Turkish Press Review
Wednesday's papers covered Turkish President Erdogan's call for broader counterterrorism strategies and his statements on Turkey’s stance against the extremist group Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
ISTANBUL
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Wednesday's papers covered Turkish President Erdogan's call for broader counterterrorism strategies and his statements on Turkey’s stance against the extremist group Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL. The media also focused on the lift of the headscarf ban in secondary schools and on the collapse of a scaffold in Istanbul's central Taksim district.
"A military or political support is possible" headlines daily AKSAM, referring to Erdogan's statement that Turkey could be involved in the operations against ISIL.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during his visit to the UN in New York, had called for broader counterterrorism strategies regarding ISIL. He added that he viewed the strikes against ISIL targets, by the U.S. and five Arab countries, positively, and that Ankara would take steps accordingly against ISIL.
The daily also focused on Erdogan's speech at the U.N. where he blamed the international organization for being incapable of solving the world's problems, including the refugee issue.
Around "150.000 refugee brothers and sisters have taken shelter in Turkey. The U.N. has not provided help. Obviously, I have neither trust in the U.N., nor any expectations," Erdogan said, according to the daily.
Daily VATAN reported on Erdogan's interview to American broadcaster PBS, where he described ISIL as a "terrorist organization." He also stated that the "ISIL swamp" had to be dealt with in both Iraq and Syria.
"One of the swamp's feet (sic) is in Syria, the other one in Iraq. They have to be cleared off completely," the daily quoted Erdogan as saying.
VATAN reported that the coalition consisting of the U.S. and five Arab countries had bombed 50 different targets in five Syrian cities belonging to ISIL with F-16, F-18, F-22 jets as well as its Predator and Reaper drones.
Daily CUMHURIYET's front page reads "Turkey on the battlefront," referring to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's announcement that Turkey would also be an "important part of the coalition" and that it would have its place on the battlefront.
Several dailies also covered Turkish Education Minister Nabi Avci's announcement of a historic decision to expand the removal of a ban on headscarves in secondary schools.
Turkish deputy PM Bulent Arinc had announced Monday that the ban on headscarf for high school students was to be removed.
Daily HURRIYET headlines "Headscarf allowed from 5th grade on," adding that there still remained a ban in nursery and primary schools.
"Headscarf now at age of ten" reiterated daily CUMHURIYET, saying that a chapter of the Education Ministry's law was to be removed, allowing students to wear kerchiefs, berets, hats, bags or similar kind of clothing, including political symbols.
The Turkish dailies also covered the collapse of a ten-story scaffold, because of strong winds, that injured five people in Istanbul's central Taksim district.
Daily SABAH reported that a strong storm had hit a scaffold of a ten-story building near the central Taksim square, where several people had been injured. The daily added that the heavy rain in the morning Tuesday had increased traffic jams on several arterial roads.
Daily MILLIYET spoke to an expert on labor safety, who said that the accident happened because there were not enough holes in the scaffold's curtain, causing it to act like a 'sail' and pull down the whole structure.
The daily also covered other various accidents that occurred in only three hours because of the storm, namely the collapses of a wall near a construction area, which crashed down on several vehicles in the Merter neighborhood, and of a school building's wall in Sultanbeyli.
"Collapsed with one storm" headlined daily HURRIYET, saying that disaster was averted thanks to trees in front of the building that blocked the scaffold from crashing entirely on the road and sidewalk.
The daily also recalled the incident of the elevator which, two weeks ago, plunged to the ground from the thirty-second floor of a large construction site in the city's commercial district, Mecidiyekoy, killing 10 workers.
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