★ According to Yeşil Gazete - Green Newspaper, an environmental activism platform, a company that wants to mine coal has destroyed thousands of trees since Monday in the Akbelen forest.

  The destruction occurred in İkizköy village in the southwestern Aegean province of Muğla in Turkey.

  Hundreds of ecology activists from across Turkey rushed to Akbelen Forest to stop the cutting of the trees.

  Meanwhile, the rural police set up barricades to prevent the activists from accessing the area where the company has cut the trees.

  The police also attacked the activists. Activists reported that the attack injured several people, and they had to take 65-year-old Havva Ova due to the impact of pressurized water and pepper gas. She was discharged from the hospital and joined the protests in Akbelen Forest again the next day.

  The main opposition Republican People's Party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has visited İkizköy villagers and activists.

  The people protested Kılıçdaroğlu when he did not go to the tree-cutting area and shouted: "not to the car, to the barricade."

  Upon the reactions, Kılıçdaroğlu went to the tree-cutting area. While the gendarmerie allowed Kılıçdaroğlu and his delegation to enter, they attacked the people who wanted to enter behind them with batons and pepper spray. They then detained three people after the attack.

★ On July 26, Turkish Family and Social Services Minister Ms. Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş said they are working on ending "indefinite alimony" payments, reports the Anatolia News Agency. "Some people got married in the 1990s. Paying indefinite alimony cannot be acceptable," Göktaş said. "We stand by victim men as well, if there are any. We need to listen to them as well. After all, we are the family ministry. We are a ministry that appeals to women, men, young people, elderly, and disabled," she added.

  Some Turks say President Erdoğan's rule eroded the rights of women deliberately.

  Read the details >> here <<

★ ECONOMY

★ Turkey earned $46 billion from tourism in 2022. However, from time to time, negative news jeopardizes much-needed earnings.

  One such negative news came in this week. The United Kingdom Health Safety Agency announced that at least 241 people who traveled to Turkey between mid-January and July 19 were infected with salmonella and issued a travel warning.

  The agency stated that most patients previously traveled to the touristic Antalya province on the Mediterranean and stayed in hotels offering all-inclusive holiday packages.

  The British agency said it was working with international public health bodies on the investigation, which also involved officials from Turkey.

★ Turkish president replaced three deputy governors of the country's central bank. The newly appointed deputy governors are:

  Osman Cevdet Akçay, Fatih Karahan and Hatice Karahan. All have PhDs from prestigious foreign universities. Fatih Karahan also worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for almost ten years.

  According to Reuters, Tim Ash, a strategist at BlueBay Asset Management, said that the appointment of the three represented a "180-degree turn" by Turkey's president Erdoğan.

  Online news outlet Bianet wrote that economic commentator Uğur Gürses remarked on the current appointments, stating, "The team that caused inflation to soar is gone, and three individuals with good backgrounds have come in."

  Political scientist Evren Balta tweeted, "There has been a change in direction with midnight decrees and appointments. In the past, we were surprised by the inappropriateness/irrelevance of the appointees; now, we are surprised by their 'suitability.'

  "For example, Cevdet Akçay was appointed as a Central Bank Vice President in the decree issued last night. They could have appointed him to the same or similar position had the opposition won the elections."

  Prof. Veysel Ulusoy wrote, "An academic approach after mediocrity surprised everyone."

  The previous deputy governors backed Mr. Erdoğan in his unorthodox belief that higher interest rates cause higher inflation.

  The appointments affected the Turkish bonds positively, increasing their value in the international markets.

  However, analysts point out that the policy rate of 17.5% announced by the central bank recently is too low to check the inflation running over one hundred percent as calculated by independent economists.

 Read more  >> here <<

★ On July 27, Turkey's Central Bank Governor Hafize Gaye Erkan announced that they raised the 2023 year-end inflation forecast to 58 percent.

  The bank's previous forecast in May was 22 percent.

★ Hacer Çınar, a Justice and Development Party municipal councilor from the western province of Bolu in Turkey, recently said in a speech that even her patience is over with the current economic crisis. After these comments, the Justice and Development Party Bolu provincial organization requested her to resign from her post, which she did.

  Ms. Çinar had been a loyal Justice and Development Party member and an ardent supporter and admirer of Mr. Erdoğan.

