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
Who Poisoned Former Turkish President Ozal? Political disputes between the Kemalist army and democratically elected political parties once were settled heavy-handedly, and a recent investigation into Turgut Ozal's death ruled that he was poisoned. Turkey
Gay in the Turkish Army One gay man's experience with the Turkish military highlights anew the need for legal protections for the rights of LGBT individuals in Turkey. Turkey
Erdogan’s Anti-Israel Remarks Reflect Broader Anti-Semitism in Turkey While anti-Semitism has been present in Turkey since the 1930s, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's latest anti-Israel remarks bring Turkey's long-standing xenophobia out in the open. Turkey
Erdogan’s Israel Remark Brings Condemnation, Ridicule Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses Israel of being behind the coup in Egypt, thus exposing himself again to criticism and ridicule. Israel
AKP Blasts Turkish Leader Of International Islamic Group Despite calls for his resignation by AKP officials, Organization of Islamic Cooperation Secretary-General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu decided to stay in office until his term expires in four months. Egypt
Turkish Leader Lashes Out on Twitter Turkey is engaged in a covert war with Riyadh over the Turkish origins of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation's chief. Saudi Arabia
Turkey Condemns Egypt's Coup Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Justice and Development Party has strongly denounced Mohammed Morsi's ouster and subsequent attacks on Muslim Brotherhood supporters. Egypt
Keeping Sane During an Israeli Summer For Israelis, traveling abroad equals a therapeutic exercise, leaving behind the habit of constantly listening to news casts and the burden of an ongoing existential stress. Egypt
Saudi Arabia and Turkey Falter Over Egypt Though Saudi Arabia and Turkey share strategic goals in the region, the Egyptian coup is testing the strength of the two countries' relations. Saudi Arabia
Erdogan’s 'Now Or Never' Moment In Turkish-Kurdish Peace Process Pressure is mounting on Turkey’s peace process, with such issues as teaching the Kurdish language in schools proving particularly important. Turkey
Turkey’s 'Precious Isolation' In the Middle East Foreign policy decisions by the Erdogan government, including on Egypt and Syria, have left Turkey without any influence over events in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia
Turkey Takes Sides, Pays a Price The kidnappings in Lebanon are only one of the prices of Turkey’s ill-conceived, sectarian-nature foreign policy — which is nothing new. Lebanon