Author: Hamit Sayin

With its thousands of islands and islets grouped into archipelagos, Greece is home to some uniquely beautiful destinations. For a week’s getaway or longer, here is our list of the most beautiful Greek islands by archipelago, from the classics of Santorini and Mykonos in the Cyclades to Rhodes and Patmos in the Dodecanese. The Saronic Islands, the archipelago at the doors of Athens Located in the Aegean Sea, between Attica and the Peloponnese, the Saronic Islands are closest to Athens: the nearest is less than 40 minutes from Piraeus by hydrofoil, the furthest 2h30 at most. Hydra, the elegant, arty…

After two days of lengthy negotiations in Doha, Hamas has named Yahya Sinwar as its new overall chief, replacing Ismail Haniyeh who was assassinated in Tehran last week. Since 2017, Sinwar has served as the group’s leader inside the Gaza strip. He will now become leader of its political wing. The Hamas leadership unanimously chose Sinwar to lead the movement, a senior Hamas official told the BBC. The announcement comes at a moment of soaring tensions in the Middle East, as Iran and its allies threaten retaliation for the killing of Haniyeh, which they blame on Israel. Israel has not…

Turkish President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on May 3 stated that he was content with the visit of main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel and said that he would pay a return visit as soon as possible. In his remarks after the Friday prayers, Erdoğan referred to his meeting with a main opposition leader after eight years and said that it was a positive development between the government and the main opposition that Özel made such a visit after he became the CHP’s chair. Pointing out that such steps were…

The renowned Turkish TV series market has been severely impacted by the ongoing economic crisis, prompting production companies to cancel all summer series this year and cut back on the number of shows for the upcoming season, according to journalist Birsen Altuntaş. Even though Turkey became the third-biggest TV series importer worldwide according to the Economist, the rising production cost began to affect producers. The cost of producing a TV series episode, which was around one to 1.5 million Turkish liras three years ago, has now soared to over 10 million liras. This drastic increase in production expenses encompassed actor salaries, screenwriter…

A Pole, a German, a Frenchmen, and a Swiss meet in a bar, or was it a Swiss, a French, a German, and a Slovak, I forgot. However, what otherwise sounded like the beginning of a quirky joke was in fact an informal luncheon by some of the brightest analysts of the European Union in early December last year. Nationalities aside, the topic of the lunch was, of course, the Ukraine. The basic question was simple, Are We at War? Will Russia win? What’s the consequence for Europe if Russia wins? What is the European Union willingness to defend the…

Iranian Vice President Mohammad Mokhber said on Saturday his country “is determined to expand economic cooperation with Syria,” according to Iran’s official news agency IRNA. He made the remarks in a meeting with visiting Syrian Prime Minister Hussein Arnous in the Iranian capital Tehran, describing the bilateral relations as “strategic, close and cordial.” Mokhber said Syria had a special place in the eyes of the Iranian government and people and that they attached priority to the Syrian people’s peace, independence, success and welfare. He said “Today, the resistance of the Syrian government and people has disappointed the enemies, a part…

Attacks on journalists have become a frequent occurrence in Tajikistan in recent years. Why are those responsible for attacks on journalists remain unpunished? Berlin (23/11 – 67) November 2 is the “International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists”. The date was chosen in commemoration of the assassination in Mali of Claude Verlon and Ghislaine Dupont, two French journalists, on November 2, 2013. The 2023 observance seeks to raise awareness of the main challenges faced by journalists and communicators in the exercise of their profession, and to warn of the escalation of violence and repression against them. Attacks on…

Berlin (24/11 – 50) The Supreme Court of the Republic of Tajikistan sentenced five Pamiri leaders from the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) to life imprisonment. They are Tolib Ayombekov, Nazhmiddin Sherchonov, Imumnazar Shoishirinov, Munavvar Shanbiev and Niyozsho Gulobov. The press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Tajikistan announced their detention in June of this year, presenting everyone as “leaders of an organized criminal group in the city of Khorog” – the administrative center of GBAO. According to information from the law enforcement agency, Shanbiev and Ayombekov were among those with whom the country’s authorities signed separate agreements in October…

At least 20 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others wounded by Israeli attacks on the besieged coastal enclave, the Hamas-run health ministry said Tuesday. “At least 20 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes on two residential houses in al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza,” the health ministry said in a press statement. In northern Gaza, dozens of Palestinians were killed and wounded on Tuesday by heavy Israeli airstrikes on the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahia town, and an attack on the Kamal Odwan Hospital, the ministry added, without giving the exact numbers. Palestinian security sources and local eyewitnesses said…

London (07/11 – 71) For ten years now, the authorities of Tajikistan have been engaged in forced assimilation of the ethnic Pamiri people, giving away the heartlands to China for debts,” Orzu M. shared with RFI – Radio France Internationale is a French news and current affairs public radio station that broadcasts worldwide. RFI met with Orzu in Paris, sharing the fact that more and more Pamiris are leaving their native homes in Gorno-Badakhshan Mountainous Autonomous (GBAO) Region of Tajikistan; they are driven into exile by the persecution of the authorities, who are displacing indigenous peoples. RFI: How did it…