Newsletter: City Pulse Istanbul Nisantasi beyond the shop windows Also this week: Hopdaddy burgers, Ara Guler’s photographs and Istanbul’s apartment stories. By Nazlan Ertan In Izmir and Istanbul, reporting on culture
Costa Rica's Grynspan extends lead in UNSG poll as Nusseibeh places fourth The Costa Rican candidate received 12 encourage votes in Thursday's UN Security Council straw poll. United Arab Emirates
Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia Turkey will now decide the scope of military support for Saudi Arabia amid ongoing Iran-backed Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Turkey
Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift? A dispute over religious dress in schools has exposed deeper tensions between the two allies, with energy, arms sales, Israel and financial interests adding to the strain. Turkey
Turkey names Fatih Karahan as Central Bank chief after Erkan's resignation Gaye Erkan's resignation comes after a series of allegations by former and current Central Bank employees accusing Erkan of unethical conduct. Turkey
Turkey detains 7 suspected of spying for Israel’s Mossad The detainment comes amid the Turkish authorities' latest crackdown on an alleged Israeli intelligence network in Turkey. Turkey
Kurds poised yet again to sway Istanbul race as Turkey's local polls approach Control of Istanbul, Turkey's major seat of political power, is up for grabs as nationwide municipal elections approach. Turkey
Armed man in Turkey holds hostages at Procter & Gamble plant An assailant who took seven people hostage in protest of the civilian casualties in Gaza was caught by Turkish police after nine-hour-long standoff. Turkey
Mideast corruption rankings: UAE least corrupt, Lebanon & Iran close to bottom Arab states’ average corruption score dropped to an all-time low in 2023, as did Turkey’s, the corruption index shows. Turkey
Nuland says Turkey can return to F-35 consortium if S-400 issue resolved The visit to Turkey by the US State Department's No. 2 comes as another signal of the burgeoning positive momentum in Washington-Ankara ties after Turkey approved Sweden’s membership in NATO. Turkey
US Treasury sanctions ISIS facilitators in Egypt, Turkey The Treasury Department imposed sanctions on a pair of cybersecurity experts in Egypt and a Turkey-based individual involved in transferring funds to individuals associated with the Islamic State. Egypt
Turkey’s parliament ejects jailed lawmaker Can Atalay, defying top court With the ejection, lawmakers from the Turkish president’s ruling coalition unprecedentedly defied the country’s highest court. Turkey
What does ISIS' church attack in Turkey say about rise of Tajikistani militants? The shooting at a church in Istanbul marks the first Islamic State attack in Turkey since 2017 as the extremist offshoot ISIS-K seeks to expand. Turkey
Can Turkey, US finally clean the slate after Sweden’s NATO ratification? Ankara’s ratification of Stockholm’s NATO bid creates new opportunities for US-Turkish relations. Turkey
As Turkey, Azerbaijan advance Zangezur Corridor, will Armenia play ball? The Zangezur transport corridor is set to help link Europe and China later this year, but Armenian resistance remains an issue. Turkey
State Department to notify Congress of Turkey’s F-16 sale: sources Sources told Al-Monitor that the State Department will formally notify Congress of the pending F-16 sale as soon as today. Turkey