News Scan for Turkey – March 19th, 2016
Suicide bomber kills 4 people in central Istanbul
Five people (including suicide bomber) were killed and at least 36 others were injured in a suicide bomb attack on March 19 in central Istanbul, on the busy İstiklal Avenue in Taksim.
The attack happened on Balo Street in front of the local governor’s office of Beyoğlu, and a through investigation has been launched into the attack, Istanbul Gov. Vasip Şahin told reporters.
Turkish Health Minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu said 36 people, including 12 foreign nationals and a child, were injured, and seven of the victims in hospitals were in critical condition.
http://www.dha.com.tr/
Turkey & European Union agree on refugee deal
European Union leaders on Friday agreed with Turkey to conclude a refugee deal about sending back refugees entering Europe via Greece on Friday, March 18th 2016. It was also reported that the opening of a new chapter in the country’s accession process would take effect soon and Turkey expected its citizens would be granted visa-free travel right to/in EU countries by end of June.
PM of Turkey which is supposed to receive a monetary support of 7 billion euros to cover its spendings of more than 7 billion euros has stated that the main objective was to prevent the deaths of children, women, youngsters [and] old people in the Aegean Sea and different parts of the neighborhood in order to discourage human smugglers and encourage legal migration”.
Turkey Deports British Academic Accused of Terror Propaganda
A British scholar was deported from Turkey Wednesday after he said he was found with invitations to Kurdish New Year celebrations.
Chris Stephenson, a computer sciences lecturer at Bilgi University in Istanbul, said he was detained Tuesday at a courthouse where he had gone to support three scholars charged with making terrorism propaganda. Stephenson told The Associated Press that security guards found Nawroz invitations in his bag and then police detained him. Speaking moments before his departure Wednesday from Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport, he told The Associated Press that there was “no offense, no trial, just an administrative decision to deport me after 25 years of residency in Turkey.”
This is a news-scan from major Turkish papers and internet sites. However, we do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.
06.01.2016
compiled by Editor BTT
