MIDEAST MIRROR 02.11.18, SECTION C (TURKEY & IRAN)
From today’s Turkish press
KHASHOGGI AFFAIR: Rauf Tamer is rendered speechless by the turn of events in centrist tabloid Posta: "Such brazenness is unheard of. Think about it: As if the lies they uttered from their diplomatic platforms were not enough, Saudi Arabia's chief prosecutor, who claims to be a man of law, also lies separately. There is nothing more one can say: I give up, dear readers. I can no longer bear to be treated like a fool."
Tamer Korkmaz charges Washington with a cover up in pro-government Yeni Safak: "Those who have appealed to the U.S. from the very beginning for the Khashoggi assassination to be resolved, are acting under a blind illusion to say the least. Jamal Khashoggi was not an American citizen, the murder was not committed on U.S. soil, and yet some have demanded that the U.S., which they describe as the 'land of freedoms', should reveal the perpetrators behind Jamal Khashoggi's assassination! But what is the reality? Let alone shedding light on the murder, the U.S. is juggling six things at the same time in order to cover it up!"
2019 LOCAL ELECTIONS: Yusuf Karatas claims that the government thrives on strife in leftist opposition Evrensel: "As we enter the period of local elections that will serve as a referendum on the country's new political regime, the area East of Euphrates has become the main item on our agenda. This is because the government realizes that it rather than peace, democracy or tranquility, it is pressure, tension and interference that are empowering. It thrives on this policy of tension. Therefore, although this policy causes the country, and the peoples to lose a lot, it helps the government to gain. That is why government representatives keep harping on the word war: 'War against terror', 'war against foreign powers', 'economic war'. It is always war!"
Sadrettin Karaduman does not lament the dissolution of the current parliamentary alliance in pro-Islamist opposition Milli Gazete: "The alliance between the AKP [ruling Justice and Development Party] and MHP [Nationalist Movement Party] has no future. This mandatory and problematic alliance has come to an end. However, two questions remain unanswered: First: Has MHP leader Devlet Bahceli, who was assigned to form this alliance, completed his mission? Second: Who, or which party, has this alliance, which was formed in the lead up to the June 2017 general elections, served? This alliance has ended because of its incompatibility with the electorate's blood type. This is more than enough to disperse it."
Nuh Albayrak warns against playing into the Kurds' hands in pro-government Star:" Most of the names that the people of Southeast Turkey respect are not involved in politics, and do not beg to be named a candidate. These are the ones that should be reached and convinced, asking them to act as candidates to serve the people. March 2019 is not a local election at all, and the results in the South East will be extra crucial. It should not be forgotten that each mistake will play into the HDP's [pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party] hands."
SEXUAL ABUSE: Rahmi Turan turns the spotlight on a grave social problem in opposition nationalist Sozcu: "The Khashoggi murder, U.S. pastor Brunson's case, the soldiers who froze to death, the Syrian swamp, etc.: We, as a society, have been stupefied by the chain of events one after another! We have so many issues to worry about. One of them is the rape of minors, both boys and girls! It is estimated that only a tenth of incidents get reported. Incest makes up 20 to 25 % of sexual abuse cases. We have to accept 'struggle against sexual child abuse' as a 'national duty'!"
Iran media watch
(Please note that Iranian newspapers do not publish on Fridays and Channel One (IRTV1) does not air its morning news bulletin.)
ROWHANI'S FT ARTICLE: Iranian broadcast media today led with President Hassan Rowhani's opinion piece published by the Financial Times yesterday in which he warned the world about the "dangers" posed by Washington's "unilateralism", and urged European countries to work with Iran against the U.S. State radio VIRI picked part of Rowhani's article ,where he urged Europe, Russia, and China to "present and implement their final proposed package of measures to compensate for and mitigate the effects of America's newest unilateral and extraterritorial sanctions before they are imposed." English language Press TV pitched into Rowhani's criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump's policies over the past two years, especially with regards to "complicity in the daily atrocities in Yemen," "humiliation and gradual perishing of the great nation of Palestine," among other things.
ARBA'EEN: Rolling news channel IRINN quoted the Interior Minister as saying that over 80 percent of Iranian pilgrims who had travelled to Iraq for the Arba'een Shiite mourning rituals have returned home. VIRI quoted the Minister as saying that over 12,000 buses were dispatched to border areas for pilgrim transport.
ISRAEL/BRAZIL: Press TV this morning led with Brazilian president-elect Jair Bolsonaro's announcement that he will move his country's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The TV said Bolsonaro was a "staunch" supporter of Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu. Political commentator Isaac Bigio told Press TV that Bolsonaro's move may prompt Colombia and other countries in South America to do the same, and predicted a "complete change" in the politics of the continent as a result.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Iranian users on Twitter have been posting comments in reaction to Iran International TV's Q&A with opposition figure Reza Pahlavi. Nearly 10,000 Tweets have been posted by over four-thousand genuine accounts over the past 24 hours after the London-based channel aired the recorded interview last night. Pahlavi was asked by the audience about his plans for his homeland in a post-Islamic Republic future. Many users shared a quote from him that the biggest betrayal to Iran today was being "indifferent" to the developing situation. Some described what he was promoting as "the first principle of patriotism". Some were happy to hear from the exiled son of the late Shah of Iran that once the Islamic establishment is gone, economic problems would no longer be a major problem. Others welcomed his secular views. However, a group of pro-regime users and pro-reform journalists expressed strong disapproval of Pahlavi's remarks.