Taha Kılınç All daily Yeni Şafak Columns

A deep-seated crisis...

Feb 05 2023, Sunday

You may have watched the footage: As the body of Orhan Askerov, who lost his life in the attack on the embassy building of Azerbaijan in Tehran, the capital of Iran, on the morning of January 27, was transferred to the plane at Imam Khomeini Airport to be sent to his country, Azerbaijani security, and intelligence officers pushed the Iranian soldiers aside and shouldered the coffin themselves. It was a very brief but very symbolic and important scene. It was hardly a surprise after the body of A

A deep-seated crisis...

Feb 05 2023, Sunday

You may have watched the footage: As the body of Orhan Askerov, who lost his life in the attack on the embassy building of Azerbaijan in Tehran, the capital of Iran, on the morning of January 27, was transferred to the plane at Imam Khomeini Airport to be sent to his country, Azerbaijani security, and intelligence officers pushed the Iranian soldiers aside and shouldered the coffin themselves. It was a very brief but very symbolic and important scene. It was hardly a surprise after the body of A

Will the Egyptian army loosen its grip on the country's economy?

Feb 01 2023, Wednesday

After a group of soldiers gathered under the umbrella of the "Free Officers Movement" and overthrew King Farouk on July 23, 1952, the country quickly moved to a system of government that could be defined as "state socialism". Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who garnered great success at home and abroad after nationalizing the Suez Canal, made the army the sole ruler of Egypt by squeezing Arab nationalism under his arm: On the one hand, many institutions and companies were confiscated with

Will the Egyptian army loosen its grip on the country's economy?

Feb 01 2023, Wednesday

After a group of soldiers gathered under the umbrella of the "Free Officers Movement" and overthrew King Farouk on July 23, 1952, the country quickly moved to a system of government that could be defined as "state socialism". Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who garnered great success at home and abroad after nationalizing the Suez Canal, made the army the sole ruler of Egypt by squeezing Arab nationalism under his arm: On the one hand, many institutions and companies were confiscated with

A warning about identity...

Jan 25 2023, Wednesday

About four years ago, on March 15, 2019, the terrorist Brenton Harrison Tarrant, who carried out a double attack on a mosque and an Islamic center in Christchurch, New Zealand, left behind a 73-page "manifesto". In Tarrant's lines, the emphasis on the supremacy of the white race mixed with expressions of hostility towards Islam and Muslims. It was understood that Tarrant, who made references to all civilizations established by Muslims throughout history, from Andalusia to the Ottoman Empire, had

A warning about identity...

Jan 25 2023, Wednesday

About four years ago, on March 15, 2019, the terrorist Brenton Harrison Tarrant, who carried out a double attack on a mosque and an Islamic center in Christchurch, New Zealand, left behind a 73-page "manifesto". In Tarrant's lines, the emphasis on the supremacy of the white race mixed with expressions of hostility towards Islam and Muslims. It was understood that Tarrant, who made references to all civilizations established by Muslims throughout history, from Andalusia to the Ottoman Empire, had

A retired conservative...

Jan 04 2023, Wednesday

“Cordoba Christians love to read Arab poems and fairytales. They study Arab theologians and philosophers not to refute their ideas, but to have a more accurate and elegant Arabic. Where are the people now who read the Latin interpretation of the Bible or study the life and teachings of Jesus, the prophets or the apostles? Alas! All talented young Christians read and study Arabic books with great enthusiasm, collect huge libraries at great expense, despise Christian literature as unworthy of atte

A retired conservative...

Jan 04 2023, Wednesday

“Cordoba Christians love to read Arab poems and fairytales. They study Arab theologians and philosophers not to refute their ideas, but to have a more accurate and elegant Arabic. Where are the people now who read the Latin interpretation of the Bible or study the life and teachings of Jesus, the prophets or the apostles? Alas! All talented young Christians read and study Arabic books with great enthusiasm, collect huge libraries at great expense, despise Christian literature as unworthy of atte

'Slavery tourism'

Dec 21 2022, Wednesday

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo was born in 1701 on the Bundu plateau in eastern Senegal, the son of a scholar father. Bundu was founded by Ayuba's grandfather. His father, Süleyman Diallo, was a well-known name in the whole region, both religiously and politically. Ayuba, who became a hafiz by memorizing the Qur'an at a young age, completed his Islamic education in the Maliki school. He married early, and many children were born before he reached the age of 30.While on a voyage around the Gambia in 1730,

'Slavery tourism'

Dec 21 2022, Wednesday

Ayuba Suleiman Diallo was born in 1701 on the Bundu plateau in eastern Senegal, the son of a scholar father. Bundu was founded by Ayuba's grandfather. His father, Süleyman Diallo, was a well-known name in the whole region, both religiously and politically. Ayuba, who became a hafiz by memorizing the Qur'an at a young age, completed his Islamic education in the Maliki school. He married early, and many children were born before he reached the age of 30.While on a voyage around the Gambia in 1730,

