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☆ Turkey’s main opposition party wins major cities in elections blow to Erdogan
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Scott Mclean | Mohammed Tawfeeq | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Istanbul CNN —Turkey’s local elections on Sunday marked a major defeat for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party, as the main opposition party claimed victory in key cities including Istanbul and Ankara. After his presidential victory, Erdogan had his sights on reclaiming cities lost to the opposition in 2019. Preliminary official results showed the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) had won 49 out of 81 municipalities including 14 out of 30 urban areas in the country, Turkey’s High Electoral Council said. The AK Party lost 10 Istanbul districts to rivals in the latest election. “Unfortunately, we could not get the result we wanted and hoped for in the local election test,” Erdogan said in a speech delivered Monday at AK Party headquarters in Ankara.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Ekrem, Mansur Yavas, Tugay, ” Imamoglu, ”, Beyoglu, ” Erdogan Organizations: Istanbul CNN —, Development, Party, Republican People’s Party, Electoral, CHP, TRT, Nationwide, “, Erdogan, Welfare Party, AK Party –, AK Party Locations: Istanbul, Ankara, Turkey, Izmir, “ Istanbul, Sunday’s

☆ Erdogan's rival leads in Istanbul in high-stakes Turkey vote
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu led a challenger from President Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party in local elections on Sunday, an initial count showed, in a potential boost for the Turkish opposition's effort to reassert itself as a political force. In another blow to Erdogan, in the nation's second-largest city Ankara, incumbent opposition mayor Mansur Yavas declared victory over his AK Party (AKP) challenger less than three hours after polls closed in the nationwide municipal vote. The nationwide local elections are seen by analysts as a gauge of both Erdogan's support and the opposition's durability. Erdogan, who has led Turkey for more than two decades, campaigned hard for his party to reclaim control of Istanbul from rival Imamoglu, the incumbent mayor and potential future presidential challenger. According to official results based on 41.43% of ballot boxes opened, Imamoglu had 50% support compared with 41.26% for AK Party (AKP) challenger Murat Kurum, a former minister in Erdogan's national government.

Persons: Ekrem Imamoglu, Tayyip Erdogan's, Erdogan, Mansur Yavas, Imamoglu, Murat Kurum Organizations: Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party, AK Party, Anadolu Agency, Republican People's Party Locations: Istanbul, Turkish, Ankara, Turkey, Izmir, Bursa, Antalya, Adana

☆ Nearly 300 abducted schoolchildren released by gunmen in Nigeria, governor says
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Sophie Jeong | Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Nearly 300 schoolchildren kidnapped in Nigeria earlier this month have been released, the governor of the country’s Kaduna state said in a post on X on Sunday. “The abducted Kuriga school children are released unharmed,” Uba Sani said, without providing further details. Some students were rescued but 287 of them had remained with the kidnappers – around 100 were from primary school and the rest from secondary school. Kaduna state, which borders the Nigerian capital Abuja to the southwest, has grappled with recurring incidents of kidnappings for ransom by bandits and has witnessed several mass abductions in recent years. This is a developing story and will be updated.

Persons: “, ” Uba Sani, Sani, Bola Tinubu, ”, Mansur Hassan, Nuhu Ribadu, ” Sani, Mariya Knight Organizations: CNN, Secondary School, country’s National, Nigerian Army Locations: Nigeria, Kaduna, Kuriga, Kaduna’s Chikun, Abuja, Princewill

☆ Gunmen who kidnapped 287 school children in Nigeria say they will kill them all if $622,000 ransom not paid
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Abuja, Nigeria CNN —Gunmen who kidnapped at least 287 school children in Nigeria last Thursday have demanded a ransom of 1 billion naira ($621,848) and threatened to kill all of the students if their demands are not met, a member of the local community told CNN on Wednesday. About 100 of them are from the primary school and the rest from the secondary school. In 2021, at least 140 students were kidnapped by armed men from a private secondary school. The incident came just months after around 20 students from a private university in Chikun’s Kasarami village were abducted by gunmen. Five of those students were killed after a ransom deadline was not met, family members told CNN at the time.

