Front Page Headlines
Water sump
Blood-curdling confessions. Atilla Peker: “We went to Cyprus with Korkut Eken to kill Kutlu Adalı.” Atilla Peker, brother of convicted criminal gang leader Sedat Peker in a written testimony submitted to the prosecutor’s office in Turkey confessed they had travelled to Cyprus with former MIT (Turkish Intelligence) officer Korkut Eken to kill Cypriot journalist Kutlu Adalı.
Home quarantine for those arriving from abroad
Council of Ministers decided that people from now on will be quarantined at home and monitored through an electronic bracelet monitoring system. Prime Minister Ersan Saner announced only coronavirus positive people will stay at the quarantine hotels.
- If there’s an issue that requires a police investigation, all that is necessary will be done – Prime Minister Ersan Saner said he held meetings with the police commissioner and with the attorney general regarding the allegations on Kutlu Adalı’s murder.
- We went to (north) Cyprus with Korkut Eken to kill Kutlu Adalı –Sedat Peker’s brother Atilla Peker’s testimony on Kutlu Adalı’s murder given to (Turkish) prosecutor’s office, was leaked to media.
- Not possible to talk about family unity anymore – Turkish Cypriot residents of Pile (Pyla) are waiting for the crossings to reopen so they can be reunited with their family members.
- The goal is to reopen the crossings next week – Special Representative of the Presidency Ergün Olgun said the Higher Board for Infectious Diseases has adopted the necessary decisions for the reopening of the crossings while the harmonization efforts with the Greek Cypriot side has been completed.
Who will clean this mess?
Sedat Peker’s brother Atilla Peker gave testimony to the (Turkish) prosecutor’s office revealing names and details on Kutlu Adalı’s murder. In his testimony, Atilla Peker said he had travelled to North Cyprus together with former Turkish intelligence officer Korkut Eken where they met with Colonel Galip Mendi, who was the head of the Civil Defence Department at the time. He added they carried out reconnaissance visits to kill Adalı.
- The investigation will move forward if additional information is received – Prime Minister Ersan Saner implied that the information given by Sedat Peker on Kutlu Adalı’s murder was not enough for police investigation.
- The crossings will reopen next week – Special Representative of the Presidency Ergün Olgun announced the harmonisation efforts with the Greek Cypriot side for the reopening of the crossings have been completed.
- Talos fiasco – A National Guard officer died after falling in the mountainous area of Trooditissa during the Talos-2 2021 joint air-defence exercise with France and the Greek Cypriot National Guard.
Historic confessions
While former Prime Minister Hakkı Atun said they couldn’t learn anything from the police when Kutlu Adalı was murdered in 1996, his deputy at the time, Mehmet Ali Talat spoke about the army’s dominance and influence at the time.
- I had a Jerico handgun as I travelled to Cyprus with Korkut Eken – Sedat Peker’s brother Atilla Peker made shocking statements to the prosecutor’s office in Turkey on the Kutlu Adalı murder.
He gave me Uzi (sub-machine gun)
New confessions on the Kutlu Adalı’s murder… The veil is lifted a bit more… Sedat Peker’s brother Atilla Peker talked about the details of the murder. In his testimony to the prosecutor’s office, Atilla Peker said: “We landed in (north) Cyprus, and went to a hotel… The same day we went to the Civil Defence Department and met with Colonel Galip Mendi… There Korkut Eken handed me an Uzi sub-machine gun and taught me how to use the weapon, install its silencer.”
Main News
Saner says TC side ready to reopen crossings, minor obstacles remaining
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
CBMs
OVERVIEW
The cabinet in the north on Tuesday adopted decisions to facilitate and regulate the reopening of the crossing points while Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s special representative Ergün Olgun said the crossings will likely be opened next week.
Olgun said the north’s scientific advisory team had decided on the crossings and the task of harmonising the process with South Cyprus has been completed. “The Turkish Cypriot side is ready for the reopening of the crossing points as of today. We are planning to reopen the crossing points as of next week following an evaluation by the Greek Cypriot leadership and within the framework of the harmonized rules,” he said.
He said on Tuesday that an agreement has been reached to reopen based on the terms of the crossings as they were prior to the pandemic – meaning that third-country nationals will also be allowed to cross.
