Ankara

Turkish Cypriot paper attacked over Syria 'occupation' headline

Nicosia - Muslimchronicle

Hundreds of protesters Monday demonstrated outside the offices of a Turkish Cypriot newspaper that aroused the ire of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by slamming Ankara's operation inside Syria as an "occupation". The Afrika newspaper -- which is often anti-Ankara and staunchly critical of Erdogan -- wrote on its front page Sunday: "One more occupation from Turkey." This was an ironic reference to the 1974Read more

Turkey detains 24 over 'terror propaganda'

Istanbul - Muslimchronicle

Turkish authorities have detained 24 people on suspicion of disseminating "terror propaganda" against Turkey's military operation inside Syria, the interior ministry said on Monday. The suspects are being held in a nationwide crackdown on those posting social media messages deemed to be supportive of terror groups, the state-run Anadolu news agency said. The arrests come after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged nationalRead more

Turkish soldier killed in Syria operation

Ankara - Muslimchronicle

A Turkish soldier was killed as the country pressed its offensive against Kurdish militia targets in northern Syria, the army said, confirming the operation's first Turkish fatality on its third day. "One of our heroic soldiers was martyred during clashes" with Kurdish militants from the People's Protection Units (YPG) militia southeast of the Turkish border town of Gulbaba in Kilis,Read more

Turkish troops shell Afrin to oust US-backed Kurdish militia

Istanbul - Muslimchronicle

Turkey on Friday started shelling the Syrian town of Afrin held by a US-backed Kurdish militia that Ankara considers “terrorists” in a move to oust them, the defense minister said. The Turkish government has repeatedly warned that a full-scale operation against Syrian towns controlled by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia, including Afrin, is imminent after the US saidRead more

Turkey seeks Russian approval for air campaign against Syrian Afrin

Ankara - Muslimchronicle

Turkey dispatched its military chief to Moscow on Thursday, seeking approval for an air campaign in Syria’s Kurdish-controlled Afrin region, although Damascus warned it could shoot down any Turkish planes in its skies. Turkey’s foreign minister said the Moscow trip by Chief of Staff Hulusi Akar was part of talks with both Russia and Iran, the two main backers ofRead more

Erdogan vows to uproot 'terror nests'

Ankara - Muslimchronicle

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday vowed Turkey would soon begin an operation against towns in Syria controlled by Kurdish militia, calling the areas "nests" of terror. The Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia controls key Syrian northern towns including Manbij and Afrin and is an ally of the US but Ankara accuses the group of being a terror organisation. "Tomorrow, (or)Read more

Erdogan threatens to 'nip in the bud' new US-backed Syria force

Ankara - Muslimchronicle

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday threatened to thwart the creation of a new US-backed 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria before it was even set up. "America has acknowledged it is in the process of creating a terror army on our border. What we have to do is nip this terror army in the bud," Erdogan said,Read more

Turkish passenger plane skids off

ISTANBUL - Muslimchronicle

A Pegasus Airlines flight skidded off the runway of a Turkish coastal airport and plunged down a steep slope on the edge of the Black Sea, ending up only meters from the water’s edge. None of the 168 people on board was hurt in the incident, but passengers spoke of panic as the aircraft tipped nose first towards the sea. Just afterRead more