Turkey shot down Russian bomber over Syria

[angelburst29]

Explosion Rocks Turkish Town, Car Bomb Injures 5
http://novorossia.today/121755-2/

An explosion hit the Turkish town of Kulp near the Syrian border, Al Watan newspaper reported on Monday. A car bomb blew up near the Turkish Junta gendarmerie building, injuring at least five people.

No one or any organization has claimed the responsibility for the attack so far. Over the last several months, security forces and members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have often clashed in Turkey’s south-eastern regions populated mostly by Kurds.

Russian presidential aide says question on Moscow-Ankara relations remains suspended, although the Turkish side has been trying to make all sorts of informal approaches, the key factor is still absent

Kremlin says Turkey's informal steps not enough to restore relations
http://tass.ru/en/politics/878935

Turkey has not taken any steps yet for the sake of restoring relations with Russia, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told a news briefing.

"The Turkish side has not taken any steps so far that might help start the normalization of relations with Russia," Ushakov said.

"This question (about bilateral relations) remains suspended," Ushakov said. "Our relations at the moment are there where they are. Although the Turkish side has been trying to make all sorts of informal approaches, the key factor is still absent, and without it our country cannot embark on the road of normalizing relations."

Ushakov said he had not heard any proposals from Turkey regarding creation of a working group on the issue.

The country's foreign minister says Turkey seeks normalization, the working group may become official or non-official, as the Russian side wishes to

Turkey calls to set up working group with Russia on searching for ways to normalize ties
http://tass.ru/en/world/878854

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has proposed to establish a joint working group with Russia to look for ways of normalizing bilateral relations, the Istanbul-based Turkiye newspaper reported on Monday.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin said he wants to restore ties and expects us to take steps. We also seek normalization. We suggest creating a joint working group so that these steps are taken," Cavusoglu told reporters in Antalya.

The minister said the working group "may become official or non-official, as the Russian side wishes to."

"Let its members discuss the current issues between each other and search for a solution. As a result, we will be able to find a common way towards normalization. This is not an issue that cannot be solved," Cavusoglu said.

On May 27, Putin said in Athens that Moscow expects particular steps of Ankara amid the incident with the Russian Su-24M bomber shot down by Turkey in late November. Putin said Moscow hears Ankara’s statements that it wants to resume relations with Russia. "We also want to resume relations," he said. "It was not us to break them." He said Russia had valued much its former relations with Turkey. "I still cannot understand why it was done [the attack on the Russian plane and a subsequent chill in relations," he added.

 

[angelburst29]

'Turkish Military Enters Syrian Village' Amid Concerns of Invasion
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160530/1040503488/turkey-enters-syria.html

Member of the Democratic Majlis of Syria and of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PDS), Ahmet Arac, spoke to Sputnik about how the Turkish Army is preparing to invade Syria.

Amid violent clashes between militants of Daesh and troops of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) in the town of Azaz in northern Aleppo district, reports are surfacing suggesting that the Turkish Army units have been seen located in the district of Azaz.

One of the leaders of the Majlis of Democratic Syria, which is part of the Democratic Forces of Syria and the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party, Ahmet Arac, told Sputnik that the Turkish Armed Forces are preparing an offensive in the Azaz area.

“Yesterday the Turkish Army carried out rocket attacks on the positions of Democratic Forces of Syria.”

“Two days ago, the Turkish military entered the village of Hamam in Afrin area. We are ready to repel any attack. Meanwhile, FSA units are suffering serious defeat in clashes with Daesh. They have already lost control of 12 villages. If Daesh comes to Azaz, ‘Democratic Syrian Forces’ will repel the jihadists, and not allow them to enter the city,” Arac stressed.

A total of 6,320 houses have been destroyed in five Turkish southeastern districts during an operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said Monday.

Over 6,300 Houses Destroyed in Turkey's Southeast Amid Hostilities
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160530/1040505175/turkey-hostilities-kurds.html

Kurtulmus said at a briefing that the number of destroyed houses in the areas of Sur, Silopi, Cizre, Idil and Yuksekova amounts to 6,320.

"It is about 11,000 flats. The projected cost of restoration of these buildings is about 855 million Turkish liras [$294 million]," He said.

Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 as fighting between the PKK, considered to be terrorist by Ankara, and the Turkish army resumed. Ankara has imposed several round-the-clock curfews in Kurdish-populated towns, preventing civilians from fleeing the regions where the military operations are taking place.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan alleges over 5,000 Kurdish insurgents have been killed in the campaign since mid-December, a figure that pro-Kurdish officials contend includes hundreds of civilians.

Turkey has shelled the positions of Syrian Kurdish fighters, stationed opposite those of Daesh militants, in the country’s north, local media reported Monday.

Turkey Shells Syrian Kurds' Positions Located Near Daesh Points
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160530/1040504788/turkey-kurds-daesh.html

According to the Hawar News Agency, the Turkish Armed Forces attacked the Kurds’ People's Protection Units (YPG), Ceys El-Siwar and Women's Protection Units (YPJ) in the early hours of Monday near the positions of Daesh (Islamic State) militants.

Turkey has been shelling Kurdish militias in northern Syria along the Turkish border since February. Ankara has claimed that the Syrian Kurds have links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is considered a terrorist organization by the Turkish authorities.

Four were killed and 19 injured in an explosion in Silopi, a town in southeastern Turkey, N-TV reported

Four Dead, 19 Injured in Explosion in Turkey's Silopi
http://sputniknews.com/asia/20160530/1040501276/silopi-turkey-blast.html

According to NTV television, an improvised bomb placed in a sewer exploded on a street of the Silopi township as a police car was passing by. There are five policemen among the wounded.

Authorities suspect Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) involvement in the attack, NTV said.

The Kurdish town of Silopi in southeastern Turkey is under a blockade, with a curfew in place at the moment, and the authorities are trying to drive the Kurds from the town of Cizre, Dirayet Tasdemir, a member of the Turkish parliament from the Kurdish People's Democratic Party, told Sputnik on Thursday.

