Portal:Turkey/Turkey news/Archive

• 22 July 2007: Turkish voters go to the polls for general elections. The ruling AK Parti led by the Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan wins a resounding victory. (BBC), (Reuters)

• 'UFO' spotted in Istanbul n:'UFO' spotted in Istanbul, Turkey

On Wednesday night people in the Bahçelievler district of Yenibosna in Istanbul, Turkey, claimed that they had seen a UFO flying in the sky, the Turkish newspaper Sabah reports. They said that the UFO was glowing with white lights and that it revolved around itself. Istanbul has had previous UFO incidents in the past, and in 2002, the Istanbul UFO Museum was opened to the public.

• Turkey to stick with pro-EU reforms [1]

Despite the fact that the EU have frozen talks with Turkey about EU-membership, Turkey is about to continue implementing EU-standard reforms, said Abdullah Gül Foreign Minister.

• Pope Benedict XVI landed in Turkey. The Pope's visit has provoked several protests because of his latest statements on Islam.

• 10 November is the 68th anniversary of Atatürk's death

• Turkey sends troops to Lebanon n:Turkish Parliament approves sending troops to Lebanon

The Turkish parliament approved the government's proposal for sending troops to Lebanon to take part in the UN-led peacekeeping operation. 533 MPs attended the voting session where 340 of them approved the proposal and 192 rejected. The troops are expected to departure by the end of this month or early October.

The Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey commented that "The required has been done. May it be good for the nation.". Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said "The framework of the proposal is planned to minimize the possible risks Turkish troops may face. After this parliamentary decision, it is our duty to support our soldiers to be sent and pray for them. I hope these discussions [regarding risks] will end after this decision".