Newsletter: City Pulse Istanbul Nisantasi beyond the shop windows Also this week: Hopdaddy burgers, Ara Guler’s photographs and Istanbul’s apartment stories. By Nazlan Ertan In Izmir and Istanbul, reporting on culture
Costa Rica's Grynspan extends lead in UNSG poll as Nusseibeh places fourth The Costa Rican candidate received 12 encourage votes in Thursday's UN Security Council straw poll. United Arab Emirates
Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia Turkey will now decide the scope of military support for Saudi Arabia amid ongoing Iran-backed Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Turkey
Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift? A dispute over religious dress in schools has exposed deeper tensions between the two allies, with energy, arms sales, Israel and financial interests adding to the strain. Turkey
Turkey’s language activists keep Armenian dialect alive in music, literature Cultural activists are struggling to keep Homshetsi, a western Armenian dialect spoken in northern Turkey, alive through music and literature. Turkey
Intel: Why Russia's defense minister met with Libyan strongman Hifter Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu hosted Khalifa Hifter, the commander of the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), in Moscow Feb. 19. Turkey
Saudi Arabia steps up role in Libya Saudi Arabia is reported to be providing greater financing to forces associated with Libyan strongman Khalifa Hifter in order to counter Turkey's intervention on the side of Libya's Government of National Accord. Saudi Arabia
Unfazed by lira's decline, Turkey persists with lowering interest rates The lira slumped to its lowest level since May a day after the central bank made its sixth consecutive interest rate cut to boost the economy and geopolitical worries also weigh on the currency. Turkey
Is Russia cozying up to Syria's Kurds amid rift with Turkey? The United States has reportedly cautioned the Kurds not to fight Turkey in any potential escalation in Syria, but Russia appears to have moved closer to the Kurds, as suggested by Kurdish collaboration with the Syrian army in areas along Idlib’s boundaries with Afrin. Syria
Meet the artist haunted by violent moments in Turkey, Lebanon Turkey's veteran artist Hale Tenger tackles coups, destruction and political assassinations in the Middle East, using marriage of poetry and images. Lebanon
Will Manbij fighters heed the call to return home? The Manbij Military Council has called on rebel fighters from Manbij to desert their militias and return to their cities and villages. Syria
What a Russian-Turkish compromise on Idlib may look like Although a new round of Russia-Turkey talks on Idlib failed, there are still ways to settle the conflict. Syria
Intel: What's behind Erdogan's latest threat of imminent attack in Syria Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the parliament yesterday that an operation against Syrian government forces in the rebel-held province of Idlib was “a matter of moments” after talks between Turkish officials and their Russian counterparts in Moscow failed to deliver “the desired result.” Syria
Turkish judges postpone verdict in Amnesty International case A Turkish court has postponed its final rulings in the infamous Buyukada trial until April as the defendants use lengthy closing statements to enter every piece of evidence of their innocence into the record. Turkey
Clashes in northern Syria drift from Idlib to Aleppo As the Idlib escalation winds down to a stalemate between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and Turkish troops, the clashes are shifting to Aleppo. Syria
Turkey orders continued detention of philanthropist Kavala following acquittal A Turkish court has acquitted philanthropist Osman Kavala and eight others of seeking to overthrow the government, but Istanbul’s chief prosecutor has ordered his continued detention on charges stemming from a separate case also pertaining to his supposed involvement in the failed 2016 coup. Turkey