Cyprus-Forum.com

[repulsewarrior]

...my esteem for the Turkish People has been profoundly changed since the Gezi protests, i shall always remember the standing man, and the graffiti tells me that modern, is modern, in Turkey. more dialog is needed. and in my mind, because of the lack of any significant contribution by the opposition (in Government), to the current debate is as telling, because we can assume that their supporters question the authority of the status quo, or a return to the kind of Government that was before. what with the no friends policy, and the billions that have been committed to building projects of the century all over Turkey, it is a country ripe for the change when bubbles burst.

"Turks", like "Greeks" have had it easy for too long. we can see the truth in the old adage, power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

[bill cobbett]

Two papers carry stories that connect Turkish PM Erdogan indirectly with the the al-Qaeda terrorist network through Saudi businessman Yasin al-Qadi.

This chap, al-Qadi was designated by the U.S. to be a “specially designated global terrorist” and was placed under sanctions by the U.N. and the EU as a suspected associate of al-Qaeda.

A bit from Zaman...

"... Turkey may be placed in a difficult position in the international arena as Yasin al-Qadi, a Saudi Arabian businessman who is on the US Treasury Department's “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” list, has entered Turkey multiple times escorted by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's protective detail and without a passport or visa, the Taraf daily reported on Monday. ... "

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-335341- ... ports.html

This piece from Hurriyet...

"... As the corruption probe against the AKP gets deeper and wider, the content and implications of the investigation are becoming more and more international. After the first wave tackled the Iran-Halkbank-gold triangle, the second wave of the investigation last week focused on Syria and Saudi Arabia to the extent that the domestic aspect of the investigation has become almost a small part of the whole picture.

It was first the Iran angle which gave the ongoing probe its regional character. With the arrest of the CEO of the Turkish state-owned bank Halkbank, the “gas-for gold” trade between Turkey and Iran has come to occupy the center of discussions. Now it seems that the investigation also has a Syria and Saudi Arabia angle. The allegedly al-Qaeda affiliated Saudi businessmen, Yasin al-Qadi, emerged as the main character in the second wave of the graft probe last week. Right after the 9/11 attacks, al-Qadi was designated by the U.S. to be a “specially designated global terrorist” and was placed under sanctions by the U.N. and the EU as a suspected associate of al-Qaeda. He is among 41 suspects who were issued arrest warrants last week. Yet the police refused to comply with the order. Allegedly al-Qadi has engaged in trade with many Turkish businessmen including Prime Minister’s close relatives and his funds and charities have been later used to support al-Qaeda affiliates and other radical Islamist groups operating in Syria like the Nusra Front. ..."

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/asymme ... sCatID=466

So boys and girls, don't anyone make the mistake of thinking this story is limited to corruption over some construction permits, to a few shoe-boxes stuffed with petty cash or even to a split between Erdy and Gulen.

It extends to massive sanctions busting of mega-billions with the Turkish Gold for Iranian Oil saga; circumventions that may have created a slush fund to finance some pretty nasty groups in Syria.

[Get Real!]

Not long to go before the madman rolls out the tanks and a dozen “friends of Turkey” arm the opposition.

I suggest the first “Friends of Turkey” conference be held in Cyprus for old time’s sake.

I expect such caring friends as Armenia, Cyprus, Israel, Greece, Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and special guest star… Kurdistan, to contribute towards everlasting peace in Turkey even if it means turning every Turkish city into rubble… because freedom must always come first!

[bill cobbett]

Further allegations of Turkish support for a terrorist group with this report which starts...

"... Turkey replaces Iran as primary funding source for Hamas

Israel’s intelligence community has determined that Turkey became the lead financier of Hamas.

Israeli sources said Turkey replaced Iran as the leading financial backer of Hamas since 2012.

The sources said the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has overseen the transfer of up to $250 million a year to Hamas, particularly the Islamic regime in the Gaza Strip.

“The money is channeled mostly through private sources, but with full coordination with Erdogan and his aides,” a source said.

The sources said Turkey has coordinated the cash transfers with another ally of Hamas. They said Erdogan was working with Qatar, which has been hosting the Hamas leadership since its expulsion from Syria in late 2011..."

http://www.worldtribune.com/2013/12/22/ ... for-hamas/

[Tim Drayton]

My translation of an article in Cumhuriyet newspaper about the next steps the AKP government is expected to take to block the investigation into its corruption.

The ‘necessary action’ is being taken to stifle the investigations

The AKP government, which has gone on the counterattack in the wake of the corruption and bribery operation, is preparing, now that the Judicial Police Rules have been stayed by the Council of State and an announcement has been made by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors, to submit a bill or proposed law to parliament.

It is said that the provisions of the Judicial Police Rules that were stayed by the Council of State may be transferred into the Police Duties and Authorities Law (PDRL) or the Code of Criminal Procedure (CCP) and an amendment may be made to the law in question to bar the making of announcements by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors. It is noted that certain amendments may also implemented to the Council of State Bill that is on the agenda of the parliamentary General Assembly. Prime-Minister Erdoğan had said following the Council of State’s decision that the necessary action would be taken.

