Report: Turkey's 'Stasi' apparatus menacing 'German Turks'.

Report: Turkey's 'Stasi' apparatus menacing 'German Turks'. (DW).

The Sunday edition of "Die Welt" said Bundestag intelligence oversight committee members were demanding answers from Chancellor Angela Merkel's government on MIT activities in Germany in the wake of Turkey's failed 15 July coup.

Ankara had 6,000 informants of its Milli Istihbarat Teskilati (MIT) national intelligence agency in Germany who were putting pressure on "German Turks," the newspaper claimed.

Some 3.7 million of Germany's 81-million population are either German nationals of Turkish origin or Turks who reside long-term in the Federal Republic. Their diverse organizations are planning or have staged rallies, including one in support of strongman Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan .

Veteran opposition Greens parliamentarian Hans-Christian Ströbele told the "Die Welt am Sonntag" that there was an "unbelievable" level of "secret activities" in Germany by Turkey's MIT agency, which in English calls itself the National Intelligence Organization.

 "Welt am Sonntag" quoted an unnamed "security politician" as saying that the MIT had at its disposition a "large number" of regular agents in Germany, as well as a network of 6,000 informants - far more than previously known.

That meant one MIT informant for every 500 citizens of Turkish origin, according to the unnamed politician quoted by the newspaper.


German intelligence service expert observer Erich Schmidt-Eenboom said MIT's surveillance reach in post-reunification Germany was "enormous."

"For many Turks national pride is so strongly pronounced that they regard it as an honor to be allowed to work for MIT," he said.

Not even the former communist East German Stasi secret police had managed to run such a large "army of agents" in the former West Germany, Schmidt-Eenboom said.


"Here, it's not just about intelligence gathering, but increasingly about intelligence service repression," he said, adding that Germany should not allow such behavior by a NATO partner. Hmmmm.....Intelligence gathering or......Fifth Column of a hostile state? Read the full story here.

Did Turkish army use chemical weapons on Kurds in Dersim?

Did Turkish army use chemical weapons on Kurds in Dersim? (ANF).

There is suspicion that Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) used chemical weapons in the most recent airstrikes conducted in the rural areas of Dersim's Ovacık district for two days.

People's Defense Forces (HSM) Headquarters Command announced two days ago that HPG Command Council Member Baran Dersim (İsmail Aydemir) and guerrillas Erdal Reşo (Abdurrahman Akçin), Cîlo Kop (Resul Balıkçı) and Botan Gevda (Sedat Arslan) fell a martyr in the mentioned airstrikes. Yet, bodies of three among them are currently held at Elazığ Forensic Medicine Institution, and one remains missing. Families of four guerrillas went to Ovacık to identify the bodies but they couldn't recognize them.

'BODIES ARE UNRECOGNIZABLE'

HDP Dersim deputy Alican Öncü who also saw the bodies of fallen guerrillas told that; “Families couldn't recognize the bodies which were completely burned and sort of turned into coal. One of the bodies didn't have the head, and one other was entirely burned apart from a small part on the chin.”

'FAMILIES DEMAND DETAILED POST-MORTEM'

Remarking that families couldn't obtain the results of the post-mortem performed on the bodies in Ovacık, Öncü said; “Families gave blood sample for a DNA test. The bodies have been sent to Elazığ Forensic Medicine Institution but the identification will be made only after the Eid Al-Adha due to the festive holiday. Families also demand a detailed post-mortem report in order for it to become clear whether their children were killed by chemical weapons or not.”

Besides the situation of the corpses, the details Öncü provided about the airstrikes also strengthen the doubts over the use of chemical weapons prohibited by international rules.

'TSK USED FIRE FIGHTING AIRCRAFT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 40 YEARS'

According to the information provided by Öncü, Turkish army used fire fighting aircraft following the bombardment which lasted two days. This happened for the first time during the last 40 years of war in Kurdistan.

HDP MP Öncü said that; “Hundreds of bombardments were conducted on mountains and villages during the past 40 years but state forces never performed fire fighting in any of these. This has been the first time when the fire in the area was extinguished by Turkish aircraft in the middle of the night, without even waiting for the morning hours.”

