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
From Russia with love: Turkish and Syrian spymasters meet in Moscow The Moscow meeting between the Turkish and Syrian intelligence chiefs could suggest that a normalization process has finally kicked off between Ankara and Damascus. Syria
Last Ottoman viceroy casts shadow on current Turco-Egyptian culture war After the success of the series "Kingdoms of Fire,” Egyptian cinematographers may have found the next controversial figure that can be used to counter Turkey’s interpretation of Ottoman history on screen: Muhammad Ali Pasha. Saudi Arabia
Turkey-Egypt row escalates as Anadolu Agency staff detained in Cairo Tensions are rising between Turkey and Egypt after four Turkish state news agency employees were detained in Cairo. Egypt
Court restores Turks' Wikipedia rights in censorship case The top Turkish court's decision that the three-year ban on Wikipedia violated freedom of expression should have gone into effect after its official publication made it binding on Wednesday, but the website is still inaccessible in Turkey. Turkey
Turkey's YouTube gangsters hit mainstream box office The "Sifir Bir" series set in the southern city of Adana is essentially a constant shootout between dueling street gangs competing for turf, with a bit of the country's turbulent politics. Turkey
Don't believe media buzz about Arab buying spree in Turkey The Turkish press often trumpets enormous flows of Arab money into Turkey, but the data paint a different picture. Qatar
Can Libya be turned around and become Russia's 'second Syria'? Russia took an opportunity to mediate between the warring parties in Libya only to see Khalifa Hifter turn his back on Moscow's initiative — perhaps, just for now. Syria
Erdogan vows to defend Tripoli government after Libya talks fail Following the failure of a Russia-Turkey-brokered peace deal in Libya, Turkey's president reaffirmed his pledge to defend the government in Tripoli ahead of Sunday’s Berlin Conference. Turkey
Turkey edges toward Islamic law with new finance rules Turkey's ruling party has imposed religious rules in the public sphere, a move that could have major implications for the country's future. Turkey
Anti-Turkey alliance grows as Ankara sends troops to Libya Turkey has already made enemies through its maritime exploits in the Mediterranean, and now Egypt is seeking to build international pressure against Ankara's military moves in Libya. Egypt
Tunisia goes into 'diplomatic coma' Following the Turkish intervention in Libya and the Tunisian diplomatic silence in the face of the Libyan developments, Tunisians have launched a campaign calling on officials to break their silence and play an effective role in any mediation process aimed at putting an end to the Libyan conflict. Turkey
As Russia mediates Syria-Turkey talks, can new Idlib truce hold? As the international spotlight was on intra-Libyan talks in Moscow, Russia mediated talks between Syria-Turkey security chiefs Syria