The scientific advisory submitted their report to their Greek Cypriot counterparts, who in turn asked for further clarifications. Olgun said that these details have been shared with the Greek Cypriot officials, who have now asked for some time to study them.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersan Saner said the Turkish Cypriot side will implement different rules of entry for individuals depending on the risk status of the country of their arrival.
He said that countries will be divided into four categories – green, yellow, amber and red. In this regard, the tourists or visitors arriving from the green category will be allowed to enter the north freely, whereas individuals from countries in the yellow and amber categories will be required to present a negative PCR test or a negative rapid antigen test obtained within the last 72 hours. Saner said the tourists from countries listed in the red category will not be allowed to enter the north.
Earlier on Tuesday Saner said the Turkish Cypriot side had no problems in reopening the crossing points. In a written statement issued from his office, Saner said there was a minor technical issue regarding the QR code reading system.
He pointed out there is a disagreement among the health committee members regarding allowing people from countries categorized in the red category to use the crossings. He noted that the health committee members have agreed on everything else.
“The reopening of the crossings has become a political issue and the Turkish Cypriot side is ready to reopen the crossings,” Saner said. Nonetheless, Turkish Cypriot member of the health committee Jale Refik Rogers refuted Saner’s claims. Referring to the “political obstacles” he cited, Rogers said the delays were technical and not politically motivated. “I have no idea who informed the prime minister, but as a member of the bicommunal technical committee on health, I can easily say what the prime minister said is not true,” Rogers tweeted.
Meanwhile, the Turkish Cypriot mukhtar of Pile (Pyla) Veysal Güden asked for the reopening of the crossings as well.
Speaking to Kıbrıs, Güden said the Turkish Cypriot residents of the mixed village await anxiously for the reopening of the crossings so that their relatives residing in the north can visit them. “It is not possible to talk about family unity since the closure of the crossings,” Güden stressed, adding that the restrictions in crossings had especially become a problem for the elderly and people with illnesses.
‘Adalı’s unsolved murder is proof of absence of justice‘
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
The debate in the north over Sedat Peker’s allegations on the murder of Turkish Cypriot journalist Kutlu Adalı showed no sign of abating on Tuesday after Sedat Peker’s brother Atilla Peker submitted a written testimony to the prosecutor’s office in Turkey regarding the incident.
According to Atilla Peker’s account, he and former Turkish intelligence officer Korkut Eken flew to Cyprus where they met with the former head of the Civil Defence Department Colonel Galip Mendi. Peker explained how he was provided with weapons to be used in the hit, how they staked out Adalı’s home for several days only to return to Turkey without carrying out the hit after attracting too much attention.
The Kutlu Adalı Foundation on Tuesday said the fact that the murder remains unsolved to date and none of the perpetrators have been caught is proof of the absence of justice. In a statement issued, the foundation set up by family and friends reminded that the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) had ruled that the investigation into the murder was inadequate.
The foundation said that even though the ECHR ruling can easily be accessed online; neither Turkish nor Turkish Cypriot officials had made the necessary effort to solve the case. “Every honest and courageous lawyer, every MP, every journalist and every civil society organization must research the claims and allegations that recently surfaced,” the foundation said, urging the Turkish Cypriot officials – especially the president, prime minister and the attorney general – to launch an investigation to find the perpetrators of this assassination.
Democratic Party (DP) MP Serdar Denktaş on Tuesday shared his experience and memories of the Kutlu Adalı murder in 1996. Denktaş who had served as deputy prime minister back then, during an online interview on a web TV broadcast carried out by Turkish daily Söz, refuted claims that he or his late father Rauf Denktaş knew about the details of the murder.
“It was not possible to question Turkey in the mid-90s when it carried out an act in north Cyprus,” he said, arguing that no one in Cyprus would know anything about the details of such events.
“There is talk of reopening an investigation. By all means, we should but how far can we take this investigation? The starting point (for the murder) is Turkey. How are we going to get access to information there?” Denktaş argued.
Responding to a question as to whether or not the ‘Susurluk gang’ had anything to do with Adalı’s murder, Denktaş recalled that there were strong allegations that the Susurluk gang had played a role in the murder.