To the question why it happened so, Öncü answered; “I don't know but this first ever fire fighting efforts by the state supports our suspects. They might have extinguished the fire to lessen the effect of chemical weapons.”

'FAMILIES SUFFERING A SECOND TORTURE'

Öncü pointed out that besides the bodies held at Elazığ Forensic Medicine Institution, there are also some other bodies currently held at Malatya Forensic Medicine Institution which have yet to be identified in the same way as DNA tests haven't been concluded yet. “The extension of the procedures, which are normally finalized within two days, makes the families suffer a second torture” he stated.

Stressing that the Palace waging this war recognizes no morals, rules of battle and even the traditions of the state itself, HDP deputy for Dersim said; “The cruelty of the state has reached a point of not recognizing its own state traditions even. Bodies of fallen guerrillas are being subject to torture and their families are not being allowed to take and bury them. As we witnessed in Cizre, mothers held the bodies of their children in fridges in their houses. There is no such an instance around the world. They are doing a similar thing in Dersim now.” Hmmmm......It would not be the furst time #Turkish 'herrenvolk' uses chemical weapons on the Kurdish population.See: Confirmed: Turkey used chemical weapons against Kurds  More here.

Turkey should not join the European Union because it is not part of Europe, German Finance Minister.

Turkey should not join the European Union because it is not part of Europe, German Finance Minister.(HD).

German minister’s EU remarks on Turkey ‘unacceptable’.

Turkey should not join the European Union because it is not part of Europe, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said July 3, bluntly underlining Berlin’s opposition to Ankara’s long-running membership bid while prompting an immediate reaction from Turkish officials.

“We should not accept Turkey as a full member ... Turkey is not part of Europe,” Schaeuble said at an election rally in Düsseldorf.

Schaeuble’s remarks are “extremely unacceptable and groundless,” said a senior Turkish diplomat, adding that he was unable to “read either Europe or Turkey” and was unaware of the institutional relationship between the EU and Turkey.

Germany pressed the 28-member bloc to delay a new round of membership talks last week, in response to Ankara’s crackdown on anti-government Gezi Park protesters. Brussels postponed the negotiations until fall, but said the path to Turkey’s membership was still open.

Merkel’s critics have accused her of making a show of her opposition to Turkey’s membership to curry favor with conservative voters before elections, scheduled for September.

Turkey became an associate of the bloc in the 1960s but accession talks launched in 2005 became bogged down in a dispute over Greek Cyprus and opposition from Paris and Berlin. “These kinds of expressions cannot be accepted, furthermore, they don’t reflect the reality either. The history, the values and the prospect of a common future; these are all factual aspects which prove that a Europe without Turkey is unthinkable, unimaginable,” the senior diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Hürriyet Daily News today.

“Although the pace is down, still, the institutional relationship is on track, with one more negotiation chapter having been opened just recently. The full EU membership is still a strategic goal for us,” the diplomat said. “I do not know what the basis of Mr. Schaeuble’s assumption is; this is a question which should be answered by him. Yet, one should not forget that such assumptions are not befitting the contractual basis of the relationship between Turkey and the EU and should not also forget the principle of pacta sunt servanda [a principle of international law which means in Latin that agreements must be kept],” he said.Read the full story here.

Obama's BFF Turkey calls on Cairo to stick to democratic norms, demanding that Egypt’s military avoid any intervention in politics.

Obama's BFF Turkey calls on Cairo to stick to democratic norms, demanding that Egypt’s military avoid any intervention in politics.(HD).

Ankara has called on Egyptian authorities to respect the rule of law and the people’s will by sticking to democratic norms, in an apparent reference to the army’s possible intervention into the country’s crisis-torn political scene.

“Turkey sees the stability and security of brother and friend Egypt as crucially important for both our country and the region, and Turkey has always supported the free will of Egyptians in the Jan. 25 revolution,” a Foreign Ministry statement said today.

