ANKARA: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan signalled on Saturday he backs a re-run of mayoral elections in Istanbul which resulted in a narrow victory for the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) for the first time in 25 years.
Erdogan’s ruling AK Party (AKP), which also lost control of the capital Ankara in the March 31 local elections, has already filed an appeal to Turkey’s High Election Board (YSK) to annul and re-run the election in Istanbul due to what it says were irregularities.
The YSK is expected to rule on the AKP challenge on Monday, but it has ordered district electoral officials in Istanbul to investigate their respective ballot box officials in its interim rulings.
Prosecutors on Thursday launched probes into allegations of irregularities in Istanbul and summoned more than 100 polling station officials for questioning as suspects, in a move the opposition CHP said would not alter the results of the vote.
Speaking to Turkish businesspeople in Istanbul, Erdogan said the Istanbul elections were marred by irregularities and called on the YSK to make a decision that would eliminate controversies and “clear its name.”
“My people tell me the elections should be renewed. I have not spoken until now, I’ve been silent. But everyone else has spoken. Enough already,” Erdogan said.
“There is a controversy here, it’s clear. There is an irregularity here, that’s clear too. Let’s go to the people and see what they say and whatever the outcome, we will accept it.”
Erdogan had accused the opposition of supporting “terrorism” and labeled the local election a “matter of survival” for Turkey during his campaign, which was held amid growing disenchantment among voters over economic woes.
CHP spokesman Faik Oztrak told reporters later on Saturday that it was time for Erdogan and his AKP to accept defeat.
“The real matter of survival here is those who put aside the people’s concerns about food prices, wages and focus instead on their own benefits,” Oztrak told a news conference in Ankara.
“There is only one thing that can clear the YSK. That is for it to act in line with its regulations and previous rulings.”
“WE CAN ONLY LAUGH“
The uncertainty over the results in Istanbul, which accounts for around a third of the country’s economy, has kept financial markets on edge, as Turkey tries to recover from a currency crisis that saw the lira lose more than 30 percent of its value last year.
On Friday, CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu said the Istanbul elections had become a test of democracy. He accused the AKP of exerting political pressure on the YSK to order a re-run of the vote.
Erdogan said his party was only exercising its legal rights.
“Claiming that Tayyip Erdogan is trying to steal an election he has no right to is the biggest insult,” Erdogan said. “We are not hurling threats, we’re just waiting.”
While the CHP’s Ekrem Imamoglu took office as Istanbul’s new mayor last month, the AKP won 25 of the city’s 39 districts and the majority of seats in the municipal council. It has said that this proved irregularities had taken place.
Speaking to his supporters on Saturday, Imamoglu said the AKP appeals were unreasonable.
“So the 25 districts are all clean, the municipal council votes are perfect, but when it comes to the mayorship, there is an irregularity. We can only laugh at this,” Imamoglu said.
Turkey's Erdogan calls for Istanbul vote to be re-run
Turkey's Erdogan calls for Istanbul vote to be re-run
- Erdogan signalled he favors a re-run of a mayoral election in Istanbul which resulted in a narrow victory for the main opposition
- The AK Party has already filed an appeal to Turkey’s High Election Board to annul and re-run the election in Istanbul due to ‘irregularities’
Erdogan says Turkiye, Lebanon agree to act together on Syria
“A new era has now begun in Syria. We agree that we must act together as two important neighbors of Syria,” Erdogan told a news conference, alongside Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
“The stability of Syria means the stability of the region,” he said, adding that reconstruction of the war-ravaged country on their borders would be their priority.
Assad fled to Russia after a lightning offensive spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) wrested city after city from his control until the militants reached the Syrian capital earlier this month.
The ousting of Assad sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond, and has prompted many refugees to begin returning home.
Turkiye and Lebanon are home to a large number of Syrian refugees.
To rebuild Syria, Erdogan said: “This is a critical period in which we need to act with unity, solidarity and mutual reconciliation.”
Syria rescuers say bodies found in warehouse
- “We received a report about the presence of bodies, bones and a foul smell at the site,” White Helmets official Ammar Al-Salmo said
DAMASCUS: A Syrian civil defense official said Wednesday that White Helmets rescuers discovered unidentified bodies and remains in a medicine warehouse in a Damascus suburb, 10 days after Bashar Assad’s ouster.
An AFP video journalist at the scene said the warehouse strewn with medicine boxes was located just around 50 meters (yards) from the Sayyida Zeinab shrine, a revered site for Shiite Muslims.
“We received a report about the presence of bodies, bones and a foul smell at the site,” White Helmets official Ammar Al-Salmo told AFP.
South Damascus’s Sayyida Zeinab suburb was a stronghold of pro-Iran fighters including Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group before militants took the capital on December 8 in a lightning offensive.
“In the warehouse, we found a refrigerated room containing decomposing corpses,” Salmo said, adding that some appeared to have died more than a year and a half earlier.
He said human bones were also scattered on the ground, estimating there were around 20 “victims.”
