A few short years ago, the mass resignation of the top echelon of Turkey’s military leadership might be interpreted as the equivalent of that moment, on a beach, when the waves suddenly roll so far out to sea that thousands of yards of sand are revealed: Any coastal dweller will tell you that’s the moment to run for the hills because a …
Turkey
The Flotilla Sequel: This Time with Diplomacy
For a while there it was looking like Rocky II. Same story, much less reason to watch. A year after Israel shot itself in the foot by killing nine Turkish activists on the high sea off Gaza, everyone had taken their places and appeared intent on reprising familiar roles. The Israel Defense Forces was talking tough: “We’ve got some …
More Signs That Libya’s Conflict is Heading for a Political Solution
The news that France has begun supplying arms to Libyan rebels is likely to deepen discord within the NATO alliance, which is in charge of the 103-day Western military campaign, but has refrained from giving direct support to the rebels given that the mission was authorized by a U.N. Security Council resolution aimed at protecting …
Turkey Inspires Islamists and Liberals, But in Very Different Ways
Everybody wants a piece of Turkey. On my sweep through Egypt and Tunisia, virtually everyone I met invoked the nation that bestrides the Bosphorus as one they’d like their own country to emulate. The Turks had just had a general election, and Arabs had watched it unfold on Al Jazeera and other TV channels. The vote was clean, mostly …
In Chaos-Ravaged Syria, Truth Gets Tossed Out the Window
In two new articles for TIME, Rania Abouzeid touches upon the myths and shifting perspectives of those caught up in the ongoing Syrian conflict. First, she details her quest to confirm reports of mass rapes and sexual assaults in Syria by interviewing refugees in Turkish camps. Although nearly every refugee interviewed was able to relate …
With Syria on Fire, Turkey and Israel Move to Avoid a New Fiasco at Sea
It’s hard to overstate the zesty potency of the words “Mavi Marmara” in Turkey. Giant posters on Istanbul’s busiest streets trumpet the impending return to sea of the ferry that Israeli commandos intercepted in the Mediterranean a year ago, killing nine activists en route to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip. The botched raid …
Turkey’s Prime Minister Erdogan Faces Many Challenges in Third Term
TIME editor Rana Foroohar examines the political and economic climate that gave Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan a third term as prime minister. Known as both a populist and a firm economic leader, Erdogan has achieved nearly unprecedented success in Turkey’s complex political environment. But although he has thus far handled an expanding …
An Exile Among Refugees on the Turkish Border
In a recent story for TIME, Rania Abouzeid tells the story a 61-year old Syrian exile living in southern Turkey who, after leaving the political world of Syria more than 20 years ago, has entered into a new role as a “Father of Knights,” or “Abu al-Forsan” in Arabic. His knights are approximately 70 injured wounded Syrian refugees who he …
Never Mind Political Risk, Who Can Afford a Syria Intervention?
There are many reasons why Western military action in Syria remains unlikely despite the Assad regime’s sustained brutality against its opponents, and the burgeoning refugee crisis along the Turkish border. For one thing, Western powers remain fearful of the consequences of toppling President Bashar al-Assad in what is fast evolving into …
Turkey’s Vote Is a Win for Democracy
Pelin Turgut examines for TIME the new political environment in the wake of Turkey’s elections on Sunday. Critics decry Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s perceived authoritarian leadership style, but his ruling Justice and Development Party, a pro-business and moderately Islamist party, won Sunday’s elections with 50% of the vote, …