. 1. In related news, during a meeting yesterday, Justice Commission members from both the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) met under the chairmanship of Koksal Toptan to reach consensus on certain articles of the new code. /Turkiye/
SPAIN, GERMANY, AND FRANCE PRAISE ANKARA’S EU REFORMS, URGE FURTHER IMPLEMENTATION
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, and French President Jacques Chirac yesterday held a tripartite meeting in Madrid. In a statement afterwards, the three leaders praised Turkey’s recent progress in fulfilling the Copenhagen criteria for its EU bid, stressing, however, that it should exert more efforts for implementation of these reforms. “We’re looking forward for the EU Commission’s progress report on Turkey, which is due to be released next month,” said the statement, adding that the report would guide the EU’s decision whether or not to begin Ankara’s accession talks. /Cumhuriyet/
WEBSITE SHOWS TURKISH HOSTAGE BEHEADED IN IRAQ
Islamic militants in Iraq have apparently executed Turkish truck driver Durmus Kumdereli, who was taken hostage in mid-August. A video posted on an al-Qaeda-linked website showed an armed man cutting Kumdereli’s throat with a knife. /Hurriyet/
BRITISH FM: “IF TURKEY OUTLAWS ADULTERY, THIS COULD HARM ITS EU BID”
Addressing a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels yesterday, British Foreign Minister Jack Straw said that he wanted Turkey to begin its accession talks with the EU. However, touching on a recent government proposal to re-outlaw adultery, Straw warned that adopting the proposal could harm the nation’s EU bid. “We don’t know if the Turkish Parliament will pass the bill [outlawing adultery], but we support Turkey’s EU bid,” he added. /Aksam/
IMF DELEGATION DUE IN TURKEY ON THURSDAY
An International Monetary Fund delegation led by Turkey Desk Chief Riza Monghadam is expected to arrive in Turkey on Thursday to hold a series of contacts with Turkish officials towards a planned new three-year standby agreement. /Star/
CIVIL SERVANTS, GOVT TO BEGIN COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
Unions representing civil servants will begin collective bargaining talks with government officials tomorrow over their contracts for next year. The sides in the talks are expected to discuss a host of topics, including hikes in salaries and compensation, overtime pay, and other fringe benefits. The government is reportedly planning to offer an 8% wage hike for civil servants, but union representatives countered yesterday that this was unacceptable. /Milliyet/