AFP saw men in white suits removing bodies and remains in black bags and placing them onto a truck.
Salmo said the words Aleppo-Hraytan — Syria’s second city in the north, and a nearby location — and numbers were written on bags where the unidentified bodies were found.
“We are going to establish the age of the victims” then take samples for DNA tests “and try to locate their families,” Salmo added.
AFP was unable to independently ascertain the reason for the presence of the remains or the identities of the bodies.
Since Assad’s ouster, a number of mass graves have been uncovered in the country.
The fate of tens of thousands of prisoners and missing people remains one of the most harrowing parts of the Syrian conflict, which has claimed more than 500,000 lives.
In 2022, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor estimated that more than 100,000 people had died in prison, mostly due to torture, since the war began.
UN calls for ‘free and fair’ elections in Syria
- UN special envoy Geir Pedersen said “there is a lot of hope that we can now see the beginning of a new Syria”
- Calling for immediate humanitarian assistance, he also said he hoped to see an end to international sanctions
DAMASCUS: The UN envoy to Syria called on Wednesday for “free and fair” elections after the ouster of president Bashar Assad, as he voiced hope for a political solution for Kurdish-held areas.
Assad fled Syria following a lightning offensive spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), more than 13 years after his crackdown on democracy protests precipitated one of the deadliest wars of the century.
He left behind a country scarred by decades of torture, disappearances and summary executions, and the collapse of his rule on December 8 stunned the world and sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond.
Years of civil war have also left the country heavily dependent on aid, deeply fragmented, and desperate for justice and peace.
Addressing reporters in Damascus, UN special envoy Geir Pedersen said “there is a lot of hope that we can now see the beginning of a new Syria.”
“A new Syria that... will adopt a new constitution... and that we will have free and fair elections when that time comes, after a transitional period,” he said.
Calling for immediate humanitarian assistance, he also said he hoped to see an end to international sanctions levied against Syria over Assad’s abuses.
Pedersen said a key challenge was the situation in Kurdish-held areas in Syria’s northeast, amid fears of a major escalation between the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Turkiye-backed groups.
Turkiye accuses the main component of the SDF, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), of being affiliated with Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants at home, whom both Washington and Ankara consider a “terrorist” group.
The United States said Tuesday it had brokered an extension to a fragile ceasefire in the flashpoint town of Manbij and was seeking a broader understanding with Turkiye.
“I’m very pleased that the truce has been renewed and that it seems to be holding, but hopefully we will see a political solution to that issue,” Pedersen said.
Rooted in Syria’s branch of Al-Qaeda and proscribed as a terrorist organization by several Western governments, HTS has sought to moderate its rhetoric by assuring protection for the country’s many religious and ethnic minorities.
It has appointed a transitional leadership that will run the country until March 1.
HTS military chief Murhaf Abu Qasra said Kurdish-held areas would be integrated under the country’s new leadership, adding that the group rejects federalism.
“Syria will not be divided,” he told AFP, adding that “the Kurdish people are one of the components of the Syrian people.”
He said HTS would be “among the first” factions to dissolve its armed wing and integrate into the armed forces, after the leader of the group ordered the disbanding of militant organizations.
“All military units must be integrated into this institution,” Abu Qasra said.
HTS has also vowed justice for the crimes committed under Assad’s rule, including the disappearance of tens of thousands of people into the complex web of detention centers and prisons that was used for decades to silence dissent.
“We want to know where our children are, our brothers,” said 55-year-old Ziad Alaywi, standing by a ditch near the town of Najha, southeast of Damascus.
It is one of the locations where Syrians believe the bodies of prisoners tortured to death were buried — acts that international organizations say could constitute crimes against humanity.
“Were they killed? Are they buried here?” he asked.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor, more than 100,000 people died or were killed in custody from 2011.
Libyan rivals resume talks in Morocco to break political deadlock
- Talks are between rival legislative bodies based in east and west of country
- Political process to end civil war stalled since election scheduled for December 2021 collapsed
RABAT: Delegations from rival Libyan institutions resumed talks in Morocco on Wednesday to try to break a political deadlock and prevent the country from sliding back into chaos.
Libya has undergone a turbulent decade since it split in 2014 between two administrations in its east and west following the NATO-backed uprising that toppled Muammar Qaddafi in 2011.
The talks in Bouznika, near the Moroccan capital Rabat, were between rival legislative bodies known as the High Council of State based in Tripoli in the west and the House of Representatives based in Benghazi in the east.
Speaking at the opening of consultations between the institutions, Moroccan foreign minister Nasser Bourita urged participants to work together to preserve Libya’s unity and prepare for “credible elections.”
“The numerous international and regional conferences on Libya will not replace the inter-Libyan dialogue which has credibility and ownership,” he said.
A political process to end years of institutional division, outright warfare and unstable peace has been stalled since an election scheduled for December 2021 collapsed, amid disputes over the eligibility of the main candidates.
The House of Representatives was elected in 2014 as the national parliament with a four-year mandate to oversee a political transition.
