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☆ Factbox: In Middle East, once improbable ententes set new tone
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Some U.S. allies had concluded their interests are not best served by a highly polarised Middle East, he added. The agreement between leading Sunni Arab power Saudi Arabia and the Shi'ite Islamist government in Tehran could defuse tensions and conflicts such as the Yemen war. Saudi Arabia has turned to China at a time of strain in its historic alliance with the United States. Saudi Arabia took the lead in rebuilding ties in 2021, declaring an end to the boycott of Qatar. Sources say Syria and Saudi Arabia have agreed to reopen embassies.

☆ Getting laid off from PayPal was a blessing in disguise that enabled me to turn my online side hustle into a full-time business
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Alexandra York | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

She started the business as a side hustle but took it full time when she was laid off in February. She described how she scaled the business after losing her job and offered advice for entrepreneurs. El-Amin was laid off in February from her role as a technical product manager at PayPal, alongside roughly 7% of the company's workforce. Her startup, called Flynanced, is a career-development and wealth-building platform for women who work 9-to-5 jobs. Finding product-market fit gave me options to growWhen I started Flynanced in 2020, I didn't think I was going to become an entrepreneur.

"It is not clear whether some citizens are alive or dead in the earthquake zone. Erdogan's AK Party has said it is committed to a free and fair election that respects the will of the people. BALLOT BOX SECURITYOpposition parties and non-governmental organisations say the exodus of more than 3 million people from the disaster zone poses extra concerns. While some 300,000 to 500,000 of them were thought to have changed addresses, many of those who had left the disaster zone had not, added Tiryaki. For Yigit, the earthquake and what he sees as the government's slow response to the disaster weighs on him as he decides how to vote.

☆ Moscow to host Syria, Turkey, Iran, Russia meeting - official sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov speaks with journalists before a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia February 27, 2019. The situation on the ground in Syria would be discussed at the April 3-4 in Moscow, a senior Turkish official said. A previously planned meeting of four countries' deputy foreign ministers scheduled in March was postponed. A senior Iranian foreign ministry official confirmed the meeting in Moscow in the first week of April. Citing Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov, Russian state-owned news agency RIA reported on Monday that the deputy foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey, Iran and Syria may hold consultations in Moscow in early April.

The HDP, parliament's third-biggest party, wants the opposition to back demands for Kurdish rights and other issues. The Kurdish party held talks with Kilicdaroglu on Monday and is expected to announce this week whether it will back him. HDP lawmaker Imam Tascier said Kilicdaroglu had acknowledged the "Kurdish problem", terms reminiscent of language used by Erdogan in earlier years when he was seeking Kurdish support. Now, he said, Erdogan "pushed freedoms, democracy, human rights and the Kurdish problem away with the back of his hand". Yet, legal challenges could derail the role of HDP, which also won almost 12% of the national vote in 2018.

☆ Russia says coordinates meeting with Turkey, Syria, Iran officials - RIA
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

March 21 (Reuters) - Russia is coordinating with Syria, Iran and Turkey on a schedule for a meeting of their deputy foreign ministers, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov told the state RIA news agency on Tuesday. A source from the Turkish foreign ministry told Reuters that a meeting planned for last week was postponed. "We haven't agreed on anything yet, so there's nothing to postpone," Bogdanov was cited as saying. But our colleagues, the Syrians, the Turks, and the Iranians have their work plans and timetables. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Turkey plans to ratify Finland's NATO bid ahead of May polls, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Orhan Coskun | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A senior Turkish official told Reuters that Finland's bid would be approved independently from that of Sweden. Niinisto, who will visit Turkey on March 16-17, said he believed Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will give his blessing to Finland's NATO bid when the two meet. Erdogan indicated that he would send ratification of Finland's NATO membership to parliament soon, saying that he would "keep his promise". After that, we will fulfil our promise," Erdogan told reporters on Wednesday, when asked whether he would send ratification of Finland's NATO bid to Turkish parliament next week. "Positive messages will be given to Finland's president during his visit," the second official said.

[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.

[1/5] The destroyed Habib-i Najjar Mosque is pictured in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Antakya, Turkey February 16, 2023. "What we learn from our elders is that Hatay witnessed seven earthquakes in its history but it was reborn from its ashes. PAINTINGS OF THE SAINTSThe bell tower lies on its side, with clothes placed on top for earthquake victims to take. Among the victims of the Feb. 6 earthquake were Saul Cenudioglu, leader of the Jewish community in Antakya, and his wife, Tuna Cenudioglu. The rabbi said he came to Antakya after the earthquakes to check on the Jewish community and take them to Istanbul.