Persons: Nigeria CNN — Gunmen, “, ”, Aminu Jibril, Jibril, Mansur Hassan, Uba Sani, ” Sani Organizations: Nigeria CNN —, CNN, Secondary School Locations: Abuja, Nigeria, Kuriga, Kaduna, Kaduna’s Chikun, Chikun’s Kasarami

☆ Nigeria: At least 287 school children kidnapped by armed gunmen in northwestern Kaduna State
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —At least 287 school children, some as young as eight years old, are being held by gunmen who raided their school in Nigeria’s northwestern Kaduna State early Thursday, a police spokesperson told CNN Friday. Some of the students were rescued but 287 of them remain with the kidnappers, Hassan said. “Students were kidnapped from the school premises on Thursday morning around 8:00 am (local time). Governor of Kaduna state, Uba Sani said in a statement Thursday that his government was “doing everything possible to ensure the safe return of the pupils and students” kidnapped. In 2021, at least at least 140 students were kidnapped by armed men from a private secondary school.

Persons: Mansur Hassan said, Hassan, ” Hassan, Uba Sani, ”, Sani Organizations: CNN, Secondary School, “, Reuters, Washington Post, National Security, Security, Amnesty Locations: Nigeria’s, Kaduna State, Kuriga, Kaduna’s Chikun, Kaduna, Nigeria, Abuja, Chikun’s Kasarami

☆ Gunmen kill seven worshippers in Nigeria's northern Kaduna state
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-02 | by ( Ahmed Kingimi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria, Sept 2 (Reuters) - At least seven worshippers were killed in an attack on a mosque by a gang of armed men in Nigeria's northwest Kaduna state, police said on Saturday. The attack, in the remote Saya village of the Ikara local government area of the state, occurred late on Friday as worshippers gathered for prayer, Kaduna police spokesman Mansur Haruna said by phone. A resident of the village, Haruna Ismail, told Reuters by phone: "Five people were shot inside the mosque while praying and the other two were shot within the village community." Gangs of heavily armed men have wreaked havoc across Nigeria's northwest in the past three years, kidnapping thousands, killing hundreds and making it unsafe in some areas to travel by road or to farm. Reporting by Ahmed Kingimi; Writing by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mansur Haruna, Haruna, Haruna Ismail, Ahmed Kingimi, Elisha Bala, David Holmes Organizations: Reuters, Thomson Locations: MAIDUGURI, Nigeria, Nigeria's, Kaduna

Mr. Putin himself is under an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children, as is his commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova. The two entities placed under sanctions are a Russian-owned camp and an organization that has overseen Ukrainian children who were sent to a camp in the Chechen Republic. “Children are literally being ripped from their homes in the year 2023 by a country sitting in this very chamber,” Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said. Some are pressured into accepting Russian citizenship, and others have been adopted by Russian families, Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said. “You will hear Russian officials say that their transfers of children are part of humanitarian evacuations,” Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said on Thursday.

Persons: Ramzan Kadyrov, Aymani Nesievna, Kadyrova, reeducation, Vladimir V, Putin, Mr, Maria Lvova, Biden, ”, “ It’s, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Ms, Thomas, ARTEK, AKF, Galina Anatolevna Pyatykh, Irina Anatolyevna Ageeva, Irina Aleksandrovna Cherkasova, Mansur Mussaevich Soltaev, Magomedovich Khuchiev, Konstantin Albertovich Fedorenko, Alievich, Olena Oleksandrivna Shapurova, Vladimir Vladislavovich Kovalenko, Vladimir Dmitrievich Nechaev, “ Organizations: State Department, Kremlin, International, Court, Ukraine, Security, U.S ., Federal, Educational Institute International Children Center, Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation, The State Department, Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Youth Army Locations: Russia, Russian, United States, Ukraine, Chechen, Chechen Republic ., U.S, Crimea, Chechen Republic of Russia, Belgorod, Russia’s Kaluga, Russia’s Rostov, Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia, Sevastopol, Crimean

☆ Russia-Ukraine War U.S. Officials Say It Appears Likely Putin Ordered Prigozhin Killed
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Victoria Kim | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

Mr. Putin himself is under an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children, as is his commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova. Seven of the people targeted by the new sanctions are Russian officials, and the other four, including Ms. Kadyrova, have ties to the camps. “Children are literally being ripped from their homes in the year 2023 by a country sitting in this very chamber,” Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said. Some are pressured into accepting Russian citizenship, and others have been adopted by Russian families, Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said. “You will hear Russian officials say that their transfers of children are part of humanitarian evacuations,” Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said on Thursday.

