Riding an evening train out of Kyiv late last week, I got the feeling I wasn’t headed towards a specific destination, but simply moving away from something – most likely the bombs and dive-bombing drones, the blackouts and waterless days that had come to define life in the Ukrainian capital.
This got me thinking of Turkey’s political scene and where it might be headed, as inflation continues to hit record highs with a potentially game-changing election looming next spring. Last week, days after the Turkish Republic kicked off its 100th year, the governing AKP marked two decades in power.
“The longer a democratic regime survives, the less likely it is to collapse,” Michael McFaul, a former US ambassador to Russia, wrote in a 2009 book. “The longer an autocracy survives, the more likely it will collapse.”
For much of its history, Turkey’s leaders have seemed to mock this assertion by balancing on the line separating these labels. The country’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, is a figure whose legacy seems to grow more impressive and more problematic with each passing year.
He is firmly established as a singular moderniser in the Middle East, bringing a relatively stable democracy and a dash of secularism to a region that has seen little of either over the past century. Ataturk also compares favourably to European leaders of his era.
Consider that last week marked the centennial of Benito Mussolini’s march on Rome, soon after which he became Italy’s leader and forged a fascist totalitarian state. Inspired by the Italian success, Adolf Hitler launched his famed Munich Beer Hall Putsch the next year. That coup failed, but it made his name and by the end of the next decade, the two were plotting to conquer all of Europe – and nearly did just that.
Turkish society is probably too polarised to achieve a lasting consensus anytime soon
That Ataturk achieved all he did in Turkey in this same period places him among the handful of great 20th-century leaders. Thursday marks his 84th death anniversary, which will again offer Turks the opportunity to express their abiding pride and admiration in their own inimitable way.
Some months after I moved to Turkey, back in 2013, I was walking along the Bosporus near the fairytale edifice of Dolmabahce Palace when passing cars began rolling to a stop, one after another. Pedestrians also froze as the drivers opened their doors, stepped out of their vehicles and stood stock still. I paused and looked around, dumbfounded and unsettled. Had there been an alien invasion, or a major nuclear attack? Was this the most well co-ordinated flash mob of all time? Then I recalled reading about this annual commemoration.
A few put their hands over their hearts, but most of the Turks observing this moment of silent remembrance on that Istanbul avenue during morning rush-hour kept their arms at their sides and stood still for a full minute before, all at once, continuing on with their day. It felt like something out of the Twilight Zone, or a more innocent age, and remains to this day the most stirring show of national respect I’ve ever witnessed.
Yet, Ataturk was no saint. Some charge him with failing to halt or curb the Armenian genocide, and in a recent column I wondered if he viewed Arabs as inferior. His 15-year reign is widely seen as a period of autocratic rule. When Turkey held elections a dozen years after the state’s founding, only one party, Ataturk’s CHP, was on the ballot.
Many of his policy decisions – doing away with the Arabic script, banning the fez, ending the caliphate, restricting Islamic observances – were made by fiat. And it’s easy to draw a line from Ataturk’s crackdown on Islamic influence on public life to the birth and subsequent dominance of the AKP.
The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt in 1928 partially in response to the end of the caliphate. The National Vision party of Necmettin Erbakan, essentially a Turkish chapter of the Brotherhood, mentored the AKP’s founders, who in turn nurtured the grievances of conservative Turks marginalised by Kemalism.
In creating his secular democracy, Ataturk believed he had to align with the military and put Islam in a box; a few generations later, this led to blowback in the form of the AKP. Are Turks now set to chart a new path?
Turkey watchers generally saw the AKP’s emergence and ending of military tutelage as marking a post-Kemalist period. In recent years, there’s been much talk of a post-post-Kemalist era, with Turks moving away from AKP conservatism and strongman politics and towards something else.
Perhaps we’ll start to see a synthesis, as the competing ideologies cross-pollinate. Last month, Kemal Kilicdaroglu – the head of Ataturk’s old party, the main opposition CHP, and the likeliest challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – suggested a new law enshrining women’s right to wear the headscarf in public.
Alternatively, the coming decades in Turkey might echo the Democrat-Republican pendulum swings the US presidency has seen since the early 1990s. Turkish society is probably too polarised to achieve a lasting consensus anytime soon. Success might simply be a string of somewhat free and fair elections, relative stability and a degree of political pluralism.
Seeking stability myself, I settled on Budapest as my first port of call after leaving Ukraine. After a late-night arrival I awoke to dark smoke, charred debris, bombed-out vehicles and fire-damaged buildings. As fate would have it, Kate Winslet and a vast crew were shooting a major Hollywood film about a heroic Second World War photojournalist just outside my window.
Someday soon, Turks might also learn that going someplace new doesn’t always change the scenery as much as one might hope.
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Director: Jon Watts
Stars: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon
Rating:*****
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
ABU DHABI CARD
5pm: UAE Martyrs Cup (TB) Conditions; Dh90,000; 2,200m
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap; Dh70,000; 1,400m
6pm: UAE Matyrs Trophy (PA) Maiden; Dh80,000; 1,600m
6.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Apprentice Championship (PA) Prestige; Dh100,000; 1,600m
7pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Ladies World Championship (PA) Prestige; Dh125,000; 1,600m
8pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown (PA) Group 1; Dh5,000,000; 1,600m
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Voy!%20Voy!%20Voy!
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Quick facts on cancer
- Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide, after cardiovascular diseases
- About one in five men and one in six women will develop cancer in their lifetime
- By 2040, global cancer cases are on track to reach 30 million
- 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries
- This rate is expected to increase to 75 per cent by 2030
- At least one third of common cancers are preventable
- Genetic mutations play a role in 5 per cent to 10 per cent of cancers
- Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved annually by implementing the right health
strategies
- The total annual economic cost of cancer is $1.16 trillion
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETelr%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202014%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E65%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20and%20payments%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enearly%20%2430%20million%20so%20far%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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The%20specs
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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
The specs: 2018 BMW X2 and X3
Price, as tested: Dh255,150 (X2); Dh383,250 (X3)
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged inline four-cylinder (X2); 3.0-litre twin-turbo inline six-cylinder (X3)
Power 192hp @ 5,000rpm (X2); 355hp @ 5,500rpm (X3)
Torque: 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (X2); 500Nm @ 1,520rpm (X3)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic (X2); Eight-speed automatic (X3)
Fuel consumption, combined: 5.7L / 100km (X2); 8.3L / 100km (X3)
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
BABYLON
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Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
Scoreline
Swansea 2
Grimes 20' (pen), Celina, 29'
Man City 3
Silva 69', Nordfeldt 78' (og), Aguero 88'
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
The five pillars of Islam
Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
- Jimi Hendrix
- Leonardo Di Vinci
- David Bowie
- Paul McCartney
- Albert Einstein
- Jack the Ripper
- Barack Obama
- Helen Keller
- Joan of Arc
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