Under a 2015 Libyan Political Agreement, reached in Morocco’s Skhirate near Rabat, the High State Council was formed as a consultative second chamber with an advisory role.
But the House of Representatives then appointed its own rival government, saying the mandate of the prime minister of a government of national unity had expired. The eastern-appointed government has had little clout, but its appointment revived Libya’s east-west division.
Israeli settlers set up tents in Lebanese border town
- Coastal town of Naqoura hosting UNIFIL 70 percent destroyed
BEIRUT: Israeli settlers crossed into Lebanese territory on Wednesday, entering the border town of Maroun Al-Ras in a significant incident.
The group erected tents and took pictures of themselves in the area.
The Israeli army, which has been present in Lebanese territory since Oct. 1 and remains in the border area, said that the “serious matter” is being investigated.
Photos taken by the settlers showed two tents and a group of men accompanied by two children. The group raised banners featuring the Star of David, with the Lebanese cedar — symbolic of the Lebanese flag — prominently displayed in the center.
It was later discovered that one of the settlers had recently shared a video on social media in which he told his child, who accompanied him, that Lebanon belongs to Israel. The video had previously ignited widespread outrage in Lebanon.
The Israeli violations extended to areas near sites belonging to UNIFIL forces operating south of the Litani River.
A UNIFIL statement reported “activities by the Israeli army near one of our sites in Maroun Al-Ras,” describing the incident as “both dangerous and unacceptable, as it jeopardizes the safety of our personnel.”
The two incidents coincided with a meeting of the committee responsible for overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. Held at the headquarters of the Italian unit in Ras Al-Naqoura, the talks brought together military representatives from the US, France, Lebanon, Israel and UNIFIL.
For the third consecutive day, Israeli forces have continued demolishing and bulldozing homes, particularly in the town of Naqoura.
According to the town’s mayor, Ali Awada, “the extent of systematic destruction in the town has reached 70 percent since the ceasefire agreement took effect on Nov. 27.”
Awada added: “The Israeli forces are systematically demolishing the town, located just 3 km from the border. We have been unable to assess the full extent of the damage or losses firsthand, as the Israeli military has prohibited citizens from entering the town to inspect their properties. However, images and videos from the area clearly reveal Israeli machinery bulldozing homes, shops and civilian facilities in what seems to be a calculated act of retaliation against the town and its people.”
He expressed his surprise at “the failure of UNIFIL forces and those responsible for monitoring the ceasefire to prevent Israeli forces from demolishing infrastructure and civilian facilities in several towns, particularly in Naqoura, where the UNIFIL headquarters is located.”
The destruction extended to areas of Tyre Harfa, Al-Jabeen and Sheheen in the Tyre District, with residents of Tyre reporting the sound of explosions.
Israeli military reconnaissance aircraft were operating at low altitudes around the clock over the southern airspace as well as Beirut and its southern suburbs.
The Lebanese army, in coordination with UNIFIL forces, recovered several bodies of Hezbollah members who were killed in confrontations with the Israeli army during the extensive war launched by the Israeli military.
In the town of Adaisseh, located in the Marjeyoun district, the estimated number of bodies was about 30, all of which were retrieved by the Lebanese Red Cross.
The process of retrieving the bodies from the town of Taybeh is still awaiting approval from Israel, as requested by UNIFIL forces.
Civil defense teams continued their search for casualties in the northern neighborhood of Khiam following the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the area and the advance of the Lebanese army.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati received a report from Tamara El-Zain, secretary-general of the National Council for Scientific Research in Lebanon, titled “Israeli Aggressions Against Lebanon and Sectoral Damages.”
It was prepared by the council in collaboration with the UN Development Program in Lebanon.
The headquarters of the Lebanese Press Syndicate in Beirut witnessed a rally by dozens of activists from the Shiite Muslim community opposing Hezbollah, hailing from the south and the Bekaa. Their objective was to launch a rescue plan under the slogan “The State Protects Us.”
Media activist Mohammed Barakat said: “It is necessary to take the Shiite sect into the state project, after it was proved that sects and weapons do not protect a group of Lebanese, and after the fall of sectarian dominance projects in all regions.
“We tried (using) weapons. It turned out that they do not protect us. True security can only be achieved through the state and international resolutions.”
Barakat added that Shiites in Lebanon want “a Lebanon with one army, without militias that want to liberate Palestine or loose groups with weapons in all the alleys and sects.”
He said that Lebanon should, ultimately, be a “democratic parliamentary system, based on electoral processes rather than dominated by weapons, assassinations and black shirts.”
The activists highlighted the “legitimacy of the state, its constitution, the Taif Agreement, Arab legitimacy and Resolution 1701.”
Abiding by these would safeguard the Lebanese population, “particularly those residing in the South, the Bekaa Valley and the southern suburbs of Beirut,” they said.
“Lebanon should serve as the ultimate homeland for all its citizens, embracing an Arab identity and affiliation, characterized by shared interests, prosperity, development and investment.”