[1/4] Ibrahim Kurt helps salvage belongings from a collapsed home in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Nurdagi, Turkey, March 5, 2023. This 20-year-long rapid construction came crashing down in just two minutes," said Hasan Bal, 52, a retired teacher who lost 10 immediate relatives in the magnitude 7.8 quake. The initial quake on Feb. 6 tremor sliced directly through Nurdagi, leaving it among the worst hit communities in Turkey's deadliest modern disaster. Residents say cheap credit had helped the town expand, reflecting a nationwide building boom that has defined Erdogan's two decades in power. Aslan said her family is thankful for a furnished container home where they live for now on the outskirts of town.

[1/2] Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, accompanied by IYI Party leader Meral Aksener and Felicity Party leader Temel Karamollaoglu, talks to media following a meeting of the opposition alliance in Ankara, Turkey March 6, 2023. A cost-of-living crisis amid rampant inflation and years of economic turmoil have eroded Erdogan's support, giving Kilicdaroglu another advantage. Recent polling showed Erdogan's support had edged up since last summer thanks to measures including a raise in the minimum wage. The following year, he was elected unopposed as CHP leader after his predecessor's resignation in the wake of scandal. His election fuelled party hopes of a new start, but support for CHP has since failed to surpass about 25%.

☆ In Turkey's quake-devasted city of Antakya, an antiques seller is determined to stay put
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Timour Azhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Close by was a mosaic portrait of Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, old magazines and several Turkish flags. "Even before the earthquake, these chairs were outside, I had items outside to show that we run an antique shop ... In one room, a wall collapsed on top of his collection of Turkish antique glassware. A man who has made a living from old things, Sincan said he took a historical view of the earthquake's devastation. Sincan said he was confident the city would rise again.

There had been conflicting signals over the likely timing of the presidential and parliamentary elections since last month's earthquake, with some suggesting they could be postponed until later in the year or could be held as scheduled on June 18. Erdogan has faced a wave of criticism over his government's handling of the deadliest quake in the nation's modern history. Now he also must contend with criticism over the response to the quake in a region that traditionally backed him. The quake also injured 108,000 people in Turkey. Some two million people were registered as having fled the region, which has been hit by more than 11,000 aftershocks, AFAD said.

☆ Turks protest over government's quake response in stadiums, on streets
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

At a separate demonstration in Istanbul, riot police moved swiftly to detain protesters, who were handcuffed and dragged into police buses. Following the Besiktas fans' protest, Bahceli cancelled his membership of the club, his party announced in a statement. Fans from Istanbul team Fenerbahce chanted similar anti-government slogans during Saturday's match against Konyaspor. "Twenty years of lies and cheating, resign," Fenerbahce fans shouted during their 4-0 win over Konyaspor. Dozens of members and supporters of the far-left opposition party Workers' Party of Turkey were detained in central Istanbul on Sunday at an anti-government protest, the party said.

Overnight, the death toll from the earthquakes, the most powerful of which struck at the dead of night on Feb. 6, rose to 44,128 in Turkey. That took the overall number of deaths in Turkey and neighbouring Syria to more than 50,000. More than 160,000 buildings containing 520,000 apartments collapsed or were severely damaged in Turkey by the disaster, the worst in the country's modern history. Many Turks have expressed outrage at what they see as corrupt building practices and flawed urban developments. Turkey and Armenia are still at odds over the 1.5 million people Armenia says were killed in 1915 by the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor to modern Turkey.

When a fresh quake shook the southern city again on Monday, local media reported that at least three people were killed while retrieving belongings. But because we survived, we are trying to get out whatever is left," said the 28-year-old natural gas pipe welder. Bayrakci and six relatives returned to help their brother retrieve belongings from his apartment. TELEVISIONS AND TOILET PAPERIn another Antakya neighbourhood, Kinan al-Masri hoped to retrieve some savings, passports and birth certificates from his apartment. He had hoped to retrieve some possessions before the authorities demolished the building, he said, but it was too dangerous to enter.

Days after Turkey's worst earthquake in modern history, Erdogan vowed to rebuild the southern disaster zone within a year, an undertaking conservative estimates put at $25 billion and others expect to be far higher. Authorities say more than 380,000 units in 105,794 buildings are in urgent need of demolition or have collapsed, out of 2.5 million structures across the region. "We will rebuild these buildings within one year and hand them back to citizens," he said. They devastated southern Turkey in the dead of winter, with overnight temperatures near freezing, leaving many emergency tents inadequate for the homeless. "FRIENDLY COMPANIES"The bill to rebuild houses, transmission lines and infrastructure is around $25 billion, or 2.5% of GDP, U.S. bank JPMorgan said in a report.

