Turkish Press Review

ISTANBUL

Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

Turkish dailies on Wednesday covered news that two former Turkish prosecutors had left for Georgia early Monday and later crossed into neighboring Armenia.

The move came hours before a criminal court issued arrest warrants for them over their alleged involvement in a 2013 anti-graft probe targeting senior Turkish cabinet members.

The two, Zekeriya Oz and Celal Kara, and a third former prosecutor, Mehmet Yuzgec, are accused of ‘forming an organization to commit crime’ and ‘attempting to overthrow the government by use of force’ in a plot allegedly masterminded by U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gulen.

"Oz and Kara left Turkey via [Artvin's] Sarp Border Gate [with Georgia] at 3.46 a.m. [0046 GMT], and 04:19 am Monday respectively, long before the arrest order," HURRIYET quoted Artvin Governor Kemal Cirit as saying.

Yuzgec, meanwhile, left his home leaving his mobile phones behind, the paper claimed.

VATAN published photos from security footage at the border gate, purportedly showing Oz wearing a hat and carrying a suitcase. Kara, meanwhile, seemed nervous, the paper claimed.

They went to Armenia's capital city Yerevan through the Georgian capital Tbilisi, the paper wrote.

Ankara can ask Yerevan to hand back the two men under the European Convention on Extradition to which both countries are signatories.

However, CUMHURIYET reported that the Board Chairman of Metro Holding Company Galip Ozturk tweeted on Tuesday: "Zekeriya Oz and Celal Kara fled to Ukraine's Kiev from Tbilisi today by 5.00 a.m. plane."

The three were dismissed in May 2015 in accordance with an article that states that judges and prosecutors are to be dismissed from duty if their acts damage the honor of their profession and of the reputation of their public post.

In other news, almost all Turkish dailies also reported on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's vow to fight against terror inside the country.

"Until arms laid down and buried," was the headline of SABAH, referring to the remarks of Erdogan who said:

"We will continue our fight against terrorist organizations until the guns aimed at our state and citizens are laid down and buried."

According to the paper, he said Turkey would continue its struggle "until terrorist organizations are buried in concrete and there is not even a single terrorist."

His remarks came late Tuesday during a ceremony at the Bestepe Presidential Palace held for the outgoing military chief, Necdet Ozel.

Turkey has recently seen a wave of terror acts across the country, which claimed the lives of police officers, soldiers and civilians, for which authorities mainly blame the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.

The violence has also stalled the ‘solution process’ -- a Turkish government initiative started in 2013 to end the 30-year conflict with Kurdish militants.

"Solution process in the freezer," STAR wrote, citing Erdogan as saying:

"The government viewed the process as an opportunity of solving issues through political ways; unfortunately, both the terrorist organization and its political party failed to take advantage of this chance," he said. "The process is now in the freezer."

The paper also published Erdogan's remarks over the country's ongoing coalition talks to form a government.

Erdogan said the country might go for an early election under a caretaker government, the paper wrote.

Since the June 7 general election, after the first-placed Justice and Development (AK) Party lost its majority in parliament, four parliamentary parties have been negotiating over a possible coalition government, with the focus being on a deal between the two largest groups: the AK Party and the Republican People's Party (CHP).

Following a series of "exploratory" talks between the sides mainly over foreign policy, education and the economy, AK Party leader Ahmet Davutoglu and CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu came together on Monday to handle fields that the sides could not reach an agreement.

The pair is expected to meet once again on Thursday for a final discussion to decide on a coalition. If an August 23 deadline expires without a government, either Erdogan or parliament may decide to hold a new election.

Erdogan said on Tuesday that he did not have the authority to extend the period for further coalition talks, MILLIYET wrote.

The president stressed that the country should not be left without a government and dismissed speculation that he wants early elections rather than a coalition.

HABERTURK published an early election survey showing AK Party increasing its vote from 40.9 percent in June 7 elections to 42.8 percent.

According to the survey, the CHP would also increase its share of the vote from 25 percent to 27 percent, while the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) would lose around 0.5 percent.

The survey also asked respondents whether they wanted to see a coalition or go for an early election. Almost 49 percent wanted snap elections, while 42.1 wanted a coalition government.

In another question asking whether a CHP/AK Party coalition could find solutions to the existing problems in the country, 49.9 percent said "No" while 39.4 believed they could do so.

In other news, dailies reported on a Turkish footballer who escaped injury in an armed attack Tuesday after unidentified individuals fired shots at his car in Istanbul.

The attack occurred in Samandira district in the afternoon when 29-year-old Fenerbahce player Mehmet Topal was returning home from morning training, YENI SAFAK wrote.

“Our player has luckily escaped injury thanks to his car’s bullet-resistant features,” the club said.

Police have identified a car and a person who was suspected of the attack, MILLIYET said.

Financial paper DUNYA reported that China has surprisingly devalued its currency around 2 percent, which the paper said was the sharpest since 1994. This is bad news for countries that are exporting to China, experts believe.