The Erdogan family business
http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/05/the-erdogan-family-business.html
Translated from German by Tom Winter May 9, 2016
A day after the resignation of Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Thursday it has become clear how vehemently Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expanding his power over the Bosporus.
Turkey experts agree: Davutoglu, with his high profile in the EU refugee negotiations, and the criticism of the presidential system Erdogan wants, was becoming too powerful to suit Erdogan. Erdogan on Saturday made it clear all over again that he discounts the EU call for a change in the terrorism laws in Turkey: "Those who criticize us because of our fight against terrorism, have themselves put democracy and freedom on the shelf, when the bombs started to explode on their own ground," Erdogan said, according to the Anatolia news agency.
The odds-on successor for the post of prime minister is therefore also close to Erdogan: his son-in-law and Energy Minister, Berat Albayrak. The 38-year-old married the oldest daughter Esra Erdogan in 2004, and thus has long been an integral part of the clan. Moreover Albayrak is considered ardent admirer of his father-in-law. Erdogan could not want greater loyalty.
A powerful circle They hide behind high walls in Istanbul's Üsküdar. The Erdogan family inhabits five villas there - all are owned by the sons Ahmet and Bilal. Value: around six million euros. Erdogan himself lived here only for rent, they say. While their father earns just 50,00 euros a year, the children are swimming in money. Where does it come from?
Official figures do not exist. According to the opposition newspaper "Cumhuriyet" it all derives from entrepreneurial commitments right down to the youngest daughter - in industries such as cosmetics, ready meals, shipping and jewels.
The members of the Erdogan-clan ► The wife Emine (61) At great events she is always at Erdogan's side. Otherwise she discreetly stays in the background. At least, most of the time. Recently she made the headlines when she extolled the virtues of a Harem.
The harem was a school for members of the Ottoman dynasty and a teaching facility, where women were prepared for life," she said in early March. Critics blasted her for palliating a time when women were kept as sex slaves and had no rights.
► The eldest son: Ahmet Burak Erdogan (36) The Erdogan first-born became a big figure few years ago in the seafreight business. He has the big shipping company Mecit Cetinkaya. Today Burak Erdogan is thought to hold 99 percent of MB-Shipping.
His fortune is estimated at least 80 million dollars. Fairytales are told about how he got the money to get into the shipping business. Again and again questions are raised as to whether he is favored in government transactions. In Istanbul, 1998, the Erdogan oldest son ran over the singer Sevim Tanürek, who died of her injuries shortly afterwards in hospital. Erdogan Junior committed a hit and run - he had no driver's license. When the trial began the perpetrator had suddenly disappeared. He couldn't be there because of a language course in England, it was said. Later the traffic evaluator changed his mind and changed the report: It was Tanürek herself who was to blame for the accident. The evaluator was appointed shortly thereafter by Erdogan to high office in the state shipping company. Ahmet is now regarded as having gone underground. Even at family celebrations and weddings, he does not show up.
► The youngest son: Necmettin Bilal Erdogan (35) Again and again the Erdogan-son shows up in the media in connection with dubious and criminal activities.
Corruption scandal 2013 The accusation: Bilal Erdogan obtained public land in downtown Istanbul for less than 500 million -- against its actual market value of one billion dollars. Supposedly Bilal paid a three million US dollar bribe. The judicial authorities have also implicated Bilal's Türgev Foundation, which is actually is no more than a network of private schools, in this regard. Allegedly the foundation received land through the intermediary of Erdogan's AKP party without paying for it. Bilal Erdogan was supposed to be indicted, even threatened with imprisonment. His father, then prime minister, had the prosecutor unceremoniously relieved from his duties.
The opposition demanded the resignation of Erdogan as prime minister. This was prompted by alleged recordings of telephone conversations with Bilal, which appeared on the Internet. The calls took place mainly on 17 December, 2013. On the day dozens suspects from the ruling AKP party were arrested under suspicion of corruption. On the recordings allegedly Erdogan warned his son to remove the cash he kept in his house. "Put away everything that is in your house," the voice of the older caller says in a telephone conversation, the time is given as 8:02 in the morning. "Your money is safe," replies the younger voice. In another conversation, the time is given as 23:15, and the younger voice says that 30 million euros could be not "shed." Then asks: "Do you want some money left with you?" In a fifth and last call the older voice warns: "Son, you're bugged."
Trading ISIS oil The British newspaper The Guardian revealed last year that Turkish businessmen had concluded lucrative contracts with the ISIS terrorists: At least ten million dollars a week was flowing into the war chests of the killer militia - more than 500 million dollars a year. One of these businessmen was thought to be Bilal Erdogan.
Since September 2015, he has been living with his family in Bologna, Italy - officially to finish writing his doctoral dissertation. Since March the authorities there are investigating him on the subject of money laundering. The accusation: He is there to whitewash the family fortune, which comes from the corruption scandal.
► The oldest daughter Esra Erdogan (34)
Esra Erdogan also was involved in the 2013 corruption scandal. She sits next to her brother on the board of the dubious Türgev Foundation. Her husband could be the new Turkish Prime Minister after Davutoglu's resignation. He is considered a prime candidate and a faithful companion of his father-in-law.