Egypt’s armed forces chief was meeting today with opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei and top Sunni Muslim and Coptic Christian leaders ahead of the army’s deadline due to expire at around 5 p.m. The discussions with Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi focused on the road map the military threatened to impose late yesterday unless President Mohamed Morsi “meets the demands of the people,” following four days of mass protests calling for his resignation.

The talks involved al-Sisi, former U.N. nuclear watchdog chief ElBaradei, Coptic Patriarch Tawadros II and Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, the top Sunni Muslim authority. Also present were representatives of the Salafi Al-Nour Party. The Brotherhood’s political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, refused an invitation to meet al-Sisi, saying it only recognized the elected president.

“We are deeply concerned about the ‘deadly incidents’ that occurred between groups which have different opinions … The course of events should not overshadow the big and historic gains of Egypt’s Revolution. All parties should make efforts to support Egypt’s unity, democratic institutions, stability, economic development and avoid all types of violence and provocation,” the statement read. “It is always possible to find solutions to political and economic problems with dialogue where democratic mechanisms are operated.” Hmmm.........Can't say we're surprised in view of the Democratic way Turkey deeals with protests , Journalists and The Military top......You think they think this could be us Next year?Read the full story here.

Ankara mulls cutting ties with EU if chapter vetoed.

Ankara mulls cutting ties with EU if chapter vetoed.(HD).

Turkey’s reaction against the European Union could be as harsh as completely suspending political dialogue with Brussels, if the opening of the “regional policies” chapter is vetoed by Germany and the Netherlands, the Hürriyet Daily News has learned.

“If they reject the opening of the chapter, our relations with the EU will return to their 1997 level,” a senior Turkish diplomat told the Daily News on June 18.

Turkey suspended political dialogue with the EU in December 1997 after its candidacy for full membership was rejected at the Luxembourg Summit of the union. Turkey-EU ties hit a nadir from 1998 to 1999, where the two had almost no exchange of views on numerous political issues, including Cyprus and other foreign policy issues.

“Our agenda with the EU should be limited to economic issues, and implementation of the Customs Union. They should forget about foreign policy consultations with Turkey,” the diplomat stated. “But we still hope common sense will prevail and the [regional policies] chapter will not be blocked.”

If the chapter is opened during the upcoming June 26 intergovernmental conference, it will be the first chapter to be opened after three years.

The reservation issued by Germany and Netherlands is technical on paper, but many believe the main reason is political and originated as a reaction to the Turkish government’s undemocratic response to the Gezi Park demonstrations.

“There is still some time to overcome this obstacle,” a European diplomat said, underlining that there were intense deliberations within the EU on the opening of this chapter. “Some other member countries urged these two countries that blocking the opening of the chapter would hurt our ties severely. It would be a very bad message to send to Turkey and to the Turkish people.”

The Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) of the member states met yesterday and will hold another meeting today, before the EU ministers are expected to gather on June 24 to give the final decision on the opening of the chapter.

Ankara believes Germany’s veto is purely for domestic use of the government on the eve of parliamentary elections slated for Sept. 22. A draft part program of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) rejects Turkey’s full membership of the EU on the grounds that the candidate does not meet political criteria and would overburden the EU because of the size and structure of its economy.

The program says the country would "overburden" the bloc because of its size and economy.

However, the Turkish diplomatic source stressed that Turkey “would no longer remain silent in the face of attempts to use it as a tool in a pre-election campaign of any EU country.”

Relations between Turkey and the EU have recently been strained after the European Parliament issued a strongly worded statement against the Turkish government’s response to the Gezi Park demonstrations.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said he “did not recognize” the European Parliament (EP) and its decisions, while accusing the EU of being “undemocratic.”
His reaction was echoed by almost all top government officials, including President Abdullah Gül, leading to the postponement of an EP delegation’s visit to Turkey on June 18 and 19, as none of the top Turkish brass would give them appointments. Hmmmm...... "Erdoğan said he “did not recognize” the European Parliament (EP) and its decisions".....honestly does Europe need such a 'member' know as "the worst human rights violator in Europe"????Read the full story here.

I'm Sure Obama yesterday told frau Merkel to let his BFF Erdogan in Europe......or else.