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Cablegate: Southeast Turkey Press Summary for June 25, 2007

Published: Mon 25 Jun 2007 02:15 PM
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SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JUNE 25, 2007
1. This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for June 25,
2007. Please note that Turkish press reports often contain
errors or exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for
the accuracy of the reports summarized here.
POLITICAL:
2. BOLGE / ZAMAN: National Chairperson of Workers' Party,
Dogu Perincek, held a political rally in Adana and made
anti-U.S. and anti-Incirlik remarks during his address to a
crowd of supporters under intense summer heat.
3. ZAMAN: The daily observes election trends in
Sanliurfa province and reports that AKP, DP, and independent
candidates are holding strong positions there. According to the
paper, MHP is only influential in the city center. The social
structure of the province turns out such that instead of
parties, the clans in the province will compete bitterly among
each other, because AKP enlisted two clan leaders in its
ticket's first and second ranking slots, and DP enlisted another
influential clan leader on its own ticket. It is estimated that
two DTP-supported candidates will also win seats in the
parliament from Sanliurfa.
SECURITY
4. ZAMAN / SABAH / HURRIYET / BOLGE / GUNDEM: The papers
reported on Sunday that two terrorists held a suicide attack at
8 p.m. on Saturday at Karsilar Jandarma station in Tunceli and
attempted as they strayed from the main road to drive into the
station with an oil tanker as they blew themselves up with
explosives. Meanwhile, terrorists located at a firing range in
a forest area around the station opened fire. The jandarma
retaliated. The papers report that terrorists initially killed
the driver of the tanker to seize it. (This is from June 24
edition.) Gundem daily claims on its Monday (June 25) edition
that the security personnel opened fire at a tanker as it was
traveling towards Ovacik district and passed by a jandarma
station. The daily claimed that two civilians in the tanker,
one of whom was the driver, were killed in the explosion.
Gundem daily claims that the fire that resulted from the
explosion at the jandarma station was taken under control later.
5. GUNDEM: A tip-off, which claimed that a suicide bomber
would blow him/herself up at the Ataturk Dam in Sanliurfa,
allegedly caused the authorities to limit the number of visitors
to the dam. Sanliurfa Governor, who dismissed suicide bomber
rumors, said that they imposed a certain ban on the number of
visitors because of the regular security measures taken in the
run-up to the elections.
6. GUNDEM: The police in Tunceli reportedly started
distributing brochures in the province with the following title:
"No to Terrorism, Yes to Love and Friendship." The brochures
reportedly explained current threats to the society and
described ways people could help security forces to resolve
those threats.
7. ZAMAN / GUNDEM: Two persons, who were allegedly members
of Hezbollah in Turkey, were reportedly detained in Van.
8. SABAH / ZAMAN / BOLGE: Van Police found 47 pistols, two
of which were Glock brand, in hidden sections of a car in Van.
The driver of the car turned out to be a village guard and the
pistols were being delivered to the PKK. Police are also
interrogating another village guard and two PKK members in
connection with PKK related arms dealing.
CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
9. ZAMAN / BOLGE / EVRENSEL / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):
Eighty-seven people, illegal migrants including Indians,
Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, were caught by police in two
separate operations carried out in Adana. Bangladeshis set off
from Iran, arrived in Van on foot and were in transit to
Istanbul, reported the daily.
CULTURE / SOCIETY / ENVIRONMENT
10. HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): Twenty-nine women were recently
provided microloans to assist them in self-employment projects
in Sanliurfa, said the Mayor of the province (This summary is
from June 23 edition).
GREEN
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