Turkey Blockades Kurdish Town of Silopi, Pushing Kurds Out of Cizre
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160407/1037648016/turkey-kurds-blockades.html

Back dated 07.04.2016 - "Now the town of Silopi [in the southeastern Sirnak province] is under a blockade and a curfew. Yesterday evening a building with civilians was shelled, and eight people died, including a 50-year-old woman and a child," Tasdemir said.

She added that 16 civilians had been killed in the Sirnak province.

Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 as fighting between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the Kurdish pro-independence organization considered to be terrorist by Ankara, and the Turkish army resumed. Ankara has imposed several round-the-clock curfews in Kurdish-populated towns, preventing civilians from fleeing the regions where the military operations are taking place.

"In Cizre at the moment four districts are totally destroyed. Ten thousand houses are in a completely unlivable condition, including those buildings that did not come under shelling. But the Turkish troops entered those houses, marauded and made everything they could to make the buildings unlivable, on purpose," Tasdemir said.

"They want to clean the place from the Kurds," she added.

 

[Ca.]

Here is just another example of Main Stream Medias distortion of a current event in Syria.

KCRA
Sacramento Ca.
http://www.kcra.com/national/airstrikes-in-syria-kill-23-hospital-hit/39798788
By Joshua Berlinger CNN
Airstrikes in Syria kill 23; hospital hit
Half of Syria's health centers closed or damaged since December, WHO says
UPDATED 3:01 AM PDT May 31, 2016
(CNN) —

At least 23 people were killed in airstrikes Monday night in the Syrian city of Idlib, according to a humanitarian group.

Among the places hit was a local hospital, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Video posted by the Syrian Civil Defense, a volunteer search and rescue operation in the country, showed responders digging through the rubble, searching for survivors.

One rescuer could be seen lifting the body of a young boy in his arms, his face covered in dust.

Dangers in Syria

Syria has been one of the more dangerous places in the world for doctors to operate in.

As of December, 57 percent of public hospitals and 51 percent of public health centers in Syria are either partially functioning or closed down, according to the World Health Organization.

About 15,000 doctors have fled Syria, according to the NGO Medics Under Fire, and those that remain risk their lives on a daily basis.

Hospitals have increasingly caught in the crossfire, with multiple sides accused of hitting medical facilities.

They have long been considered safe zones during the fighting, and medical workers will often give hospital locations to all parties involved to avoid being hit.

The regime of Bashar al-Assad has been consistently accused of targeting hospitals, which is a war crime.

"Syria is the most dangerous place in the world to be a doctor," Medics Under Fire says. "Medical workers are systematically targeted by the Syrian government in a bid to weaken the civilian areas not under its control."

In April, at least 50 people were killed when a pediatric hospital in Aleppo was hit, drawing international condemnation.

Two doctors, two nurses, one guard and one maintenance worker were killed, according to Medecins Sans Frontieres, also known as Doctors Without Borders

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry blamed the Assad regime for the attacks.

Other hospital strikes

Hospitals in warzones other than Syria have also come under fire recently.

Five people were killed and 10 other wounded in a hospital backed by MSF in January in Yemen.

It's unclear which side was responsible for the "projectile" that struck the facility.

In October, the U.S. also struck a hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz, killing 19 people -- 12 staffers and seven patients.

U.S. officials have since apologized for the incident.

An internal investigation revealed that U.S. forces were targeting a Taliban location 400 meters away from the hospital.

The Pentagon announced in April that 16 people would be disciplined in the incident.

Some personnel involved "failed to comply with the rules of engagement and the law of armed conflict," but maintained the strike was not a war crime because it resulted from unintentional human error and equipment failure.

MSF has pushed for an independent investigation into the incident.

International Propaganda

Al Jazeera and agencies
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/05/syria-civil-war-russia-raids-idlib-kill-civilians-160531082734910.html
War & Conflict

Syria civil war: Russia denies conducted Idlib raids
5-31-16

Moscow denies accusations it carried out raids that killed 23 people, including children, and damaged hospital.

Russia has angrily denied its planes carried out air strikes overnight against the Syrian rebel-held city of Idlib, which the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said had killed 23 people.

"Russian planes did not carry out any combat missions, to say nothing of any air strikes, in the province of Idlib," Igor Konashenkov, a Russian Defence Ministry spokesman, said in a statement.

The dead included seven children, the Britain-based monitoring group said.

Ten overnight strikes on Monday in Idlib hit areas around the National Hospital and other parts of the city centre, according to Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

"The air strikes are the most intensive on Idlib since the beginning of the truce," Rahman told the AFP news agency. "Even though Idlib is not covered by the truce, it had been relatively calm with only intermittent raids."

The strikes on Monday evening on the north-western city, which is held by a coalition of rebel groups including al-Qaeda, come five days after Moscow said it was suspending strikes on Syrian "gunmen".

The Russian Defence Ministry had said the pause was to allow groups who signed up for a US and Russian backed cessation of hostilities a chance to cut their links with the al-Nusra Front, a powerful Syrian group with ties to al-Qaeda.

"We have been hearing from different sources on the ground that more than eight areas have been targeted by Russian air strikes," Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Gaziantep in Turkey, said. "One area is close to a hospital. Because of that explosion, half of the hospital was destroyed."

Ahelbarra said there were concerns the death toll could climb as a rescue operation was under way.
Searching the rubble

"Idlib is a major opposition stronghold run by a coalition of military factions, including conservative parties such as Ahrar al-Sham. There is also a strong presence by al-Nusra Front," he said. "The opposition says Russians are taking advantage of a ceasefire in place since February, and are trying to undermine defence lines of the opposition."

Idlib is considered the de-facto capital for rebels.

Rebels have accused Russia of repeatedly targeting groups not linked to ISIL or al-Qaeda, while the United States has said that battlefield alliances between al-Nusra and other rebels have complicated implementation of the truce, especially around the key northern city of Aleppo.

A volunteer with the rebel-backed White Helmets rescue group said that the strikes appeared to have been carried out by Russian aircraft.

Rescue workers were searching for survivors under the rubble of the bombed buildings, the volunteer, who asked to be known only as Majed, told the dpa agency.

The Syrian conflict, which began with peaceful protests in March 2011, has spiralled into a multi-sided civil war.

