Tayyip Erdogan - The African Mirror

Apr

2024

Erdogan vows to make amends after humbling election loss in Turkey

PRESIDENT Tayyip Erdogan vowed to correct any mistakes that led to his party's defeat in Turkey's local elections where the opposition capitalised on economic woes and alienated Islamist voters, casting uncertainty over his reform plans. Sunday's vote marked Erdogan and his AK Party's (AKP) worst defeat in more than 20 years in power, revitalising the opposition party and strengthening Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu's standing as the president's main rival. Redrawing a political map long dominated by the AKP, the Republican People's Party (CHP) won the popular vote for the first time in decades and swept most of the main cities, penetrating far into…

Mar

2024

By PHILIP PULLELLA

Pope says Ukraine should have ‘courage of the white flag’ of negotiations

WORLD

POPE Francis has said in an interview that Ukraine should have what he called the courage of the "white flag" and negotiate an end to the war with Russia that followed Moscow's full-scale invasion two years ago and that has killed tens of thousands. Francis made his comments in an interview recorded last month with Swiss broadcaster RSI, well before Friday's latest offer by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to host a summit between Ukraine and Russia to end the war. Erdogan made the fresh offer after a meeting in Istanbul with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Zelenskiy has said while he wants peace he…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Police detain 50 after Pride march in Istanbul

WORLD

TURKISH police detained at least 50 people after Istanbul's LGBT community held its annual Pride march. The government led by President Tayyip Erdogan and his Islamist-rooted AK Party has toughened its stance on LGBTQ+ freedoms. Speaking after his election victory in a runoff last month, Erdogan accused opposition parties of being "pro-LGBT". On Sunday, police in riot gear prevented access to Istiklal Avenue, the traditional venue for Pride marches, as well as the central Taksim Square. Streets nearby were blockaded and public transport in the area was suspended. On Sunday afternoon, hundreds of people carrying rainbow and transgender flags gathered…

May

2023

By The African Mirror

Turkey votes in election runoff, Erdogan well placed to sustain rule

WORLD

ECE TOKSABAY and CAN SEZER TURKS voted in a presidential runoff that could see Tayyip Erdogan extend his rule into a third decade and persist with Turkey's increasingly authoritarian path, muscular foreign policy and unorthodox economic governance. Erdogan, 69, defied opinion polls and came out ahead with an almost five-point lead over his rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the first round on May 14. But he fell just short of the 50% needed to avoid a runoff, in a race with profound consequences for Turkey and global geopolitics. His unexpectedly strong showing amid a deep cost of living crisis, and a win in parliamentary elections for…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

Six killed after latest earthquake shakes Turkey-Syria border

WORLD

ALI KUCUKGOCMEN and HENRIETTE CHACAR SIX people were killed in the latest earthquake to strike the border region of Turkey and Syria, authorities said, two weeks after a massive quake killed more than 47,000 people and damaged or destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes. Monday's quake of magnitude 6.4, which hit just as the rescue work from the initial devastating earthquake was winding down, was centred near the Turkish city of Antakya and was felt in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon. It was followed by 90 aftershocks, Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said, adding fresh trauma to Antakya residents left…

Feb

2023

By KEMAL ASLAN, MAYA GEBEILY and KHALIL ASHAWI

Children plucked from ruins days after earthquake, but death tolls tops 22,000

WORLD

RESCUE crews saved a 10-day-old baby and his mother trapped in the ruins of a building in Turkey and dug several people from other sites as President Tayyip Erdogan said authorities should have reacted faster to this week's huge earthquake. The confirmed death toll from the deadliest quake in the region in two decades stood at more than 22,000 across southern Turkey and northwest Syria four days after it hit. Hundreds of thousands more people have been left homeless and short of food in bleak winter conditions and leaders in both countries have faced questions about their response. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made…

Feb

2023

By ECE TOKSABAY and HUSEYIN HAYATSEVER

Turkish leader declares emergency as Turkey-Syria quake death toll passes 5,200

WORLD

TURKISH President Tayyip Erdogan declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces devastated by two earthquakes that killed more than 5,200 people and left a trail of destruction across a wide area of southern Turkey and neighbouring Syria. A day after the quakes hit, rescuers working in harsh conditions struggled to dig people out of the rubble of collapsed buildings. As the scale of the disaster became ever more apparent, the death toll looked likely to rise considerably. One United Nations official said it was feared thousands of children may have been killed. And residents in several damaged Turkish cities voiced anger and despair…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Erdogan says courts will fix any mistakes after Istanbul mayor’s sentencing

WORLD

TURKISH President Tayyip Erdogan said that the courts would correct any mistakes in an appeal process after the jailing of Istanbul's opposition mayor. In the meantime, Turks had no right to ignore legal rulings. In his first direct comments on Wednesday's conviction of Ekrem Imamoglu - a potential challenger to Erdogan who was sentenced to two years and seven months in prison and handed a political ban - Erdogan said he did not care who is the opposition candidate in next year's elections. Imamoglu was prosecuted for insulting public officials in 2019 when he criticised a decision to cancel the first…

Apr

2022

By The African Mirror

Tunisia calls Erdogan comments on president’s decree unacceptable interference

NEWS

TUNISIA'S foreign ministry said that comments by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Tunisia's leader dissolving parliament was "an unacceptable interference" in internal affairs. On Monday, Erdogan criticised President Kais Saied's decree dissolving parliament last week as a "smearing of democracy" and a blow to the will of the Tunisian people. "Tunisia expresses its astonishment at the Turkish President's statement ... these comments are unacceptable," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. "Tunisia affirms its keenness on close relations with friendly countries but adheres to the independence of its decision and rejects interference in its sovereignty," it said. The…

May

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Mercenaries should leave Libya’

NEWS

TURKEY and Germany agree that all foreign mercenaries in Libya need to leave the country, but Ankara has a bilateral agreement with the Libyan government for its troops to be stationed there, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said yesterday. H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of Turkey. Photo: Brookings Institution/flickr On Wednesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan that the withdrawal of foreign troops from Libya would be an "important signal" as both leaders vowed to support the new interim government, a German government spokesman said. Turkey deployed troops to Libya under an accord on military cooperation signed…