The Catholic Basilica of St. Anthony of Padua, located in the very central Istiklal Caddesi, one of the most famous avenues in Istanbul, is currently in no danger of ending up on the real estate market as a private luxury building. In recent days, Sebahattin Gök has been arrested and brought to justice, the man who last year, thanks to a network of accomplices, organized a complex fraudulent operation to illegally gain possession of the largest church Catholic Istanbul in order to resell it to the highest bidder. Investigations into the case confirmed that the “gang” of Gök and his associates were specializing in real estate scams committed against ecclesial and religious communities as well as foreign owners or those belonging to ethnic minority groups
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing domestic and international pressure to stop a crackdown on student protests that erupted after the Turkish leader’s decision to install a new rector at one of the country’s main universities
With the coronavirus pandemic lockdown hurting businesses around the world, restaurants that delivered food became essential and even profitable
In Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast, a news network staffed entirely by women is taking the lead in reporting on women and human rights. But the groundbreaking JIN News agency is increasingly targeted in what the government claims is its battle against terrorism
Turkish exporters are being shut out of Middle Eastern markets due to growing pushback by Saudi Arabia and Egypt in response to what some describe as Turkey’s aggressive foreign policy
Turkey is seeking to save its vital tourism sector amid the coronavirus pandemic, but the easing of restrictions as part of the government’s return to normalcy is leading to a surge in infections
Turkish President Recep Tayyip faces a growing backlash over plans to convert Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, the former Greek Orthodox cathedral that is now a museum, into a mosque. Once eastern Christianity’s greatest church, it was turned into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest in the 15th century and then a museum in the 1930’s
Turkey has launched a military campaign against Kurdish rebels based in northern Iraq, but many civilians have been caught in the crossfire
In Istanbul, a 36-year-old woman is a one-person traveling medical unit treating some of Turkey’s most vulnerable refugees at a time when, for many people, hospitals are not an option. Some refugees do not have their papers in order. Others cannot afford care or fear getting the coronavirus at a hospital
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planning what’s dubbed ‘the construction project of the decade’, a massive canal connecting Turkey’s Marmara and Black Sea. The canal will provide an alternative route to the Bosporus, one of the world’s busiest waterways, which divides Istanbul. But the project is proving controversial, both domestically and internationally