☆ Prominent female Russian journalist and lawyer brutally attacked in Chechnya
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Yelena Milashina, a well-known journalist for the Novaya Gazeta newspaper, was travelling to the Chechen capital Grozny from the local airport with Alexander Nemov, a lawyer, when they were attacked. There was no immediate comment from Ramzan Kadyrov, a close ally of Putin who rules Chechnya, a mainly Muslim southern region. But Soltayev, the Chechen rights official, was cited by the RIA news agency as calling the attack "a provocation" against the Chechen authorities. DEATH THREATSSome Russian lawmakers and officials in Moscow condemned the attack and demanded an investigation. Kadyrov denies rights abuses, saying such allegations are fabricated by ill-wishers trying to discredit Chechnya and its authorities.

Persons: Yelena Milashina, Alexander Nemov, Milashina, Mansur Soltayev, Nemov, Vladimir Putin, Ramzan Kadyrov, Putin, Mokhmad, Kadyrov, Zarema, Musayeva, Dmitry Muratov, Muratov, Andrew Osborn, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: Novaya Gazeta, Kremlin, RIA, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Russian, Chechnya, Grozny, Moscow, Russia, Soviet, Milashina, Chechen

☆ Turkey election rivals both claim early lead, but runoff is likely
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Supporters of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attend a rally ahead of the May 14 presidential and parliamentary elections, in Istanbul, Turkey May 12, 2023. Turkey appears headed for a presidential election runoff, with the parties of Tayyip Erdogan and opposition rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu claiming the lead. Early results put Erdogan comfortably ahead, but as the count continued his advantage eroded, with a runoff on May 28 beckoning. Ankara's opposition mayor Mansur Yavas said a count by his party suggested Kilicdaroglu was ahead with 47.42%, while Erdogan had 46.48%. His government's slow response to a devastating earthquake in southeast Turkey that killed 50,000 people added to voters' dismay.

☆ The Turkey candidates for president and other key figures
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Only three candidates remain in the race for president after Muharrem Ince, representing a small party, withdrew. CHP LEADER KEMAL KILICDAROGLUKilicdaroglu, 74, head of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), was named the six-party opposition alliance's presidential candidate in March. Previously a staunch opponent of Erdogan, Bahceli's Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) began to work with the president and his AKP after a 2016 attempted coup. OPPOSITION FIGURES:IYI PARTY LEADER MERAL AKSENERFormer interior minister Meral Aksener, 66, leads the second-largest party in the opposition alliance, the centrist and nationalist IYI Party. ANKARA MAYOR MANSUR YAVASNationalist politician and lawyer Mansur Yavas, 67, defeated the AKP's Ankara mayoral candidate 2019 as the CHP candidate backed by an opposition alliance.

☆ Factbox: Key players in Turkey's election campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Turkey's longest-serving leader logged more than a dozen election victories and survived an attempted coup in 2016. CHP LEADER KEMAL KILICDAROGLUKilicdaroglu, 74, head of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), was named the six-party opposition alliance's presidential candidate in March. HOMELAND PARTY LEADER MUHARREM INCEFormer physics teacher and headmaster Muharrem Ince, 58, is seen as having little chance of becoming president. OPPOSITION FIGURES:IYI PARTY LEADER MERAL AKSENERFormer interior minister Meral Aksener, 66, leads the second-largest party in the opposition alliance, the centrist and nationalist IYI Party. ANKARA MAYOR MANSUR YAVASNationalist politician and lawyer Mansur Yavas, 67, defeated the AKP's Ankara mayoral candidate 2019 as the CHP candidate backed by an opposition alliance.