The death toll has risen to more than 250,000 people while half the country's population have been forced from their homes, according to UN estimates.

AP

https://youtu.be/AilEv2OTAoQ

Oops My Bad.....Not

 

[Windmill knight]

Here is just another example of Main Stream Medias distortion of a current event in Syria.

KCRA
Sacramento Ca.
http://www.kcra.com/national/airstrikes-in-syria-kill-23-hospital-hit/39798788
By Joshua Berlinger CNN
Airstrikes in Syria kill 23; hospital hit
Half of Syria's health centers closed or damaged since December, WHO says
UPDATED 3:01 AM PDT May 31, 2016
(CNN) —

At least 23 people were killed in airstrikes Monday night in the Syrian city of Idlib, according to a humanitarian group.

Among the places hit was a local hospital, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Video posted by the Syrian Civil Defense, a volunteer search and rescue operation in the country, showed responders digging through the rubble, searching for survivors.

One rescuer could be seen lifting the body of a young boy in his arms, his face covered in dust.

Dangers in Syria

Syria has been one of the more dangerous places in the world for doctors to operate in.

As of December, 57 percent of public hospitals and 51 percent of public health centers in Syria are either partially functioning or closed down, according to the World Health Organization.

About 15,000 doctors have fled Syria, according to the NGO Medics Under Fire, and those that remain risk their lives on a daily basis.

Hospitals have increasingly caught in the crossfire, with multiple sides accused of hitting medical facilities.

They have long been considered safe zones during the fighting, and medical workers will often give hospital locations to all parties involved to avoid being hit.

The regime of Bashar al-Assad has been consistently accused of targeting hospitals, which is a war crime.

"Syria is the most dangerous place in the world to be a doctor," Medics Under Fire says. "Medical workers are systematically targeted by the Syrian government in a bid to weaken the civilian areas not under its control."

That's interesting. I just went to check out the website of this "NGO" called "Medics Under Fire", cause I never heard of it and it struck me as a rather peculiar name for an NGO. Plus, the statement of the Syrian government "systematically targeting medical workers" sounds like total BS. Would Assad be that stupid?

_https://medicsunderfire.org/en

The website has a cool design with big pictures but next to no information. There's nothing about "who we are and what we do", and instead there's a letter you can sign to ask for a no-fly zone over Syria! How convenient, considering that it's Syria and Russia doing most of the flying, not ISIS! The letter has so far less than 2,000 signatures - which is nothing. And according to Google, their FB page has 61 likes. I think I may have gotten more likes in a single post in a couple of days than those guys ever.

A bit further down you can read some doubtful statistics and testimonials about how it is the Syrian government doing all the bombing on hospitals and torturing doctors. Since that's the first we've heard of that, in spite of all the anti-Assad propaganda, I would say it is all basically made up. My bet is, it is a fake website so that the single guy who runs the so-called "Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" from outside Syria can quote it to discredit Assad.

 

[luc]

That's interesting. I just went to check out the website of this "NGO" called "Medics Under Fire", cause I never heard of it and it struck me as a rather peculiar name for an NGO. Plus, the statement of the Syrian government "systematically targeting medical workers" sounds like total BS. Would Assad be that stupid?

_https://medicsunderfire.org/en

The website has a cool design with big pictures but next to no information. There's nothing about "who we are and what we do", and instead there's a letter you can sign to ask for a no-fly zone over Syria! How convenient, considering that it's Syria and Russia doing most of the flying, not ISIS! The letter has so far less than 2,000 signatures - which is nothing. And according to Google, their FB page has 61 likes. I think I may have gotten more likes in a single post in a couple of days than those guys ever.

A bit further down you can read some doubtful statistics and testimonials about how it is the Syrian government doing all the bombing on hospitals and torturing doctors. Since that's the first we've heard of that, in spite of all the anti-Assad propaganda, I would say it is all basically made up. My bet is, it is a fake website so that the single guy who runs the so-called "Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" from outside Syria can quote it to discredit Assad.

Well, the site says at the bottom:

To contact the campaign organisers please email _info@thesyriacampaign.org or _info@sams-usa.net.

Now, sams-usa is the website of the "Syrian American Medical Society Foundation", which according to wikipedia, apparently acted as a witness before the UN in connection with the gas attacks in Syria, where they testified that the Assad government carried out the attacks. From a NY Times propaganda piece, we get:

Dr. Zaher Sahloul, president of the Syrian American Medical Society, who also testified to the Council, said he would meet Friday with Russian diplomats to urge them to press the Assad government to let in medical supplies. A shipment of dialysis fluid has been blocked from getting to the besieged city of Douma, Dr. Sahloul said.

_http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/17/world/middleeast/un-security-council-sees-video-evidence-of-a-chemical-attack-in-syria.html


For the other website associated with the campaign, thesyriacampaign.org, we get this:

The Syria Campaign is a non-profit organisation registered as a company in the United Kingdom as The Voices Project—company number 8825761. (You can’t be a registered charity in the UK if most of your work is campaigning.)

We have a Governing Board who are legally responsible for the organisation and oversee strategy and finance for The Syria Campaign. The board members are Daniel Gorman, Ben Stewart, Sawsan Asfari, Tim Dixon and Lina de Sergie.

If Lina de Sergie is the same as Lina Sergie Attar, then she writes propaganda pieces for the NY Times:
_http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/author/lina-sergie-attar/


Director is a certain Anna Nolan - we find this about her:

Purpose Strategy Director and The Syria Campaign Director Anna Nolan joined a panel at Netroots Nation 2015 in Phoenix, AZ to discuss how activists and movements from around the world are more connected than ever before.

She spoke about her experience working with the White Helmets – a group of impartial volunteer rescue workers working in Syria – who risk their lives to save others from aerial attacks. Nolan said, “[the] White Helmets have become the most important civil society organization in Syria. They provide hope to millions.” The Syria Campaign has worked alongside the White Helmets to share their rescuers’ stories through creative content and international media outlets, including The New York Times.

In addition to The Syria Campaign’s effort in support of the White Helmets, she discussed how her team has worked with activists in Syria to help get their voices into the mainstream media. “The media wasn’t paying attention to the millions of non-violent Syrian activists who need our solidarity,” said Nolan.