“We do not know what had been taken from St. Barnabas. These are issues that we are not given any information about because it was a case the Turkish army was directly involved in. The investigation was stopped, and those investigating the case were told to back away,” Denktaş said, adding that it is a high probability that the Susurluk case is linked to Adalı’s murder.
It was claimed that Adalı was investigating the theft of a rare bible and other historic artefacts from the monastery, presumably with individuals tied to the military.
Sharing his memories with Yenidüzen on Tuesday, former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat also said the mid-90s were the days military influence over the authorities was felt the strongest.
“It was nearly impossible for the Turkish Cypriot police to carry out an independent investigation on Kutlu Adalı’s murder,” Talat said, urging the authorities “not to miss out the opportunity this time” created by Sedat Peker’s video.
Talat reminded that the Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu had said the perpetrators will be arrested and brought to justice and urged the Turkish Cypriot authorities to launch the necessary investigation without any delay. “We must not miss the opportunity created. The necessary steps must be taken and the murder case must be solved,” Talat concluded.
In a late-night development on Tuesday, People’s Party (HP) leader Kudret Özersay on Facebook wrote that “the original file on Kutlu Adalı’s murder from 1996 is missing.” Özersay added he was writing based on information he had obtained and expressed hope that it was not true.
53 per cent find Tatar unsuccessful
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Governance and Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
53 per cent of people in the north find Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar ‘unsuccessful,’ according to the findings of the latest survey carried out by the Metron polling company.
Metron, which surveyed 650 respondents, asked the participants how they would rate Tatar’s performance in office. While 53 per cent responded negatively, 21 per cent said they find him ‘successful’. Moreover, among the 21 per cent, 6.6 per cent deemed Tatar to be ‘extremely successful,’ and nearly 40 per cent out of the 53 per cent said ‘Tatar is extremely unsuccessful.’
13.5 per cent of the participants said he was neither successful nor a failure, whereas 12.5 per cent refrained from expressing an opinion on the question.
The survey was carried out from May 14 to 16 and telephone interviews were carried out with the 650 participants representative of the north’s population.
Europa Nostra award Bicommunal Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
The bicommunal technical committee on cultural heritage (TCCH) has been given the award “Dedicated Service to Heritage” by Europa Nostra.
Announcing the development in a social media post on Tuesday, Turkish Cypriot co-chair of the technical committee Ali Tuncay noted the Europa Nostra has awarded the cultural heritage committee under the category of “dedicated service to heritage by organisations and individuals.”
“This pride belongs to all who have been contributing to our efforts,” Tuncay said. The technical committee on cultural heritage is a bicommunal committee dedicated to preserving and restoring historic monuments on both sides of the divide.
UNDP also issued a message congratulating the bicommunal technical committee on the award received. “Congratulations to TCCH for receiving the Europa Nostra Award, Europe’s top honour for conservation projects,” the UNDP tweeted on Tuesday, adding that “With funding mainly from the European Union, technical support from UNDP & the involvement of over 7000 Greek Cypriot & Turkish Cypriots, the committee continues its valuable work.”
The winners in the European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards, the EU prize for cultural heritage funded by the Creative Europe programme for 2021, were selected by independent juries composed of heritage experts from across Europe, upon evaluation of candidatures submitted by organisations and individuals from 30 European countries.
Turkey launches naval drill in Eastern Mediterranean
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
External Security
OVERVIEW
The Turkish Navy on Tuesday launched a large naval manoeuvre under the name “Sea Wolf 2021” simultaneously in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean seas.
132 naval ships, 10 submarines, 43 warplanes, 28 helicopters and 14 drones are participating in the exercises taking place between May 25 and June 6.
Admiral Yalçın Payal, Commander of Naval Operations, said at a military meeting in the north-western city of Kocaeli on Monday that the manoeuvres aim to increase the readiness level of the forces to carry out any maritime operation at any time, and to test the administrative and organizational competence of the Naval Forces Command and its commanders.
It also aims to raise the level of education for the naval forces through mutual support capabilities tests, pointing to the participation of about 25,000 and 500 personnel in the exercises.