The Ottoman empire was decimated nearly a century ago after ravaging the Balkans and pillaging the holy city of Madinah. The only people mourning its unravelling are Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the atavistic president of Turkey and his jingoistic acolytes. Mr Erdogan's all-consuming nostalgia for the Ottoman era is matched only by Vladimir Putin's for the Soviet empire. Had this been a case of mere patriotism, it would not matter as much. But Mr Erdogan's fantasies are dictating Turkey's foreign policy. Having breached the sovereignty of Syria by deploying his forces in Afrin, he is now threatening to intervene militarily in Sinjar in northern Iraq.
Mr Erdogan's threat on Monday to the sovereign government of Iraq, threatening to do "what is necessary" if Ankara's wishes weren't immediately fulfilled by Baghdad, was delivered with the hauteur of a sultan. The president's claims that he is taking action against insurgents from the Kurdish Workers' Party does not legitimise his aggression. Mr Erdogan is plainly pushing to see what he can get away with; he is effectively justifying Turkey stamping on the sovereignty of other nations. How long will the international community tolerate this egregious behaviour? Certainly, Ankara's aspirations to become a part of the European Union, stalled for a decade and all but obselete, were further frustrated at a summit on Monday in Bulgaria, where EU leaders ranked Mr Erdogan's propensity for illegal foreign interventions among their chief concerns but fell short of outright censure. Mr Erdogan has alienated both Europe and his neighbours in the Middle East. In these circumstances, Turkey's membership of Nato has to be called into question, especially given that Ankara is threatening to attack Kurdish-controlled Manbij in Syria if its Nato ally, the US, does not comply with its wishes, despite the fact the US has troops stationed there. Threats and acts of aggression will not be tolerated. Draped in delusions of grandeur, Mr Erdogan is igniting deadly new fires in the Middle East. It is time for him to accept the days of empire are dead.
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
On racial profiling at airports