Their blog is just shameless propaganda:

Life in Daraya is cheap when the government treats you like sheep

The government delegation looked us in the eye and told us they are using barrel bombs on us because they’re the cheapest option

...and so on.

Seems like the usual soup of globalised NGOs, involving naive "activists" and behind-the-scenes agenda setting to shape the desired narrative.

 

[angelburst29]

Here is just another example of Main Stream Medias distortion of a current event in Syria.

KCRA
Sacramento Ca.
http://www.kcra.com/national/airstrikes-in-syria-kill-23-hospital-hit/39798788
By Joshua Berlinger CNN
Airstrikes in Syria kill 23; hospital hit
Half of Syria's health centers closed or damaged since December, WHO says
UPDATED 3:01 AM PDT May 31, 2016

As of December, 57 percent of public hospitals and 51 percent of public health centers in Syria are either partially functioning or closed down, according to the World Health Organization.

"Syria is the most dangerous place in the world to be a doctor," Medics Under Fire says. "Medical workers are systematically targeted by the Syrian government in a bid to weaken the civilian areas not under its control."

That's interesting. I just went to check out the website of this "NGO" called "Medics Under Fire", cause I never heard of it and it struck me as a rather peculiar name for an NGO. Plus, the statement of the Syrian government "systematically targeting medical workers" sounds like total BS. Would Assad be that stupid?

_https://medicsunderfire.org/en

The website has a cool design with big pictures but next to no information. There's nothing about "who we are and what we do", and instead there's a letter you can sign to ask for a no-fly zone over Syria! How convenient, considering that it's Syria and Russia doing most of the flying, not ISIS! The letter has so far less than 2,000 signatures - which is nothing. And according to Google, their FB page has 61 likes. I think I may have gotten more likes in a single post in a couple of days than those guys ever.

A bit further down you can read some doubtful statistics and testimonials about how it is the Syrian government doing all the bombing on hospitals and torturing doctors. Since that's the first we've heard of that, in spite of all the anti-Assad propaganda, I would say it is all basically made up. My bet is, it is a fake website so that the single guy who runs the so-called "Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" from outside Syria can quote it to discredit Assad.

Great find, Ca! The article is a perfect example of Main Stream Medias distortion and the NGO's are working overtime, to muddy the waters on the situation in Aleppo, especially since the Russian and Assad Forces are systematically gaining ground to reclaim Aleppo. The same media distortion can be detected in
reports on the intense fighting to retake Iraqi's Fallujah city, especially since the terrorist tunnel systems in both Syria and Iraq are being discovered and neutralized.

Whitecoast posted a thread - NGOs and propaganda in Aleppo:
http://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php/topic,41643.msg647999.html#msg647999

Which gives a link to Soro's funded NGO's - "Medics Under Fire" is listed (down the page - left side) along with the White Helmets and other nefarious organizations.
https://thesyriacampaign.org/

[Mod: Fixed quotes]

 

[angelburst29]

Quote from: c.a. on Today at 01:59:31 PM

Here is just another example of Main Stream Medias distortion of a current event in Syria.

KCRA
Sacramento Ca.
http://www.kcra.com/national/airstrikes-in-syria-kill-23-hospital-hit/39798788

An article on Fort Russ also points out the propaganda on the Idlib attack.

Did Russia Bomb Al-Nusra in Idlib on 30th May?
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/05/did-russia-bomb-al-nusra-in-idlib-on.html

On the evening of Monday, 30th May 2016, the Syrian province of Idlib was attacked by mysterious missiles from mysterious jets. The attacks were numerous and pinpoint. Various photos of the aftermath appeared on social networks within minutes, as well as a video from the definitely-not-a-US-NGO White Helmets.

Numerous Twitter accounts published information that the Russian airforce had been given the green light for airstrikes, although where they flew to exactly was not specified.

Both Western media (Reuters et al) and eastern independent media (Al Masdar) published articles citing Russia being the source of the airstrikes:

MORE: Russia rejects allegations that airstrikes targeted a number of sites in #Idlib, incl one next to hospital http://on.rt.com/7e4s

Information Warfare

The mainstream media has established a system whereby al-Nusra & Co. have been camouflaged as 'civilians'. Any 'hospital' that is bombed by Russia is instantly portrayed as an innocent place where children go when they get sick, from Assad's sieges and barrel bombs, naturally. There is no mention of the actual purpose of these hospitals, and why the White Helmets are so quick on the scene, or even who they are...

The most probable reason for this statement is that Russia is countering the US' simulacra with its own simulacra. The overlapping of these hyper-realities creates a digital environment where only the US can bomb not only civilian infrastructure but also the Syrian Army itself with impunity, as lapdogs like CNN and Fox News can cover for them using its web of phoney NGOs (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, for example) should any information on civilian casualties leak out.

State run media is essentially words from the horse's mouth in this era of fourth generation warfare, and when we see Reuters and Russia Today publish contrary versions of events (and later Reuters will cite the MoD's statement), we are seeing another battle in the information war unfold before our very eyes. What actually happened becomes irrelevant (the terrorists are dead regardless), and the new reality is what must be swallowed by media consumers: Idlib was bombed and civilians were killed; Russia denies it was their doing.

Regardless of what the media says, Russia bombed Al-Nusra last night in Idlib, and it's a real shame that we are now living in an era where this good deed is contorted by Capitol Hill into something sinful.

It really isn't difficult to imagine that Takfiri compounds are designed (by the US of course) in a way where a make-shift hospital is placed in the center, and a few civilians are admitted for treatment for basic complaints (it helps if they are brainwashed with Salafi ideology too). The 'hospital' could have a direct line to US NGOs also. There could even be a designated area that is barren for the US to bomb and later claim they did something.

As usual, the reader must make their own mind up...

UPDATE: Learning more from sources on the ground in Idlib. Appears hospital itself was not hit, but just behind it + a public garden. 6:43 AM - 31 May 2016

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights blamed Russian Aerospace Forces for conducting airstrikes in Idlib, it seems the group has once again spoken out before getting their facts straight as the exact same photo was first used by Al-Jazeera six months ago.