  At a convention held in 2016, Çınar had called on God to take some years from her life and instead give them to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan so that he would have more time to lead Turkey.

  In the face of these remarks, Erdoğan had cried at the convention.

★ According to the daily Duvar, while President Erdoğan's government calls for deep saving measures in public institutions, main-opposition Republican People's Party parliamentary deputy group leader Ali Mahir Başarır has drawn attention to the Presidential Palace's expenses. In a speech at the parliament on July 26, parliamentarian Başarır said the expenses of the Presidential Palace in the first six months of 2023 were 2.1 billion liras -approximately $93 million.

  He added that one minute's worth of expenses was equal to the pensions of two retirees.

  Başarır also points out that public institutions and government agencies use luxury vehicles.

  He said government officials' emphasis on austerity measures does not show in their actions.

  "These are really shameful images and expenses of the Palace regime, which says 'Tighten your belts,'" Başarır added. On July 17, new Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek sent a circular to all public institutions and asked them to review all expenditures, except those spent for earthquake relief, and implement strict savings.

★ The daughter of Ali Erbaş, the top Turkish cleric heading the Religious Affairs Directorate, is complaining about not being able to take her children abroad for a vacation due to the unstoppable devaluation of the Turkish lira, reported the Turkish daily Duvar.

  These remarks came as Ali Erbaş has been advising people to endure poverty and hunger with "patience."

 Read more  >> here <<

★ An exhibition titled "Those Who Dream of a New World" opened at the Kalyon Culture Nişantaşı Taş Konak in Istanbul.

  The Art for Goodness Association is contributing to the exhibition.

  The exhibition features paintings, sculptures, ceramics, collages, videos, digital art, and up-cycling works.

  The exhibition aims to raise social awareness about humans, nature, migration, natural disasters, and climate problems.

★ The 20th Bodrum Ballet Festival will start on August 5 with the "Harem." The Ankara State Opera and Ballet will stage it.

  The event will take place in the historical sites of Bodrum.

  It will end on August 17.

★ Tom Cruise arrived in Istanbul for the sequel to his latest movie "Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One." The first started screening on July 12.

  Turkish authorities opened the Grand Bazaar, regularly closed on Sundays, for the film. In addition to Tom Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie, the directors of the film crew came to the Grand Bazaar and surveyed the place. The team first visited the Çuhacı Han, Cebeci Han, and Zincirli Han in the Grand Bazaar, then surveyed the Büyükvalide Han outside the Grand Bazaar.

  The Grand Bazaar hosted the shooting of the James Bond movies twice in the past. The first time was the James Bond movie "From Russia with Love," filmed in 1963. Then in 2012, the movie Skyfall featured the bazaar.

★ Swissotel the Bosphorus Istanbul hosted the award ceremony for the Gastronomy Guide with Pearls.

  The Hürriyet Newspaper has published the guide for the past four years. Karaca home appliances company has contributed to this year's project.

  The guide features reviews by anonymous inspectors and articles by prominent gastronomy writers.

★ Michelin Guide added Izmir and Bodrum on the Aegean coast of Turkey to its map.

  On November 9, with a special ceremony, Michelin Guide will announce the restaurants it selected from the two localities and the second selection for Istanbul.

  Speaking of Michelin Guide, Be Premium Bodrum restaurant continues to bring together Michelin-starred chefs.

  The Ace of Mice 2023 organizers gave the restaurant the Best Public Relations Event award this year.

  The restaurant first started hosting Michelin-starred chefs last summer, bringing together individuals who have shaped the world cuisine with a passion and unique recipes.

★ Turkish archaeologists found an inch-long stone that the ancients used to count. Dubbed the "calculation stone," it is 8000 years old.

  The black hematite stone is shaped like a rhombus and is highly polished. The surface is full of incisions.

  Dr. Zafer Derin, a member of the archaeology Department of the Aegean University and head of the excavations, said that ancients also used the stones as weight units, making bartering of goods easier.

  Dr. Derin said that the stone emerged in the excavations on Yeşilova mound in the Bornova district of the Izmir province in the Aegean region of Turkey.

  Some finds in the mound date back to 8500 years ago. Every year excavations reveal around 200 objects.

