North Korean Nukes? Turkey Has 50

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Milliyet Newspaper, 31 October 2017)


Turkey is sort of the clueless North Korea. No nuclear flexing here.

With the tension between the U.S. and North Korean over the latter's
nuclear weapons program simmering, the Turkish Parliament (TBMM)
is looking into the distribution of nuclear weapons throughout the world.
 According to the TBMM's July 2017 report, there are approximately
15,000 nuclear weapons in 14 countries.  Of these, 9,400 are in military
depots, while the remainder are awaiting destruction.

Some 4,500 nuclear weapons are ready for use at any moment and 1,800
of these are on a high alert status.  Russia and the U.S. account for 93%
of the nuclear weapons, with the remainder in the hands of the UK, France,
China, Israel, India, Pakistan and North Korea.

With regard to the nuclear weapons in Turkey, the TBMM report stated that
"there are about 150 American nuclear weapons at 6 air bases in Belgium,
Germany, Italy, Holland and Turkey."  Five of the nuclear weapons states
are signators of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and three are not - India,
Pakistan and Israel.  North Korea withdrew from the pact in 2003.  Russia
has 7,000 nuclear weapons, the U.S. 6,800, France 300, China 260, UK
215, Pakistan 130, India 120, Israel 80 and North Korea 10.

The U.S. nuclear weapons in NATO countries were put in place during
the Cold War.  The 50 nuclear bombs currently at Incirlik Air Base in
Adana, Turkey, are the 'B61' type, according to information produced by
the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).   'Jupiter' nuclear-tipped
rockets were positioned in Turkey from 1961 to 1963 but were
removed after the Cuban Missile Crisis between the U.S. and Russia in
the early 1960s.



An imagined view of Adana on an upcoming Sunday afternoon.

Pothole Protest With Fishing Rods in Rize

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sözcü Newspaper, 30 October 2017)


           Maybe they'll catch a bureaucrat. 

The potholes on the main road 9 kilometers from Rize city that starts
at Zincirliköprü village and links 11 separate villages have become so
egregious that the villagers have taken to fishing in the potholes to
draw attention to the problem.

Village chief Memiş Yazıcı said that "they've been putting us off about
the road for two years.  They've made a liar out of me in the eyes of my
villagers."  One of the villagers, Yakup Baş, noted that "every time it
rains the road becomes a lake. To protest we're fishing in the puddles,
trying to catch some fish."


Rize province is on Turkey's eastern Black Sea coast.

Communism: Did We Give Up On It Too Soon?

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Cumhuriyet Newspaper, 29 October 2017)


Cargo manager wrongly thought he'd chill out in Commie Ovacık.

In Ovacık district of Tunceli province, the one and only Communist
Party administration in Turkey, produces organic chickpeas, dried beans
and honey.  But demand for the products has been so overwhelming that
the local cargo company is having trouble keeping up with shipments.


Perhaps not surprisingly, both had a chick pea yearning.

The cooperative established in 1994 by the Communist Party Ovacık
Municipality and producers in the district ships organic peas, dried beans
and organic honey purchased from Ovacık's central area and the districts
of Pertek, Hozat and Nazimiye to customers in Turkey's 81 provinces.
The cargo firm hired by the cooperative ships 3 tons of the products 3
time per week in order to reach customers within 3 days. The cargo
office in Ovacık currently handles more packages than any other cargo
office in the country.

Film Script Edition: Brit Bodyguards Dupe Rich Iranians

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(HaberTürk Newspaper, 29 October 2017)


                    Left holding the bag...

Three Iranian siblings who came to Istanbul for business occupied two
floors of a five-star hotel and were protected by private British bodyguards.
The way they were robbed is the stuff of movies.

The Iranians came to Istanbul in April, having hired a famous British firm
for their bodyguards.  The Iranians and their British guards stayed together
on the 5th and 6th floors of the hotel in the Sütlüce section of the city.
The Brits then made a deal with a local security company for support.

Last Tuesday the British bodyguards left the hotel and the same evening
three people identifying themselves as policemen came to the hotel at
about 6 PM in a mini-van and told the Iranians they must come with them.
Later, not hearing from the Iranians, an individual named M.M. informed
the real police that they were missing.
 

Brit bodyguards stopped off in Monaco on way back to England.

Assuming that the Iranians, A.S. (35), M.S. (32) and M.S. (30), had been
kidnapped for ransom the police went into action.  Reviewing hotel
video footage, the police saw that after the Iranians left, their former
British bodyguards entered their rooms and made off with jewelry worth
500,000 euros and financial documents worth 1 million euros. (!)  The
bodyguards then flew to England.

The Iranians, who it is claimed have a fortune of 300 million euros,
filed a complaint.  They said they hired the Brits in Dubai: "we dealt
with a firm that protects world-famous people and hired 4 of their
men, who were former commandos.  For six months they and some
Turkish bodyguards protected us in Istanbul.  The day of the incident
they fired the Turkish guards."

