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
Uncertainty Lingers Over Turkey'sNegotiations with Ocalan Tulin Daloglu writes that PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan is expected to call for the end of armed struggle in Turkey, and asks what the state is promising in return and why the government is seeking Ocalan’s blessing. Turkey
Turkey, PKK Learn From Past Mistakes Ankara and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) are striving to avoid repeating past missteps and keep the peace process on track, writes Ilnur Cevik. Turkey
The Paradox of Religion In Erdogan’s Turkey Ihsan Dagi of Zaman asks whether conservatives are moving to the center; the answer is just that power is changing hands in Turkey, but not in a democratic way, writes Tulin Daloglu. Turkey
Turkey's Kurdish Language Policy: Learning from Europe Soner Cagaptay and Tyler Evans write that Turkey need not recognize the Kurdish language in a new constitution, but over time could develop a provision for public services in Kurdish. Turkey
Kurdish Negotiators Seek To Lower Expectations The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) expects confidence-building measures and is seeking to lower expectations in its talks with Turkey, writes Kadri Gursel. Turkey
Erdogan Set To Be Turkey's Longest-Serving Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will become Turkey's longest-serving prime minister next week, after more than ten years without interruption, reports Tulin Daloglu. Turkey
Questions About Turkish Justice Semih Idiz writes about the state of judicial reform in Turkey. Turkey
Why the Turkish Opposition Likes Assad Mustafa Akyol explains why the People’s Republican Party (CHP) is at ease with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and is unlikely to become a "social democratic party" in the European tradition. Syria
Moshe Ya'alon Will Bring Balance To Israeli Defense Ministry Ben Caspit retraces the career of Moshe “Bogie” Ya’alon, the expected choice for defense minister in the new Israeli government. Palestine
Three Powerful Men Decide Turkey's Future Kadri Gursel writes on the three men who are critical to Turkey’s future: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan; Abdullah Ocalan, imprisoned head of the Kurdistan Workers Party [PKK]; and Fethullah Gulen, exiled head of the Gulen Sunni movement. Turkey
Davutoglu Should Give Up 'Military Solution' in Syria Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is getting nowhere in his bid to have the European Union lift the arms embargo on Syria, and he should realize his pursuit of a military solution there is only prolonging the conflict, writes Semih Idiz. Syria