Sino-Gulf rapprochement and the 'dawn of a new era' in the region

Dec 11 2022, Sunday

During his visit to Riyadh in July, U.S. President Joe Biden made ambitious statements such as "The U.S. will not leave any vacuum in the Middle East that Russia, Iran or China can fill". However, the contacts of Chinese President Xi Jinping with Saudi Arabia on 7-9 Dec. revealed that the country in the region that should find a new vacuum to fill is none other than the U.S. itself.The Saudis organized a warm and high-level welcoming ceremony for Xi Jinping, incomparable with Biden's. More than

Sino-Gulf rapprochement and the 'dawn of a new era' in the region

Dec 11 2022, Sunday

During his visit to Riyadh in July, U.S. President Joe Biden made ambitious statements such as "The U.S. will not leave any vacuum in the Middle East that Russia, Iran or China can fill". However, the contacts of Chinese President Xi Jinping with Saudi Arabia on 7-9 Dec. revealed that the country in the region that should find a new vacuum to fill is none other than the U.S. itself.The Saudis organized a warm and high-level welcoming ceremony for Xi Jinping, incomparable with Biden's. More than

Tomb politics...

Nov 20 2022, Sunday

One thing that catches my attention every time I come to Jerusalem: Jewish tombs (allegedly) multiply at lightning speed. Especially on the south and east sides of the city walls, tombs are being built. Heavy marble and cream-colored stone blocks lying on the ground in rows of three or five… His story appears right next to it: “I don't know from what time period, another Jewish cemetery was found.” Then it is surrounded, made fortified, and enclosed within the walls. It is now turned into a stag

Tomb politics...

Nov 20 2022, Sunday

One thing that catches my attention every time I come to Jerusalem: Jewish tombs (allegedly) multiply at lightning speed. Especially on the south and east sides of the city walls, tombs are being built. Heavy marble and cream-colored stone blocks lying on the ground in rows of three or five… His story appears right next to it: “I don't know from what time period, another Jewish cemetery was found.” Then it is surrounded, made fortified, and enclosed within the walls. It is now turned into a stag

The end of the tunnel for Israel...

Nov 09 2022, Wednesday

When our plane touched down at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport on Tuesday, November 1, last week, there was complete silence. While we were getting our "blue cards", which were customary before passport control, the officers who normally assist the passengers were not at their place this time. The passport counters were so empty and the number of people in the hall was so large that they "invited" our group of 35 directly to the country. Thus, we skipped that tedious procedure that sometimes results

The end of the tunnel for Israel...

Nov 09 2022, Wednesday

When our plane touched down at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport on Tuesday, November 1, last week, there was complete silence. While we were getting our "blue cards", which were customary before passport control, the officers who normally assist the passengers were not at their place this time. The passport counters were so empty and the number of people in the hall was so large that they "invited" our group of 35 directly to the country. Thus, we skipped that tedious procedure that sometimes results

Whose Jerusalem is it?

Nov 02 2022, Wednesday

My grandfather's late father, Molla Yusuf, was born in 1880. He lived a long life, died in 1973 at the age of 93. He has a rather unusual story. One that shakes me to my core every time I remember it, moves me deeply, and perhaps determines my direction in my subconscious:Molla Yusuf married a lady named Selvi. Yusuf and Selvi were happily married and had five children: Süleyman, Halil (my grandfather, my father's father), İbrahim, Fatma and Raziye. The family order of our great grandfather, wh

Whose Jerusalem is it?

Nov 02 2022, Wednesday

My grandfather's late father, Molla Yusuf, was born in 1880. He lived a long life, died in 1973 at the age of 93. He has a rather unusual story. One that shakes me to my core every time I remember it, moves me deeply, and perhaps determines my direction in my subconscious:Molla Yusuf married a lady named Selvi. Yusuf and Selvi were happily married and had five children: Süleyman, Halil (my grandfather, my father's father), İbrahim, Fatma and Raziye. The family order of our great grandfather, wh

The Middle East’s most notorious prisons

Oct 26 2022, Wednesday

At a time when the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) was in full swing, in October 1986, Ayatollah Hussein Ali Montazeri, one of the most well-known figures in Iran, penned a letter addressed to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini. In his letter, Muntazerî described the terrible crimes that were committed by the state in the country’s prisons; He was talking about the murdered pregnant women, the religious youth who were killed at the time of iftar, and the prisoners who lost their memory due to the r

The Middle East’s most notorious prisons

Oct 26 2022, Wednesday

At a time when the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) was in full swing, in October 1986, Ayatollah Hussein Ali Montazeri, one of the most well-known figures in Iran, penned a letter addressed to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini. In his letter, Muntazerî described the terrible crimes that were committed by the state in the country’s prisons; He was talking about the murdered pregnant women, the religious youth who were killed at the time of iftar, and the prisoners who lost their memory due to the r