☆ Saddam Hussein's yachts were once signs of luxury. Now, one is a wrecked picnic spot for fishermen and the other was almost turned into a hotel.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Saddam Hussein's yachts were once luxurious signs of the dictator's power. The 'Al Mansur,' Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's private yacht, lies at the dockside in central Basra April 10, 2003. Iraq stepped in and courts decided the "Bashrah Breeze" belonged to the government. In 2018, reports that "Bashrah Breeze" would be made into a hotel for pilots made international headlines. The 'Bashrah Breeze' superyacht owned by Saddam Hussein.

☆ Saddam's rusting yacht serves as picnic spot for Iraqi fishermen
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"I can’t believe that this belonged to Saddam and now I'm the one moving around it," he said. But it was targeted by U.S.-led forces, and later capsized in the Shatt al-Arab waterway as it fell into decay. In the turmoil that followed Saddam’s downfall, the yacht was stripped bare and looted, with everything from its chandeliers and furniture to parts of its metal structure removed. One of three yachts owned by Saddam, the yacht could accommodate up to 200 guests and was equipped with a helipad. U.S. officials estimated in 2003 that Saddam and his family may have amassed up to $40 billion in ill-gotten funds.

[1/5] Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan meets with people in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras, Turkey February 8, 2023. "The earthquake definitely changes our opinion because the first responders and tents were very late to arrive," he said. How big a challenge Erdogan faces is difficult to determine, given the lack of polling in the region. One party official said they would "re-direct" residents' focus to efforts to rebuild and stress no one but Erdogan could do this quickly. The region voted 65% or more for the AKP and its nationalist ally the MHP in the last election in 2018.

Under a new proposal following a weekend of political intrigue, two popular mayors would serve as vice presidents should the opposition win in the presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14. With polls showing a close race, the vote is the biggest challenge Erdogan has faced in two decades in power. Instead, Aksener proposed that either Ekrem Imamoglu or Mansur Yavas, mayors of Istanbul and Ankara, be the candidate. "She has conveyed the proposal that the two mayors serve as executive vice presidents," Zorlu said. The opposition has failed in previous national votes to pose a serious challenge to Erdogan, whose AKP came to power in 2002.

☆ Turkey's opposition alliance to meet after split over election candidate
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ISTANBUL, March 4 (Reuters) - Leaders of Turkey's opposition alliance were expected to meet on Saturday after one of the group's main parties quit the bloc amid disagreement over who should run for president in a national election scheduled for May. The public split on Friday followed months of simmering discord in the alliance and was seen by analysts as a blow to opposition hopes of unseating President Tayyip Erdogan. She said that at a presidential candidate selection meeting this week, five parties in the alliance proposed Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP), as their candidate. According to Kilicdaroglu's daily schedule, the leaders of opposition alliance will meet at 1400 GMT. However, analysts said the opposition disagreement benefited the ruling alliance of Erdogan and his nationalist ally MHP.

Speaking at party headquarters in Ankara, the leader of Turkey's right-wing IYI Party, Meral Aksener, said the other five parties in the alliance had put forward Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP), as their presidential candidate. But Aksener said her party, the second biggest in the alliance, would not "bow down" to pressure to accept him. "It is no longer a platform through which potential candidates can be discussed but a table that works to rubber-stamp a single candidate," she said. "Just like over the past 20 years, the opposition turned out to be President Tayyip Erdogan’s greatest asset," Piccoli wrote. "With the main opposition bloc in disarray, Erdogan is now much better positioned to prevail on 14 May."

☆ Some Taliban fighters are sick of the 9 to 5 grind, complaining they've been sucked into urban life by working desk jobs to run Afghanistan
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Five young Taliban fighters described how their lives are now consumed by work and Twitter. In this picture taken on November 23, 2021, Taliban fighters ride on bumper cars. Last year, it was tolerable but in the last few months, it's become more and more congested," he told Samim. Now, if we complain, or don't come to work, or disobey the rules, they cut our salary," he told Samim. Salam, along with several other Taliban fighters interviewed, felt the public had also stopped respecting them.

