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 Twitter "spies" The political war between the Erdogan government and the Gülen Movement has a propaganda aspect, with each side seeing the other as the proxy of a detested enemy. Israel
Turkey's tourism renaissance The number of tourists visiting Turkey has risen from 1.6 million to 39.2 million in three decades, placing it sixth among the world’s most popular destinations. Turkey
Israeli officials: United States chose Qatar over us The Israeli leadership estimates that the cease-fire initiative of US Secretary of State John Kerry responds well to the interests of Qatar, Turkey, Hamas and its own interests with Qatar — but hardly addresses Israel's security needs. Qatar
Turkey, Qatar seek foothold in Gaza talks Turkey and Qatar, having alienated regional powers with their support of Hamas, are finding it hard to gain influence in Gaza cease-fire negotiations. Qatar
Turkish spy agency's image makeover Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MIT) is undergoing a controversial image repair and institutional reconstruction after court proceedings revealed the agency's role in murders during the 1990s. Turkey
Islamic State urges Turkish businessmen to return to Iraq In an interview with Al-Monitor, Turkey's economy minister says that in addition to IS prompting Turkish businessmen to return to Iraq, trade with Israel remains unaffected despite the current crisis, and 2015 will see an increase in exports and decrease in deficit. Iraq
If Erdogan wins presidency, what next? If Recep Tayyip Erdogan is successful in Turkey's upcoming presidential elections, it could mark the rise of a one-man state. Turkey
New moves by Saudi Arabia, Qatar signal drive for cease-fire Regional capitals are seeing intense diplomatic activity, while regional powers and Washington agree on the need to end the war in Gaza as soon as possible. Qatar
Cease-fire initiatives pit Turkey against Egypt Is Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan more concerned with undermining Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi than to broker a cease-fire in Gaza? Saudi Arabia
Will foreign investment in Turkey return to pre-crisis levels? Foreign direct investment is rising in Turkey and expected to reach $16 billion by the end of the year and eventually the pre-2008 crisis level of $20 billion. Turkey
Relations with Turkey sink lower after Erdogan's Israel comments The surge of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli demonstrations in Turkey, inspired by critical remarks from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, forces Israel to set aside attempts at reconciliation. Israel
Turkey’s Syrian refugee problem spirals out of control Syrian refugees in Turkey are regularly subject to hostilities by locals, a trend Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan implies the opposition is responsible for. Syria