ANKARA - These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in Turkish press on May 19th, 2005. The Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

HURRIYET (LIBERAL)
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MAY 19TH FESTIVAL
May 19th Commemoration of Ataturk, Youth and Sports Festival will be celebrated across Turkey, at Turkish missions abroad and in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Exactly 86 years ago, Ataturk began the efforts and initiatives for independence in Samsun.

TALAT SURPRISED BY ERDOGAN'S STANCE
Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan's agreement with the Greek Cypriot leader Tasos Papadopoulos in Moscow to start negotiations has surprised the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Mehmet Ali Talat. Talat's concern on the matter has been conveyed to Turkey by the TRNC Minister of Foreign Affairs Serdar Denktas.

MILLIYET (LIBERAL)
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FIRST LADIES TOUR THE MIDDLE EAST
Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan's spouse Mrs. Emine Erdogan will pay a visit to Damascus, Syria soon. At about the same time, U.S. President George Bush's spouse Laura Bush will be visiting Jordan, Egypt, Israel and Palestine.

ERDOGAN: ''ARMENIANS WERE MOTIVATED TO UPRISE''
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has indicated that the Armenians were motivated to uprise at the beginning of last century. ''At a time when the Ottoman Empire was fighting in three fronts, Armenians were motivated by outside forces to uprise against their own government. A re-location of the Armenian population in eastern Anatolia was inevitable,'' said Erdogan.

SABAH (LIBERAL)
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FESTIVAL OF FOOTBALL
Sports correspondents all across Anatolia have made a request to all wives to let their husbands enjoy the upcoming week. On Sunday, the derby game between Fenerbahce and Galatasaray will take place in Istanbul. On Wednesday evening, Istanbul will be the home for the UEFA Champions' League final between Milan and Liverpool.

''DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?''
Turkish Ministry of Interior Affairs has announced new traffic regulations. Aside from MPs and diplomats, judges and prosecutors will also be exempt from traffic tickets. Traffic police will not be able to make an alcohol test in cases of driving under the influence of alcohol.

VATAN (INDEPENDENT)
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SHAFT COLLAPSES IN COAL MINE, KILLING THREE WORKERS
A methane gas explosion ripped through a coal mine in northern Turkish city of Zonguldak, bringing down a mining shaft and killing 3 miners. Four workers survived the explosion with slight injuries.

GUL: ''IT WAS THE VIEW OF GOVERNMENT''
''The defense made on behalf of Turkey during the hearing of Leyla Sahin at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) was prepared according to the position of the Turkish government,'' said Turkish Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul. Sahin filed a lawsuit at the ECHR against Turkey in 1998 affirming that her freedom of thought, conscience and religion was violated since she was prohibited from wearing the Islamic headscarf at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Istanbul.

CUMHURIYET (LEFT)
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''TERRORISM HAS STARTED AGAIN''
First Army Commander Gen. Hursit Tolon said that acts of terrorism had started again. He noted that Abdullah Ocalan, the head of terrorist organization PKK, had been giving orders to PKK terrorists from the Imrali Prison.

SEZER REJECTS THE LAW ON TUBITAK
Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer has returned three articles of a law envisaging changes on the status of Turkish Scientific & Technical Research Organization (TUBITAK). According to Presidential Press Center, Sezer sent the law for a second debate at the Turkish parliament.

RADIKAL (LEFT)
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PRIVATE SCHOOL TUITION FEES INCREASE
Tuition fees of private schools in Istanbul and Ankara has increased by 15 percent this week. A nursery school now costs 30,000 YTL per year.

HISTORICAL SITES ON RENT
Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry has announced that certain historical sites are now on rent on a daily basis Accordingly, the Antique Theatre at Efes costs 20,000 YTL and Aspendos is being rented for 7,500 YTL per day.

TURKIYE (RIGHT)
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86TH YEAR HAPPINESS
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, started the campaign for independence in Samsun on May 19th, 1919, exactly 86 years ago. Today is celebrated as the day to commemorate Ataturk and celebrate youth and sports. Below are some messages issued on the occasion of May 19th:
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer: ''Our young population is the strong future of Turkey.''
Parliament speaker Bulent Arinc: ''May 19th marks the day of having utmost trust in the people itself.''
Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan: ''Our goal is to build a young population that has been well educated and/or trained.''
Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal: ''May 19th is the first example of uprising by the oppressed.''

TURKEY FIGHTS BACK
Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan has indicated that to this day 15 states around the world have accused Turkey of the so-called Armenian genocide. ''We have documents showing and proving that these states themselves are responsible for certain genocide. We will let the global community know about such genocide,'' said Erdogan.

ZAMAN (CONSERVATIVE)
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TWO SUICIDE-BOMBERS KILLED IN ERZINCAN
Two terrorists with explosives strapped to their bodies who were planning a suicide attack, were killed in an operation in rural area in Uzumlu town of eastern Turkish city of Erzincan.

CENSURE MOTION AGAINST GULER REJECTED
The censure motion, which was submitted to the parliament by the Republican People's Party (CHP) against Energy & Natural Resources Minister Hilmi Guler was rejected.

YENI SAFAK (CONSERVATIVE)
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RETALIATION
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that national parliaments of 15 countries approved resolutions recognizing the so-called Armenian genocide. ''We will examine those countries, and approve similar resolutions if they committed genocide in their past,'' he said.

FIRST STEP FOR TURKISH-GREEK BANK
The first step has been taken to establish a Turkish-Greek commercial bank to improve economic cooperation between the two countries. Greek-Turkish Chamber of Commerce Chairman Panagiotis Koutsikos sent a letter to Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO) Executive Board President Ekrem Demirtas, to inform him about the bank. Demirtas said, ''Koutsikos noted in his letter that the future Athens-based bank will have a branch office in Istanbul. Capital of the bank will be around 100-200 million euro shared equally by Turkish and Greek businessmen.''