☆ It’s a Witch! It’s a Pilgrim! It’s a Y2K Raver! Why Square-Toe Shoes Are Back in Style.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-24 | by ( Faran Krentcil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Instead, she singles out a pair of square-toe shoes by French brand Courrèges. The digital-trend tracker Semrush notes a 2,500% jump in web searches for “square toed shoes for women” between July 2021 and July 2022. Meanwhile, the online shopping platform Lyst features over 24,500 square-toe women’s shoes including a faux-leather update of Ms. Cleveland’s Courrèges pair and other Judy Jetson-ish riffs from Dries Van Noten and Rupert Sanderson. The trend also points to ballet’s pointe shoes, which inspired recent versions by Sandy Liang, Mansur Gavriel and Khaite. Actress Selma Blair, meanwhile, says her square-toe loafers from Salvatore Ferragamo are “the grandma shoes that I love.” (She currently sports them with cuffed khakis in her new Gap campaign.)

☆ It’s a Witch! It’s a Pilgrim! It’s a Y2K Raver! Why Square-Toe Shoes Are Back in Style
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Faran Krentcil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Instead, she singles out a pair of square-toe shoes by French brand Courrèges. The digital-trend tracker SEM Rush notes a 2,500% jump in web searches for “square toed shoes for women” between July 2021 and July 2022. Meanwhile, the online shopping platform Lyst features over 24,500 square-toe women’s shoes including a faux-leather update of Ms. Cleveland’s Courrèges pair and other Judy Jetson-ish riffs from Dries Van Noten and Rupert Sanderson. The trend also points to ballet’s pointe shoes, which inspired recent versions by Sandy Liang, Mansur Gavriel and Khaite. Actress Selma Blair, meanwhile, says her square-toe loafers from Salvatore Ferragamo are “the grandma shoes that I love.” (She currently sports them with cuffed khakis in her new Gap campaign.)

☆ Istanbulul mai are apă pentru doar 45 de zile, iar alte mari orașe din Turcia ar putea rămâne fără apă în următoarele luni
▼ + stars: | 2021-01-13 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +2 min

Marile orașe din Turcia ar putea rămâne fără apă în următoarele luni, iar Istanbul mai are apă pentru doar 45 de zile, scrie The Guardian. Primarul din Ankara, Mansur Yavaş, a anunțat luna aceasta că orașul său mai are apă pentru încă 110 zile în baraje și rezervoare. Cu toate acestea, după câștigarea alegerilor, administrația sa a realizat că problemele apărute în timpul construcțiilor vor întârzia proiectul mai mulți ani. Dacă nu plouă în Melen nu putem aduce apă de acolo", a declarat İmamoğlu. În Izmir, autoritățile locale se pregătesc împotriva lipsei de apă săpând peste 100 de puțuri noi, reciclând apele uzate și reparând conductele vechi pentru a reduce pierderile.

Persons: Mansur Organizations: Guardian, The, Municipalitatea Locations: Turcia, Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Konya, Edirne

☆ Istanbul mai are apă pentru doar 45 de zile, iar alte mari orașe din Turcia ar putea rămâne fără apă în următoarele luni
▼ + stars: | 2021-01-13 | by ( ) www.jurnal.md time to read: +3 min

Primarul din Ankara, Mansur Yavaş, a anunțat luna aceasta că orașul său mai are apă pentru încă 110 zile în baraje și rezervoare. „În loc să se concentreze pe măsuri care să mențină cererea de apă sub control, Turcia insistă să-și extindă rezerva de apă construind baraje. Turcia a construit sute de baraje în ultimii 20 de ani”, a declarat Dr. Akgün İlhan, expert în administrarea apelor la Centrul pentru politici din Istanbul. Turcia a prioritizat de mult timp dezvoltarea economică în dauna îngrijirii mediului înconjurător. Dacă nu plouă în Melen nu putem aduce apă de acolo”, a declarat İmamoğlu.

Persons: Mansur, Dr, Akgün, Ümit Organizations: Universitatea Sabancı, Municipalitatea Locations: Istanbul, Turcia, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, Konya, Edirne, Bosfor

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