Erdogan himself had arranged the marriage of his daughter with the political hopeful.
► The youngest daughter: Sümeyye Erdogan (30) While the other children are barely interested in politics, Sümeye was already at age 25 appointed honorary consultant to her father - she accompanies him on trips abroad and acts as an interpreter for him. So far, her path to the Turkish Parliament is barred because wearing headscarves in the parliament is prohibited.
Incidentally, the tuition fees for the Erdogan sprouts at US universities, which at times amounted to EUR 100 000 per year, were paid by the textile entrepreneurs Remzi Gür. An act of friendship, as stated on the part of the family. Speculation about any quid-pro-quo has occurred only behind closed doors
Turkey reportedly launched a military operation on the Syrian side of the border as part of a plan to establish a buffer zone in Syria.
Turkey Begins Operation in Syria to Establish Buffer Zone
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950222001208
According to a Tuesday report by the Turkish Yeni Safak newspaper,
the operation allegedly aims to push back the Takfiri ISIL terrorists from an area that is 18 kilometers long and 8 kilometers deep in Syria’s Jarablus region, presstv reported.
Under the plan, the Turkish military will use artillery shells, guided missiles and mortars to target the militants who have repeatedly fired rockets at the Southern Turkish border town of Kilis.
The newspaper said
the operation will be supported by the international coalition, particularly the United States and Germany.
Earlier in April, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Ankara will deploy a US-made rocket launcher system on the border with Syria to allegedly combat the Takfiri ISIL terrorists.
Ankara is seeking to establish a safe zone in the 98-kilometer (60-mile) stretch between Manbij in Aleppo Province, Northern Syria, and the border to shelter Syrian refugees, the Turkish foreign minister said.
Citing unnamed US officials, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Turkey’s special military force carried out an unusual weekend operation against ISIL in Syria.
A small group of elite Turkish troops entered Syria on Saturday to help more effectively target ISIL who have been launching rocket attacks into Turkey for weeks, US officials claimed.
According to the US officials, the operation was part of a deepening campaign by the Turkish army to push ISIL away from a vital 60-mile stretch of the Turkey-Syria border that serves as the group’s main lifeline.
Over the past few weeks, Kilis has come under frequent rocket attacks by ISIL militants, prompting the Turkish army to respond with howitzer fire.
Turkey has frequently used such rocket attacks as a pretext to shell the Syrian territory or send troops into the Arab country.
Kilis is a town located just north of the Syrian border, some 10 kilometers from the Syrian town of Azaz. According to Turkish officials, it is the only town in Turkey with a majority of Syrians.
The United Nations has voiced concerns over the plan, saying Turkey should first guarantee the safety of the refugees in the area.
Iran has also expressed their opposition to the plan, saying it encroaches upon the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Arab country.
Moreover, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov censured the proposal, which he said, contradicts the international law and will heighten tensions in the region.
In late May 2015, Turkish-language Cumhuriyet newspaper posted on its website footage purportedly showing trucks belonging to Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization, also known as the MIT, carrying weapons for militant groups in Syria.
Since late September 2014, the United States, along with some of its allies, has been conducting airstrikes against purported positions of ISIL inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or the United Nations. Turkey permits US warplanes to use its air base in the South for the airstrikes.
Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the conflict, which has furthermore displaced over half of Syria’s pre-war population of about 23 million.
A senior Syrian political analyst and journalist blasted Turkey for its warmongering policies and continuing its support for the terrorist groups, specially opening its borders to them to cross into Syria.
Syrian Analyst: Terrorists' Cross-Border Attacks Show War-Mongering Nature of Turkey
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950222001058
"When the government allows 70 Al-Nusra Front terrorists to cross the Turkish borders into Syria's Aleppo concurrent with the extension of the ceasefire by the Syrian army for two more days, it becomes evident to everyone that it is a war-monger," the Arabic service of Russia Today quoted Mohammad al-Zin as saying on Wednesday.
He pointed to many instances of ceasefire violations in Syria by terrorists, and said, "There have been many instances of ceasefire violations by Al-Nusra Front and its allies in Idlib and Aleppo provinces; the ceasefire violations came after the Syrian army sustained heavy losses and damages because of its commitment to the ceasefire," the Syrian writer added.
Al-Zin reiterated that the Syrian opposition forces should take the opportunity of the ceasefire in the Arab country in order to help all sides reach a comprehensive agreement for putting an end to the Syrian crisis.
On Tuesday, informed sources said that a large number of terrorists have crossed the Turkish border with Syria's Northern province of Aleppo to join their al-Nusra Front comrades.
"A 70-member-group of terrorists, trained and supplied in Turkey, have entered Anadan in the territories of Northern Aleppo in groups to join the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front," Syria's Peace Coordination Center in Hmeimim said, adding, "The fresh terrorists have brought with themselves three vehicles loaded with ammunition and weapons."
