Turkey

ANKARA, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) -- Turkey on Thursday detained at least 34 Islamic State (IS) suspects in two separate anti-terror operations in eastern Van and southern Adana provinces, semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.

The counter-terrorism police and the intelligence officers conducted an operation in the eastern Van province and detained 31 IS suspects with many organization-related documents and digital materials, anonymous security officials told the agency.

24 Dec 2020; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced on Wednesday that his country would open a new page of dialogue with EU countries and the US, Anadolu Agency reported.

Speaking to Justice and Development Party lawmakers, Erdoğan confirmed: "Turkey has no luxury of turning its back on either the West or the East. While maintaining good ties with the US and Europe, we cannot ignore Africa and Asia."

23 Dec 2020; MEMO: The Turkish parliament yesterday began discussing a memorandum submitted by the Presidency of the Republic to extend the tasks of Turkish forces in Libya and Afghanistan for an additional 18 months.

The memorandum was submitted to parliament on 12 December and seeks to extend the duties of the armed forces in Libya, for an additional 18 months, as of 2 January.

ANKARA (Reuters) -Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that a call by the European Court of Human Rights for the release of Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas was hypocritical and only Turkish courts can rule on his case.

The Grand Chamber of the ECHR ruled on Tuesday that Turkey must immediately release Demirtas, the former leader of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) who has been jailed for more than four years on terrorism-related offenses. It said justification for his detention was cover for limiting pluralism and political debate.

ANKARA (Reuters) -President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that Turkey hopes to “turn a new page” in its ties with the United States and European Union, and that Ankara had been subjected to double standards by both its NATO ally Washington and the bloc.

This month Washington sanctioned Turkey over its acquisition of Russian S-400 missile defences, and the EU also prepared punitive measures over Turkey’s dispute with members Greece and Cyprus over Mediterranean offshore rights. The bloc decided to postpone the measures until March.

21 Dec 2020; MEMO: Turkey's foreign minister lambasted his Greek counterpart Sunday over his controversial remarks to a local newspaper. 

"Dear Niko, here's some friendly advice for the new year -- stop asking for help from others and injuring the Greek people’s dignity," Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Twitter.

21 Dec 2020; AA: Turkey ended a countrywide weekend curfew early Monday as part of measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

The curfew began on Friday at 9 p.m. and ended on Monday at 5 a.m. local time.

In late November, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced new COVID-19 restrictions, including a curfew on weeknights and full weekend curfews.

Some sectors including production, supply, health and agriculture would be exempt from the curfews, said Erdogan.

21 Dec 2020; AA: Turkey began testing passengers arriving from the UK early Monday for a new variant of the coronavirus after health officials in Britain confirmed it was rapidly spreading in the country.

All passengers’ contact details were taken and they are required to self-isolate.

Turkey joined other European countries late Sunday in banning flights from the UK and other countries due to concerns over the new fast-moving coronavirus strain.

21 Dec 2020; AA: A Turkish court on Monday sentenced a former deputy from the opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) to over 20 years in prison for being a member of an armed terrorist group and making propaganda for it twice, according to a judicial source.

20 Dec 2020; AA: Those who threaten Turkey with sanctions will end up disappointed, the nation's president said on Saturday.

"We are determined to put across that Turkey will never hesitate to use its sovereign rights," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at a highway opening.