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
Who will pay $53 billion for Turkey’s safe zone project? Turkey wants to build some 400,000 housing units in northeastern Syria where Operation Peace Spring is taking place in order to resettle some 2 million Syrian refugees. Syria
Israel needs to learn lesson from Turkish assault on Kurds After the Turkish attack on the Kurds, Israel must realize that when and if the time comes, US President Donald Trump might not stand by the Jewish state. Israel
Erdogan, Sultan of Jerusalem? Israel's Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz is elaborating a campaign to reduce what he considers growing Turkish influence in East Jerusalem. Palestine
Gas trade: Stand-alone win-win for US-Turkey relations The only foreseeable and quantifiable area in the relationships between Turkey and the United States is gas trade. Turkey
Domestic politics, Idlib sway timing of Turkey’s Syrian operation Erdogan’s latest campaign in Syria may be justified as an effort to fight terrorism, but his immediate objectives include stopping the unraveling within his party, fracturing the opposition bloc and creating space inside Syria for a possible new wave of refugees from Idlib. Syria
A look at what’s going on in eastern Syria Tens of thousands in Hasakah province are already displaced by Erdogan’s freshly launched Operation Spring of Peace. Syria
Is Erdogan resettlement plan for Syrian refugees really viable? The Turkish president's proposal to build refugee settlements in the safe zone has already revitalized the Turkish construction industry. Neither refugees nor the Kurds are pleased, and the international community has lashed out at the plan. Syria
Death toll climbs in second day of Turkish offensive Both Turkish and Syrian civilians were reported killed as Turkey pressed a cross-border assault on a Kurdish militia and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan struck a defiant tone in the face of international criticism. Syria
US policy changes leave Israel alone against Iran Israel is suddenly facing a new reality in which the Iranians are free to attack Saudi infrastructure and the Turks attack Kurds in Syria. Israel
How will US troop withdrawal from northern Syria affect Iraq? The US troop withdrawal from northeastern Syria could lead to catastrophic consequences for Syrian Kurds while strengthening the Islamic State and destabilizing Iraq. Iraq
Iran urges Turkey to pull forces out of Syria Iran’s Foreign Ministry has issued statements opposing the Turkish incursion into northeastern Syria. Syria
Merger solidifies opposition in Syria, boosts Turkey's forces In the days before Ankara began its offensive against Kurdish fighters in Syria, it arranged a merger between the Syrian opposition's National Liberation Front and the Syrian National Army, strengthening Turkey's numbers for the battle. Syria