Based on the Iranians' statements, police apprehended a Belgian named
V.D.S.A.W. who goes by the name 'Laurent' (!) at Atatürk Airport;
Iranian-German citizen S.N. and Iranian A.S. at their hotels; and Turks
O.A., Ö.Ç. and A.Y. at their homes.  A.S. was released and the other 5
were jailed.  Brits S.C., J.A., P.B. and P.S. and another Turk are being
sought. 


Sütlüce is on the Golden Horn (above the 'start' sign).

'Boxer Shorts' Murder Mystery Anything But 'Brief'

//ed. note: internet version unavailable//

(HaberTürk Newspaper, 29 October 2017)


Picture taken during boys' 'Fruit of the Loom' commercial.

On 1 March 2015, Ramazan Fırat (20), a student at the Lüleburgaz
campus of Kırklareli University, was found dead in his dormatory room
with his wrists slashed and a knife in his throat.  His roommates Can T.,
Halil Ç. and Mustafa K. were arrested and a case was opened against
them for 'premeditated murder with monstrous torture'.  Nevertheless,
the three suspects were released pending trial (!) and Fırat's other
roommate, Emrah K., who was in Gallipoli on the murder date, was not
charged.

An expert's report was presented at the latest hearing of the case the day
before yesterday.  According to the report, male boxer shorts examined
by the Istanbul Criminal Police Lab showed traces of the DNA of Fırat,
Halil Ç. and Emrah K.  Consequently, the three suspects (Can T., Halil
Ç. and Mustafa K.) were jailed.  Another investigation was ordered to
determine whether and how it could be possible that traces of the DNA
of three people could be found on the same boxer shorts and whether
this could have somehow happened in the washing machine.

The court ordered a detailed investigation about Emrah K., whose DNA
was found on the boxer shorts but who was in Gallipoli on the date of
the murder.  The report noted that it takes between 2 and 2.5 hours to
travel from Gallipoli to Lüleburgaz and that Emrah K. had a key to the
dorm room.  Four persons who said they saw Emrah K. in Gallipoli
that day were reinterviewed and Emrah K.'s telephone records were
requested. 

According to Can T.'s lawyer Şamil Gerek, the expert's report changes
the direction of the case: "the report says that police found red stains
on the wrist and front portions of  Mustafa K.'s blue t-shirt found in
the closet.  We've been waiting 2.5 years to learn this.  Fırat's body was
pulled to the side away from where the blood was most evident, yet
there are no footprints nor any sign of a struggle.  Once these aspects
are examined the real killer will emerge."

In the suspects' statements they all said that they heard no noise,
screaming or cries on the day of the murder and that they had not
locked the door.  The fact that all of the suspects' statements essentially
copied each other, the cleaning of the bathroom that night, the washing
of two of the suspects' underwear and Halil Ç.'s sneakers being left to
dry on top of the radiator, have all increased police suspicion.

Doctor Flushed 5 Meters Down Along With Toilet

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Dinamikhaber website, 28 October 2017)


They'll call him 'Dr. Tuv' (tuvalet/toilet) henceforth.

When Dr. Mehmet Necmettin Sutaşır, who works at the emergency
room of the Şişli Etfal Training and Research Hospital in Şişli,
Istanbul, went to use the bathroom in a section of the building that
has been under repair for some time, he was in for quite a surprise.

While in the toilet, the floor gave way, plunging Dr. Sutaşır 5
meters down and leaving him amid the rubble.  Dr. Sutaşır somehow
got up and screamed, alerting the others working in the hospital,who
found Dr. Sutaşır and brought him to the emergency room for
treatment.  Besides some broken bones, Dr. Sutaşır condition was
described as 'good'. 


                  Şişli district of Istanbul

Cobra Venom: Kill the Elephant in the Room

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Milliyet Newspaper, 27 October 2017)




Seems expensive but cost-per-elephant would be 'peanuts'...

Ankara anti-smuggling police have captured a suspect red-handed
trying to sell cobra venom brought to Turkey illegally from Iran.
Ahmet K., who smuggled the venom from Iran where it had been
produced in a laboratory, had two private hospitals in Istanbul
analyze the venom and it proved to be 100% pure.

Ahmet K. then offered to sell the cobra venom to two doctors for
$700,000 per vile.  The doctors' counter-offer of $100,000 per vile
prompted Ahmet K. to abandon the deal.  However, police tracked
Ahmet K. to Ankara and, posing as customers, offered him $2 million
for 3 viles.  Ahmet K. was caught red-handed with 3 viles and had
15 more in his car for a total of 0.8 liters of cobra venom.

Cobra venom's market price is $12 million.  It is used for decomposing
chemical weapons, cancer treatments and cosmetics.  One tiny drop of
cobra venom can kill an elephant in 8 seconds (!).

 
CEO screams "where's the cobra venom when I need it!"