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
Turkish judiciary halts school firings Turkey’s top administrative court has canceled provisions that laid the ground for the purge of some 8,000 principals in public schools and their replacement with government partisans. Turkey
Can PKK, Turkey’s Hezbollah reconcile? Resurging violence between two old Kurdish adversaries in Turkey’s southeast, the PKK and the Islamist Hezbollah, has generated fears of renewed Kurdish fratricide in the region. Syria
After elections, Erdogan’s shadow still looms Given his continuing hold over the AKP, negotiations for a coalition government could be stymied by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan if developments take a turn he does not favor. Turkey
'Bogus Muslims' exposed for 'fake it 'til you make it' attitude Muslims faking sudden commitments to a religious lifestyle for political and financial gain are facing backlash from pious Muslims as well as criticism from secularists. Turkey
Did Ankara-backed group attack Turkish Kurds? A string of unresolved attacks against Kurds has raised suspicions that the Turkish government is training and recruiting jihadist militants from the Syrian conflict as paramilitary forces to target government opponents. Syria
After Tell Abyad, what's next for PYD? While Ankara is confused what to do after the victory of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and Free Syrian Army in Tell Abyad, the PYD is deciding on its next target. Syria
Erdogan sees threat from Kurdish gains in Syria Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gives priority to battle Kurdish “terror organizations” over the Islamic State; the Islamic State's scorched-earth practices in Kobani; the Druze lobby in Israel. Israel
Demirel showed best and worst of Turkey Few people in Turkey liked former President Suleyman Demirel, yet the statesman, who died June 16, represented his compatriots’ best and worst sides. Turkey
Putin, Erdogan meet face to face, but don't see eye to eye The recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Azerbaijan appears to reflect a mutual irritation between the two parties. Turkey
Why Assad may be helping Islamic State’s offensive The latest regime airstrikes against rebels in Aleppo’s northern countryside seem to benefit the Islamic State, but also help the Syrian government divide its enemies. Syria
Will PKK let Kurdish politics move away from violence? With the success of the pro-Kurdish HDP in the recent elections, the time has come for Turkey's Kurds to rethink civilian-military relations in Kurdish politics. Turkey
Opposition battles collection of medical records in Turkey Turkey's Ministry of Health has embarked on a controversial effort to collect the names, addresses and diagnoses of psychiatric patients. Turkey