The government, in amending the Judicial Police Rules, imposed the duty on the judicial police to immediately inform the republic chief prosecution and the senior police chief, and, at the investigation stage, on the republic prosecutor to immediately inform the republic chief prosecutor, of reports or complaints made to them about a crime, events that they are dealing with, persons apprehended and measures taken. With the Council of State having stayed the said amendment, the government is preparing to transfer these provisions to the CCP or PDRL. Article 164 entitled “judicial police and its duties” of the CCP lays down the provision, “Investigation procedures shall principally be assigned to the judicial police in line with the republic prosecutor’s orders and instructions. Judicial police functionaries shall fulfil the republic prosecutor’s orders concerning judicial tasks.” It is said that the duty for the judicial police to inform the republic chief prosecution and the senior police chief of the procedures that they perform may be appended to this article. Articles 160 and 161 lay down the duties and authorities of republic prosecutors. There is no provision in the articles for prosecutors to inform the republic chief prosecution of the investigations they are undertaking. The word is that the government may append to the article a provision imposing a duty to inform. The government, annoyed at the announcement by thirteen members of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors that the Judicial Police Rules were in breach of the constitution, cannot implement an amendment of the law as there is a detailed provision in the constitution whereby an investigation may be initiated into the members in question by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors the at the behest of the relevant chamber. However, Minister of Justice Bekir Bozdağ has in a letter assumed the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors’ authority to make announcements. It is said that the government may make amendment to the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors Law to circumvent any debate in this matter. The possible restructuring of the Council of State and the establishment of new chambers at the Council of State and the bill to restructure the Joint Administrative Proceedings Chambers is on the agenda of the parliamentary General Assembly. The word is that the government may make certain amendments to the bill in the wake of the stay of execution of the Judicial Police Rules.

http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/2428 ... piyor.html

[Tim Drayton]

AKP Burdur Member of Parliament Hasan Hami Yıldırım has just announced his resignation from the party (31 December).

http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/2442 ... daha_.html

[Tim Drayton]

Ten defendants have been acquitted from the charge that, in burning a picture of Prime-Minister Erdoğan along with an American flag in Ankara on 1 May, they defamed the latter. The court ruled that “the act was performed for the purpose of criticising the Justice and Development Party’s policies and especially its policies conducted in conjunction with the USA.”

http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/2428 ... degil.html

[bill cobbett]

Al-monitor goes in to some detail as to how the Turkish Gold for Iranian Oil sanctions-busting op was carried out and also drags India in to the equation. India had also used the turkish state-bank Halkbank to circumvent sanctions, the SWIFT transfer system and anti-money laundering regulations,

There's ref to figures of 49 million and 7.7 million USDs paid as "commissions" to Turkish Ministers and there is also a note that part of the scam was to inflate Turkish export figures, in line with PM Erdogan's wishes and the paper says that it is inconceivable that deals in the mega Billions were carried out without the permission or knowledge of ... "the government or quarters close to the government..."

"... According to reports the police have delivered to prosecutors, this is how the plan worked: A system was hatched to bypass SWIFT queries by setting up front companies in China. Then, money was transferred from Iran with falsified documents to bank accounts opened in the names of those companies in the guise of reimbursements for imports from China. The money was immediately transferred to the accounts of real or front companies in Turkey as payment for exports, and used to purchase gold. The gold was then sent via couriers to Iran, or to Dubai to be forwarded to Iran.

According to economist Ugur Gurses, this complex system arose to address Turkey’s inability to pay Iran through routine channels for the oil and natural gas it was buying.

This is why Turkey opened an account for Iran at Halkbank. Iran converted the deposits in these accounts to gold. Gold procured from international markets was first brought to Turkey and then sent to Iran. As the intermediary company was registered in Turkey, Turkey’s gold imports and exports rose steadily as Turkey paid its debts to Iran. In three years, $8 billion worth of gold was sent to Iran..."

Lots more at http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/origina ... z2p3RCRfNH

[Tim Drayton]

Lawyers acting on behalf of the 14 people remanded in custody on 21 December in connection with the corruption and bribery investigation applied to Istanbul Penal Court of the Peace No 25 for these remand orders to be reversed. Istanbul Penal Court of the Peace No 25 did not reverse its decision and remitted the file to Istanbul Penal Court of First Instance No 14 to deliberate on the objection. The latter court has upheld the lower court’s decision, on the grounds that, when the available evidence as it stands, the nature and character of the offences, the lower and upper limits of the statutory penalties, technical surveillance data and other evidence are taken into consideration, there are strong grounds for suspecting the guilt of Barış Güler, Süleyman Aslan, Muacet Korkmaz, Emir Eroğlu, Umut Bayraktar, Ahmet Murat Öziş, Rüçhan Bayar, Özgür Özdemir, Mohammadsadegh Rastgar Shishehgarkhaneh and Hikmet Tuner.

http://www.radikal.com.tr/turkiye/bakan ... di-1168964

[Tim Drayton]

Lawyers acting on behalf of the 14 people remanded in custody on 21 December in connection with the corruption and bribery investigation applied to Istanbul Penal Court of the Peace No 25 for these remand orders to be reversed. Istanbul Penal Court of the Peace No 25 did not reverse its decision and remitted the file to Istanbul Penal Court of First Instance No 14 to deliberate on the objection. The latter court has upheld the lower court’s decision, on the grounds that, when the available evidence as it stands, the nature and character of the offences, the lower and upper limits of the statutory penalties, technical surveillance data and other evidence are taken into consideration, there are strong grounds for suspecting the guilt of Barış Güler, Süleyman Aslan, Muacet Korkmaz, Emir Eroğlu, Umut Bayraktar, Ahmet Murat Öziş, Rüçhan Bayar, Özgür Özdemir, Mohammadsadegh Rastgar Shishehgarkhaneh and Hikmet Tuner.

http://www.radikal.com.tr/turkiye/bakan ... di-1168964

Mistake above - that should be ten people.