★ Archaeologists found the second most ancient lighthouse in excavations at Bathonea, an ancient Greek city in the Küçükçekmece Lake basin in the Avcılar district of Istanbul, reports the Arkeonews.

  The remains of the lighthouse were under the waters of the lake. In ancient times connected to the sea, now only a narrow channel empties the excess water in the lake.

  Judging from the artifacts, the ancient city date to 1600 years ago.

  The other ancient lighthouse in Turkey is in the Lycian city of Patara in the Mediterranean province of Antalya. It dates back to 60 CE to the reign of Roman Emperor Nero.

★ Turkey's southern province of Antalya has a new museum, reports the Arkeonews. An ancient graveyard finds in what is now a public market are in it.

  The excavations at the site started after the discovery of rock tombs in 2008 during construction excavations for a garage project started by the Antalya Metropolitan municipality. The graveyard dates back to the third century BCE. It has revealed 865 tombs dating from the Hellenistic to the young Roman periods.

  Finds in the tombs revealed that ancients used the graveyard for 700 years until the fourth century CE.

★ During excavation work for a building complex in the Sinop province in the Black Sea province of Turkey, work crews unearthed rock mosaics, reports the Arkeonews.

  Dr. Gülgün Köroğlu, a faculty member of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University in Istanbul, is now heading the archaeological excavations there.

  The archaeologist determined that the rock mosaics were in the dining room of a wealthy family from the fourth century BCE.

  In those days, Sinop was a flourishing hub for trade.

  According to the legend, Amazons established the Sinop city, naming it after their queen Sinova. Cimmerians, nomadic people on horseback, destroyed the city. However, Milesians rebuilt it in the seventh century BCE.

Ankara, in central Turkey        : 88/63 Mostly Sunny
Antalya, on the Mediterranean    : 95/77 Mostly Sunny
Erzurum, in Eastern Turkey       : 84/54 Partly Cloudy
Istanbul, in northwestern Turkey : 84/68 Mostly Sunny
Izmir, on the Aegean             : 95/72 Mostly Sunny
Trabzon, on the Black Sea        : 81/72 Thunderstorms

Black Sea measured at Trabzon         : 76
Marmara Sea measured at Tekirdağ      : 78
Aegean Sea measured at İzmir          : 83
Mediterranean Sea measured at Antalya : 84

★ In the diving competitions held in the Bahamas, Turkish female diver Şahika Ercümen dived to 95 m in two minutes and 55 seconds and broke a Turkish record.

  In addition to Turkey, 40 divers from 23 countries are participating.

★ In the fencing competitions in Milan, Italy, the Turkish women's team came in 16th.

★ Turkish women's hockey team became the European champion in the competitions held in Croatia between July 25 and 29.

  Turkeys youth and sports minister Dr. Osman Aşkın congratulated the team on their performance.

★ At the 17th European Youth Olympics Summer Festival in Slovenia, Turkey's national swimmer Berk Tuncer Ertürk won a gold medal in butterfly stroke swimming.

  In the same event, two Turkish judokas received medals in the men's competitions. Emir Selim Arı received gold and Yusuf Yazgan silver.

  In the women's competition, Sinem Oruç received a silver.

  Turkey ranked eighth with 14 metals, six gold, six silver, and two bronze.

  The first three countries and their medal counts are as follows: 

• Italy 46
• Germany 31
• France 24

★ Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited the Basketball Advancement Center, which has been under construction since 2021.

  The center will be in Istanbul and open to athletes 24 hours a day. The construction will be complete by 2024.

  The center will have a court accommodating ten thousand viewers and a training room for one thousand players.

  The complex has additional courts and will host up to eight thousand games annually.

★ In the FIVB Challenger Cup, Turkey's men's volleyball team defeated Ukraine 3-2 and rose to the finals.

  In the finals, the Turkish team will compete with Qatar on Sunday.

  Click >> here << to read the latest.

★ With the participation of 130 fliers from 35 countries, World Paragliding Cup competitions started in Turkey.

  The competition is taking place in central Turkey's Mount Hasan.

  Abdullah Kahraman, the vice president of the Turkish aviation sports Federation, said that Mount Hasan hosts the best distant flying location in Turkey.

★ In the youth and U 23 European Weightlifting Championships in Bucharest, Romania, Aysel Özkan of Turkey came in second and received a silver medal.

  She competed in the 64 kg women's category.