"Al-Nusra Front's terrorists' artillery units continued to shell two neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ameriyeh and the airport of al-Neireb," the center said, adding, "Handarat refugee camp also came under the mortar shelling of al-Nusra Front."
Also yesterday, informed sources in Aleppo city announced that at least 146 civilians have been killed and over 1,103 others wounded in terrorist groups' brutal shelling of residential areas, hospitals and shopping centers across the Northern city of Aleppo in the last 10 days, city sources announced.
"52 children, 33 women and 61 men were among the killed civilians in the 10-day-long attacks of the terrorist groups," the sources said.
"Over 432 children, 356 women and 315 men were injured in the rocket and mortar attacks on non-military areas in the city," the sources added.
"Over 2,300 cases of attacks by the terrorist groups of al-Nusra Front, al-Shamiyeh Front, Ahrar al-Sham and the Free Syrian Army were carried out on the city districts," they said.
Saudi whistleblower Mujtahid, who is believed to be a member of or have a well-connected source in the royal family, revealed that the country's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef is addicted to narcotics.
Whistleblower Reveals Addiction of Saudi Crown Prince
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950221000235
"Muhammad bin Nayef is addicted to drugs and has been treated several times in Europe when his father was alive," Mujtahid wrote on his tweeter page on Monday.
He also said that the al-Saud family is under the influence of major drug cartels.
"What is announced about discovering and seizing drugs in Saudi Arabia is less than 10 percent of the real amount of narcotics trafficked into the country because most of the drug traffickers enjoy immunity in Saudi Arabia," Mujtahid said.
Every two days, on average, the Saudi government executes someone for drug-related offenses — while its own princes are caught in airports with tons of drugs.
Saudi prince Abdel Mohsen bin Walid bin Abdulaziz was caught in an airport in Lebanon last October with over two tons of drugs.
Lebanese security found 40 suitcases full of more than 4,000 pounds of amphetamine pills and cocaine on the prince’s private plane, which was on its way to Saudi capital city Riyadh. It was the largest smuggling operation ever foiled by Beirut International Airport security.
In fact, just hours after the Saudi prince was caught with thousands of pounds of drugs, a Pakistani drug smuggler was executed by the Saudi government.
Roughly half (47 percent) of people executed in Saudi Arabia are killed for drug-related offenses, according to Amnesty International. From August 2014 to August 2015, Amnesty documented 175 Saudi executions, an average of one every two days.
The Middle East is burning in the fire of violent extremism fueled by a terrorist group which professes its desire to establish an Islamic Caliphate.
Prof. Madhav Nalapat: International Wahhabism Should Be Criminalized and Excommunicated
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950218000123
The ISIL terrorists, misleadingly calling themselves the representatives of Muslims worldwide, have killed innumerable civilians, beheaded people of various nationalities and raped hundreds of innocent Muslim and non-Muslim girls, especially the Ezadi women living in Iraqi Kurdistan.
Noted Muslim scholars, both Sunni and Shiite, and the majority of Muslim world leaders, have denounced the felonies of ISIL and made it clear that this faction doesn’t have anything to do with Islam and its edicts.
In an interview with Fars News Agency, an Indian economist and author
asserted that the ISIL terrorists belong to a Wahhabi lineage and are backed by the powers that propped up Wahhabi ideology since the Soviet war on Afghanistan.
“Since the 1980s, there has developed within the member states of NATO a cult of Wahhabi Jihadism, which has been celebrated ever since such individuals were armed, trained and funded by NATO powers to do battle against the USSR in Afghanistan,” said Prof. Madhav Das Nalapat, the editorial director of The Sunday Guardian newspaper.
“Textbooks inculcating hatred and a predisposition towards violence were designed in US universities to ensure that young minds globally turned towards Wahhabism. Since the 1980s, an estimated $380 billion has been expended by individuals, agencies and countries to build up the Wahhabi international,” he added.
Mr. Nalapat warns that a global coalition, including Iran, should be framed to roll back and eliminate ISIL, otherwise, this terrorist sect has a capacity to expand globally.
“Should a global coalition not get formed against ISIL and other components of the Wahhabi international, a coalition which includes Iran, will this evil spread within populations... The potential of ISIL to spread its cells across entire countries rises with each month that the organization continues to have a safe haven carved out of parts of Iraq and Syria,” he cautioned.
Prof. Madhav Nalapat is a recognized academician in India, and recently attended the International Congress on 17,000 Iranian Terror Victims in Tehran. Aside from his editorial role at The Sunday Guardian, Nalapat is currently the Vice-Chair of Manipal University’s Advanced Research Group. He has been a Professor of Geopolitics and UNESCO Peace Chair at the same university. His writings have appeared on The Pakistan Observer and Organizer. Prof. Nalapat is a distinguished fellow at the University of Georgia’s Center for International Trade and Security and comments on the Middle East and Indian subcontinent issues.
Prof. Nalapat shared his views with FNA on the roots of ISIL, its prompt growth in the recent months and the strategies that need to be adopted in dealing with it. (Transcript follows.)