NGO's Photos "Proving" Alleged Russian Strike on Idlib Are 6 Months Old
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160531/1040559835/russia-idlib-airstrikes-blame.html

Reuters reported citing the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that Russian Aerospace Forces had allegedly carried out airstrikes in Idlib.

The Russian Ministry of Defense denied conducting any such strike. Russian jets did not conduct any operations in the Syrian province of Idlib, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj.-Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Tuesday.

Russian Embassy, UK
✔ ‎‎@RussianEmbassy

Photo purportedly of "Russian airstrike on Idlib" last night was in fact first used by @AlJazeera 6 months ago

8:11 AM - 31 May 2016

​"There were neither military tasks nor airstrikes by Russian jets in the province of Idlib," Konashenkov said.

Screenshot of the article's headline: Turkish group says Russians targeted bakery in Syria

The photo was used by Al-Jazeera on November 30, 2015, when it published an article by Diana Al Rifai. In the article it was said that a bakery which was established by Turkey’s largest humanitarian organization, IHH, was targeted by suspected Russian airstrikes in Idlib.

Russia was blamed by Syrian opposition activists for the attacks which left 44 people dead.

It is not the first time that Russia has been blamed for attacks it did not carry out.

In September 2015, evidence emerged showing that the "White Helmets," a controversial quasi-humanitarian organization was fabricating ‘evidence’ of Russia's ‘disastrous’ involvement in Syria.

Russia was blamed by Syrian opposition activists for the attacks which left 44 people dead.

It is not the first time that Russia has been blamed for attacks it did not carry out.

In September 2015, evidence emerged showing that the "White Helmets," a controversial quasi-humanitarian organization was fabricating ‘evidence’ of Russia's ‘disastrous’ involvement in Syria.

The organization had published a photo on its Twitter account, depicting a bleeding girl claiming that the poor child was injured along with a number of civilians during the Russian airstrike launched on September 30.

However, the false claim was immediately exposed: Twitter users discovered that the photo of the wounded girl was actually taken on September 25, 2015, five days ago.

The White Helmets in their haste to point the finger of blame at Moscow managed to tweet about Russia's airstrikes several hours before the Russian Parliament actually authorized the use of the Air Force in Syria.

Back then, investigative journalist and peace activist Vanessa Beeley pointed out that the White Helmets (formerly called the Syria Civil Defense) was not created by Syrians and certainly does not operate in Syria's interests.

Funded by the UK, US and the Syrian Opposition Party, the controversial organization works mainly with the rebel group Jabat al-Nusra, the infamous al-Qaeda affiliate.

The "White Helmets demonize the Assad government and encourage direct foreign intervention," Beeley told Sputnik.

Western media has also presented Russian anti-Daesh operations in Syria as their own.

Back in February 2016, TV Channel France 2 showed footage of Russian planes bombing Daesh, claiming them to be the work of the US-led international coalition. The French state-funded media also accused Moscow of not bombing Daesh and “targeting civilians” all the while showing footage, originally released by the Russian Defense Ministry.

France 2 isn’t the only media that used footage of Russian airstrikes to praise the actions of the US-led anti-Daesh coalition. Last November, PBS NewsHour showed a video of Russian planes hitting Daesh oil storage facilities and claimed it was the work of US airplanes. In December, Euronews did the same thing.

The Soros-sponsored "White Helmets," one of the largest NGOs operating on the territory of Syria, is busy with cooking up lies instead of protecting the human rights of the Syrian people.

Homs Airstrike: White Helmets Caught Faking Syria Casualties Report
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150930/1027807644/ngo-caught-faking-syria-casualties-report.html

Back dated 30.09.2015 - The "White Helmets," a controversial quasi-humanitarian organization, is playing dirty in Syria: the NGO has been spotted fabricating "evidence" of Russia's "disastrous" involvement in Syria.

The organization has published a photo on its Twitter account, depicting a bleeding girl claiming that the poor child was injured together with a number of civilians during the Russian airstrike launched on September 30.

Russia strike in Homs today. 33 civilians killed including 3 children and 1 @SyriaCivilDef volunteer. pic.twitter.com/5aYYSrwv2d
— The White Helmets (@SyriaCivilDef) 30 сентября 2015
"Russia strike in Homs today. 33 civilians killed including 3 children and 1 @SyriaCivilDef volunteer," the organization's tweet reads.

 

[Windmill knight]

Seems like the usual soup of globalised NGOs, involving naive "activists" and behind-the-scenes agenda setting to shape the desired narrative.

That makes sense luc, good job with the research!

Homs Airstrike: White Helmets Caught Faking Syria Casualties Report
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150930/1027807644/ngo-caught-faking-syria-casualties-report.html

Back dated 30.09.2015 - The "White Helmets," a controversial quasi-humanitarian organization, is playing dirty in Syria: the NGO has been spotted fabricating "evidence" of Russia's "disastrous" involvement in Syria.

Yeah, that rings a bell:

https://www.sott.net/article/318008-The-White-Helmets-A-rescue-and-assist-organization-for-terrorists

The White Helmets: A 'rescue and assist' organization for terrorists

With the recent events surrounding hospital bombings (real and imagined) in Aleppo, growing attention is now being paid to the "human rights NGO" known as the White Helmets, a supposed Syrian organization that focuses on rescuing and providing medical care to injured civilians in Syria. According to the Western media, the White Helmets are knights in shining armor, willing to risk life and limb to save innocent people from the fangs of the evil Assad.

A more realistic examination of the White Helmets, however, provides us with a much different view of the organization.

Essentially the White Helmets are nothing more than a terrorist rescue organization funded, directed, and promoted by Western governments, intelligence agencies, and Foundations aimed at assisting Western-backed terrorists in the destruction of secular Syria. The organization serves as a clever and opportunistic tool to be used by Western media for the purposes of sourcing false claims as coming from "impartial" "activist" groups on the ground in Syria and giving the source the credibility of a "human rights" organization.