☆ After devastating quake, thousands of Syrians return home to war zone
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Khalil Ashawi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"I haven't seen my family for four years, as I live alone in Turkey," Qramo said after crossing into Syria. Qramo, who had been living in the city of Gaziantep, said people were staying in tents in the cold and rain. In Gaziantep, Qramo said police had moved Syrians out of a mosque where they were sheltering to make way for Turkish families. Several Turks in other quake-hit towns and cities have accused Syrians of robbing damaged shops and homes. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck before dawn 11 days ago, killing more than 38,000 people in Turkey and 5,800 in Syria.

☆ Turkey rages at shoddy construction after 'earthquake-proof' homes topple
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Ali Kucukgocmen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/5] A cat stands on a destroyed street, in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake, in Antakya, Turkey February 17, 2023. It was said to be earthquake safe, but you can see the result," said 47-year-old jeweller Hamza Alpaslan. Turkey's Urbanisation Ministry estimates 84,700 buildings have collapsed or are severely damaged. The Urbanisation Ministry said documents would be moved to the ministry archive in the city and were stored digitally. BUILDING AMNESTYSector officials have said some 50% of the total 20 million buildings in Turkey contravene building codes.

☆ From 'relief' to 'not too devastated': Why some laid-off workers aren't rushing to find new jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Jennifer Liu | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That's how some recently laid-off workers view losing their jobs, despite the era of loud layoffs and ever-constant recession fears. She figured she'd be let go from her social media job at Attentive, an e-commerce startup, once her visa expired in April. Calista Tee, 28, plans to use her post-layoff time to build her social media marketing brand on TikTok and beyond. It's since taken off, and in 2022 she matched 80% of her full-time income. Without the security of full-time income, Tee plans to make small tweaks to her spending habits.

☆ 'A crane, for God's sake': Inside the struggles of Turkey's earthquake response
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Many in Turkey say more people could have survived the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the south of the country and neighboring Syria a week ago if the emergency response had been faster and better organized. Two experts consulted by Reuters partly blamed the delays on the centralisation of emergency response under AFAD by President Tayyip Erdogan's government. U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths, speaking in Kahramanmaras on Saturday, called Turkey's disaster response "extraordinary" given the quake's historic size. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said he commissioned the report precisely to improve Turkey's disaster response. But they have generally seen the state's emergency response as effective.

[1/7] Children draw at a makeshift shelter that hosts about 250 people, half of whom are children, following the the deadly earthquake in Mersin, Turkey, February 13, 2023. Anti-Syrian slogans such as "We don't want Syrians," "Immigrants should be deported," and "No longer welcome" trended on Twitter. TENSIONS ON THE RISETurkey is home to nearly 4 million Syrian refugees, having opened its borders to those fleeing the civil war that erupted there in 2011. Turkey has spent more than $40 billion since 2011 accommodating the refugees at a time of intense economic hardship in the country. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday a new influx of refugees from Syria to Turkey was "out of the question".

GAZIANTEP, Turkey—Aid poured into Turkey Friday, the fifth day after earthquakes killed more than 22,000 people, as Turks and Syrians gathered for traditional prayers, buried the dead, and reflected on their loss. In the Turkish capital, Ankara, one of the country’s most senior clerics, Ali Erbaş, led prayer, as rescue teams continued to find survivors in the rubble and aid agencies sheltered thousands of displaced people on both sides of the Turkish-Syrian border.

☆ Turkey, Syria Mourn Losses as Earthquake Death Toll Climbs Above 21,000
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Vildan Ay Döşlüoğlu | Rory Jones | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

ISTANBUL—Five days after earthquakes killed more than 21,700 people and left tens of thousands injured and homeless, Turks and Syrians prepared to gather for traditional Friday prayers, where sermons are expected to reflect on the nations’ loss and grief. In the Turkish capital, Ankara, one of the country’s most senior clerics, Ali Erbaş, will lead prayer, as rescue teams continue to sift through rubble and aid agencies begin feeding and sheltering thousands of displaced people across both sides of the Turkish-Syrian border.

☆ Death Toll in Turkey and Syria Tops 20,000 as Hope Dwindles for Finding Quake Survivors
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Thomas Grove | Rory Jones | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

ELBISTAN, Turkey—The death toll in the earthquakes that rocked Turkey and Syria passed 20,000, as hopes dwindled of finding people still alive under collapsed buildings and rescuers focused on recovering bodies and finding shelter for survivors. Late Thursday, Turkey’s disaster agency increased its tally of the dead to 17,134, surpassing a traumatic 1999 earthquake that is seared into the memory of millions of Turks and helped reshape Turkish politics for decades. Authorities in Syria have reported 3,317 deaths, taking the total toll across the two countries to 20,451.

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