The White Helmets should be considered nothing more than a branch of the Western destabilization apparatus, a wing of Jobhat al-Nusra, and an entirely discredited organization. Clearly, after examining the nature and reality of the organization, whatever claims made by the White Helmets should be immediately dismissed as yet another false statement in a long string of lies easily traced directly back to the United States and the UK.

The History And Formation Of White Helmets - The Founders And Directors

White Helmets was founded by James Le Mesurier, an admitted former British army officer and mercenary with the Olive Group, a private contracting organization that is now merged with Blackwater-Academi into Constellis Holdings.[1] Although White Helmets half-heartedly attempts to hide its source of funding, the organization is linked to George Soros through a PR firm named Purpose Inc., a pro-war firm that argues for Western intervention against Assad. The co-founder of Purpose is Jeremy Heimans, who also helped found Avaaz, a "pro-democracy" group connected to Soros' Open Society Foundation, SEIU, and MoveOn.org. [...]

 

[sToRmR1dR]

Erdogan says he does not understand what step Russia expects him to take for normalization

http://tass.ru/en/world/879323

The Russian foreign minister said earlier that "Turkey is obliged to apologize and compensate for the losses" incurred by the downing of a Russian warplane by a Turkish fighter jet

ANKARA, May 31. /TASS/. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that he would like to mend relations with Russia but he does not know what step Moscow expects him to take. He was speaking in Izmir before leaving on an African tour.

"It is hard for me to understand what first steps Russia expects from us," he said. Erdogan claimed he would like to "normalize relations with Russia" but he does not understand "how it happened President Putin sacrificed very good relations between the two countries to just one mistake made by an air pilot."

On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that "Turkey is obliged to apologize and compensate for the losses that were incurred by that criminal act, by that war crime," referring to the downing of a Russian warplane by a Turkish fighter jet.

Relations between the two countries worsened sharply after Turkish warplanes on November 24, 2015 downed Russia’s Sukhoi-24 bomber over Syria. Its pilot, Oleg Peshkov, was killed by militants while descending by parachute.

Ankara said the Russian plane had violated Turkey’s air space. The Russian Defense Ministry stated that the plane had been over Syrian territory all the time and there was no violation of the Turkish border. Putin then warned that the attack against the bomber would have the direst consequences for bilateral relations. On November 28 he signed a special decree enhancing the protection of national security and Russian citizens and on special economic sanctions against Turkey.

Russia’s stance in relation to Turkey remains unchanged: Ankara is obliged to apologize and compensate for the losses caused by the attack on the Russian plane on November 24, 2015. There have been no apologies from Ankara so far.

 

[luc]

Yeah, that rings a bell:

https://www.sott.net/article/318008-The-White-Helmets-A-rescue-and-assist-organization-for-terrorists

Thanks, very interesting. Angelburst29's link is also a great resource: http://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php/topic,41643.msg647999.html#msg647999


The rather depressing thought occurred to me that maybe, given that we are dealing with psychopaths here at the top of all this, they kind of do it this way:

1) Create bogus medical NGOs that still have some "activists" and even genuine doctors on the ground, thinking they are doing humanitarian work.
2) Use the NGOs to provide their military/thugs with the coordinates and other intelligence about these hospitals and such.
3) Bomb them/raid them and kill civilians and staff.
4) Use the same NGOs to create a media outrage blaming Assad of killing civilians, while providing the full media package with pictures, videos and testimonials (who may have no clue what's going on)

It's almost too devilish to even contemplate such a plan, but then again, we know what kind of "people" are running things...

 

[angelburst29]

[...]
The rather depressing thought occurred to me that maybe, given that we are dealing with psychopaths here at the top of all this, they kind of do it this way:

1) Create bogus medical NGOs that still have some "activists" and even genuine doctors on the ground, thinking they are doing humanitarian work.
2) Use the NGOs to provide their military/thugs with the coordinates and other intelligence about these hospitals and such.
3) Bomb them/raid them and kill civilians and staff.
4) Use the same NGOs to create a media outrage blaming Assad of killing civilians, while providing the full media package with pictures, videos and testimonials (who may have no clue what's going on)

It's almost too devilish to even contemplate such a plan, but then again, we know what kind of "people" are running things...

For how disturbing the facts are, after pulling apart the bits and pieces of a situation, then trying to trace it back to it's origin, then deciphering their motive and cause .... and who benefits from these actions, I'd say Luc - you pretty much have a handle on how these "NGO activists" operate. Just like Windmill Knight pointed out "Medics Under Fire", several bogus NGO's are set up to help spin a false narrative and further confuse any given situation.

I get the impression, the top tier plan a scenario, select a "target", then inform their bogus organizations on how to play the media when a certain activity occurs.

Problem is, their activities are affecting countless innocent victims, with untold death and destruction. Worse of all, they have everything at their disposal to mask the true cause and effect, flooding the media with false narratives - kind of "rewriting history - as it's happening" and steering the outcome. Reminds me of a report of some grandiose idiot in Washington stating, "While your studying history - we're creating it".
Their arrogance has no bounds - like when they started a petition to nominate the "White Helmets" for a Peace Prize? Their sense of "entitlement" and being set on a pedestal as God's is incomprehensible!

I think, working to root out "the truth" and exposing their misdeeds - knocks them down a notch or two? In my way of thinking, it would give the victims some rightful recognition of the true facts and a base to work on, towards some type of recovery?

 

[angelburst29]

Authorities in Turkey arrested 12 and detained 71 more in what was a described as a "witch-hunt" on US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen’s movement outlawed in Turkey, local media reported Tuesday.

Turkey Arrests 12, Detains 71 Linked to Oppositionist Cleric Gulen
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160531/1040546856/turkey-opposition-arrest-cleric.html

News broke earlier in the day that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan designated his former ally Gulen’s movement a terrorist group.

The arrests and detentions were carried out on suspicion of being members and providing financial support to the Gulen movement’s sympathizers known as the "Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETO)/Parallel State Structure (PDY)," the Turkish Minute online outlet said.

The arrests and detentions were made in Mersin, Siirt, Ankara, Gaziantep, Antalya and other cities and provinces, according to the outlet.

This is the latest in a series of arrests and detentions since a corruption investigation unearthed in December 2013 implicating then-prime minister Erdogan, his family and ruling party officials. Gulen was Erdogan's ally before the investigation.

 

[angelburst29]

Sevim Dagdelen, a Bundestag member from the Left party, said that Germany should stop sell arms to Turkey because of the crimes committed by Turkey against ethnic minorities.

Berlin Should Not Stand By Turkey's Crimes Against Ethnic Minorities
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160602/1040674833/armenia-genocide-resolution.html

Germany should stop ignoring the crimes committed by Turkey against ethnic minorities and end its military support amid Ankara's attacks on Kurds, a German lawmaker said Thursday.

German parliament Bundestag’s decision to pass a resolution today labelling the killing of Armenians during and after World War I as genocide. The document said the German Empire, Turkey’s key ally at that time, chose to close eyes to this crime.

"We here in Germany…must go still farther. Because the concrete politics have not drawn any conclusions from this," Dagdelen, a Bundestag member from the Left party, said in a statement.

"For me, this would mean no more arms exports," she continued. "This would mean that in the face of Turkish President [Recep] Erdogan’s war on Turkish Kurds with its over 500,000 refugees and hundreds of killed civilians, in the face of attacks on Kurdish enclaves in Syria by terror groups armed by Erdogan and on Armenian villages, like Syria’s Kesab, attacked by Islamism militias coming across from Turkey, we should end the brotherhood-in-arms with the Erdogan regime."

The German parliament's decision to recognize the Armenian killings ordered by the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century as genocide is a "historic mistake," Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said Thursday.

Ankara Calls Germany’s Recognition of Armenian Genocide 'Historic Mistake'
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160602/1040667800/germany-turkey-armenia-genocide.html

Earlier in the day, Germany joined the ranks of European countries recognizing the 1915-1916 mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide. Before the vote, Ankara said its relations with Germany would deteriorate in case the resolution was passed.

"The issue should be addressed not by politicians or parliamentarians, but by scholars and historians. For Turkey, the decision has no legal force. It is not in the spirit of our friendly relations. The adoption of distorted and unfounded allegations about 'genocide' is accepted as a historic mistake [by Turkey]," Kurtulmus said on Twitter.

The Armenian genocide was a series of mass killings ordered by the Ottoman government during and after World War I. Turkey refuses to recognize the massacre as genocide, claiming that Turkish nationals were also victimized. A number of states all around the world, including Russia and major Western powers, have recognized and condemned the crime of genocide against the Armenians.

Germany was one of the allies of the Ottoman Empire during the World War I, as well as trade and economic partner. Germany helped modernize the empire's army and its communications network, and invested in the construction of important civilian and military objects.

Turkey recalled its ambassador to Germany after the Bundestag recognized the Ottoman Empire’s crimes against the Armenians as genocide, the Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said Thursday.

Ankara Recalls Ambassador to Germany After Recognition of Armenian Genocide
http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160602/1040662787/turkey-germany-ambassador.html

"Turkey is not going to accept the decision of the German Parliament on the subject, that even historians cannot agree on. We summoned the Turkish ambassador from Germany for consultations," Yildirim told journalists in Ankara.

The Turkish embassy in Berlin however has not confirmed this information yet. At the same time, The German Ambassador to Turkey has also been summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry in Ankara.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that German genocide resolution will "seriously" affect relations between the two countries.

Earlier in the day, the German parliament (Bundestag) passed a resolution on Thursday that recognized their country’s role as the Ottoman Empire’s then key ally and said it was now responsible for promoting awareness of the 1915-1916 Armenian genocide.

German lawmaker from Die Linke party Sevim Dagdelen said that the resolution recognizing the 1915-1916 mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide was discussed last year, and its adoption was delayed because of a false diplomacy.

Bundestag's Vote on Armenian Genocide Delayed Over Policy on Turkey
http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160602/1040690170/bundestag-turkey-armenian-genocide.html

The German parliament's vote recognizing the genocide of the Armenians by the Ottoman Empire had been postponed due to the ruling coalition's "fake diplomacy" toward Ankara, German lawmaker from Die Linke party Sevim Dagdelen told Sputnik on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, Germany joined the ranks of European countries recognizing the 1915-1916 mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide.

Daesh is on the defensive at the Turkish-Syrian border and Ankara needs to respond to the failure of its Syrian tactics by working with the Kurds, former Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen told Sputnik.

Failed Syrian Strategy Forces Ankara to Accept Kurdish-led Manbij Offensive
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160602/1040690245/turkey-kurds-syria-daesh-manbij.html

Amid concerted offensives to liberate the Iraqi cities of Raqqa and Fallujah from Daesh terrorists, on Wednesday the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by the United States, also began an offensive against Manbij to free the Syrian city from Daesh. The city is in the governorate of Aleppo, and is located close to the Turkish border.

In November last year Turkey was so belligerent it shot down Russia's Su-24 fighter jet which was was carrying out anti-Daesh operations in northern Syria, close to the Turkish border.

Now the situation is very different, and though Ankara is opposed to international cooperation with the Kurdish forces fighting Daesh, it is no longer in a position to protest, former Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen told Sputnik.

"The speed of the SDF units' movement into Manbij shows that the liberation of the area under the control of the SDF, and with it the strategically important towns of Azaz and Marea in its west, is just a matter of time," said Selcen, who was the Turkish consul in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

"The liberation of Manbij enables the creation of a corridor between the Kurdish regions of Afrin and Kobani. Or course, this step would have a negative impact for Ankara and its Syrian politics. Nevertheless, I get the impression that Ankara has toned down rhetoric regarding Manbij."

Selcen said that one of Turkey's tactics in Syria is to isolate the Turkish-Syrian border area from Syrian government forces, from Daesh, and from the (primarily Kurdish) People's Protection Units (YPG).

However, the strategy is fundamentally flawed, and the Turkish government is not in agreement about its merits.

"The rhetoric and actions of the Turkish government regarding Syria and other areas of foreign policy is constantly changing. There isn't one balanced political strategy, that's why Turkey's seriousness, predictability and dependability as a player on the international scene are in doubt."

"Everybody is listening to the announcements, and not the real actions. That has led to the US, which has seen the inconsistency and ineffectiveness of Turkish-supported groups in clearing the border of Daesh fighters, to give the 'green light' to the SDF in the region," he said.

Selcen said that Turkey will be faced with greater threats to national security as Daesh and al-Nusra Front fighters lose their positions in Syria and are forced back towards the Turkish border and the territory from which they receive the logistical support to launch their attacks: these include the Turkish provinces of Hatay, Gaziantep, and Kilis.

"Without establishing connections with the Kurdish community in Syria and Iraq, with the Democratic Union Party and the Kurdish YPG units in Syria, we can't guarantee the security of our border territory."

"However, Turkey is doing the opposite, conducting operations within its borders which only increase tensions with its neighbors."

"If Ankara's foreign policy strategy is not revised in the near future, all the indications are that we will unfortunately have a very nervous summer," Selcen said.

 

[angelburst29]

A car bomb exploded near a police station in the Turkish province of Mardin on Wednesday. Several people were reortedly injured, local media report.

Car Bomb Explosion Hits Police Station in Turkish Province of Mardin (Videos)
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160608/1040979404/turkey-police-station-explosion.html

An explosion occurred in the town of Midyat located near the Syrian border.

A large number of ambulance and police vehicles arrived at the site, Turkish broadcaster NTV said.

According to eyewitnesses, the attack included several car bombs.

A day earlier a terrorist attack in Istanbul killed at least 11 people, including 7 police officers.

Three people were killed in Wednesday's car bomb attack in the town of Midyat in southeastern Turkey, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said.

Three Killed, 30 Injured in 'PKK-Organized' Car Bomb Attack - Turkish PM (Video)
http://sputniknews.com/asia/20160608/1040987219/turkey-explosion-midyat.html

A car bomb exploded near a police station in the Turkish province of Mardin on Wednesday. An explosion occurred in the town of Midyat located near the Syrian border.

"Today's terrorist attack in Midyat claimed the lives of one police officer and two civilians. Thirty people sustained injuries, five of them are in serious condition. A PKK killer is behind this, which is of no surprise to us. We will continue to fight terrorists until we eliminate terrorism in our country," Yildirim told reporters.

 

[angelburst29]

A series of incidents finally forced Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to interrupt his visit to the United States, where he planned to attend the funeral ceremony for boxing icon Muhammad Ali.

Not the Greatest: Erdogan Snubbed Ahead of Muhammad Ali Funeral, Departs US (Video)
http://sputniknews.com/world/20160610/1041138960/erdogan-united-states-visit.html

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan quickly interrupted his visit to the United States after an array of incidents ahead of the funeral service of boxing legend Muhammad Ali in his native city of Louisville, Kentucky, which Erdogan planned to attend, according to the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet.

The newspaper quoted presidential sources in Ankara as saying that Erdogan moved to depart for Turkey without taking part in the full funeral ceremony for the late boxer, which was attended by former US President Bill Clinton, Jordan's King Abdullah and former Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

When participating in funeral prayers for Ali on June 9, Erdogan reportedly tried to a put a piece of cloth from the Kaaba on the boxer's coffin but was refused the opportunity to do so.

Eyewitnesses said that the organizers allegedly offered to put the piece of cloth on the casket themselves later on.

However, another report claimed that Erdogan and Mehmet Gormez, head of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate, were also forbidden to read a piece from the Quran near the boxer's coffin.

Apparently, this proved to be the last straw, and compelled Erdogan to cut his trip short and return home.

Meanwhile, the Voice of America's Turkish edition reported that a short quarrel also erupted between US secret service officials and Turkish presidential body guards during Erdogan's visit to the Muhammad Ali Center in Kentucky.

The incident reportedly occurred after a secret service official attempted to stand in the same place as presidential bodyguards while Erdogan was getting into his car. A fracas was prevented thanks to efforts of security agents standing nearby.

Muhammad Ali died last week at the age of 74 after a protracted fight with Parkinson's disease. He died at a Phoenix-area hospital, where he had been treated for respiratory complications related to his illness for the preceding few days.

The embattled Turkish President has, for his part, recently faced international condemnation for his repeated crackdowns on political opponents and journalists, along with his administration's continued practice of buying oil from and funneling armaments to Daesh terrorists.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is apparently facing yet another scandal as Turkish social media are struggling to find out whether he actually has a diploma.

Recep Erdogan and the Mystery of the Missing Diploma
http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160609/1041085727/turkey-erdogan-education-diploma.html

It should be noted that possessing a university diploma is one of the eligibility requirements for serving as a President of Turkey.
The issue became so poignant that the provost of Marmara University has officially declared that Erdogan did indeed finish his 4-year higher education.

Following that, the Turkish president himself also stated that he and the provost actually studied in the university together.
Nevertheless, these statements have not put an end to the discussion.

A Turkish journalist named Rafael Sadi told Sputnik that he actually studied together with Erdogan at the university as they both enrolled in 1974. He did point out however that he doesn’t know whether the current Turkish president successfully graduated or not.

"Back then no one really bothered about the difference between a higher school and a university. The only thing that mattered was whether you were planning to join the army after you’re done with your studies. I for one never finished my education and left during my fourth year… I don’t know whether mister Erdogan completed his education and got his diploma or not. But I do know that he did study at the university," he said.

Meanwhile, Omer Faruk Eminagaoglu, former president of the Association of Judges and Prosecutors, appealed to the Supreme Electoral Council, asking to conduct an official investigation into Erdogan’s higher education and to determine if there was a breach of the country’s electoral legislation.

"The issue currently being discussed is whether the president actually has a diploma or not. The problem is that there’s no original of the diploma. There is also some very controversial information regarding his admission to the university and his graduation. All of this raises doubts and some very pertinent questions," Eminagaoglu told Sputnik.

He pointed out that the only organization that could resolve this tricky issue is the Supreme Electoral Council, but so far it has been uncooperative.

"There are currently three documents available: a temporary diploma, a copy of the diploma and a certificate issued after the diploma’s registration. And there are some suspicious discrepancies between these three documents. Therefore, we insist that this matter is properly investigated," he concluded.