Daniel Thorpe

The war in Iran has entered its second week. Despite constant American and Israeli bombardment and heavy losses on the Iranian side, with much of the leadership killed, the regime in Tehran is shaken but still stands. It looks less and less likely that the Islamic Republic can be brought down by bombs alone. On Monday, the Assembly of Experts elected Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader. He is perhaps the last man to sue for peace, considering the Americans and Israelis killed his father, the former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, just over a week ago. Amid all this, several reports came out suggesting the US is considering aiding Iranian Kurdish opposition groups to launch a ground offensive from Iraq.

The Iranian regime remains firmly in the crosshairs of American bombers. As President Trump mulls whether to strike, Turkey is using every available channel to halt a military intervention. President Erdogan has personally offered to mediate between Tehran and Washington. At the same time, Turkish authorities have tightened their grip on exiled Iranian opposition figures. Turkey’s sudden support for Iran is not born of friendship. Over the past two decades, the two countries have repeatedly found themselves on opposing sides. In the Syrian civil war, Iran sent Shi’a proxies to prop up the dictator Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey armed and trained Sunni rebel groups. Ankara’s push for dialogue is driven by a fear of regional destabilisation.

Pope Leo XIV is visiting Turkey and Lebanon on what is his first trip abroad since being elected in May. These are unusual destinations for a first papal visit. Turkey is an overwhelmingly Muslim country with very few Christians left. Lebanon has a much more significant Christian population, but the country is scarred by ongoing crisis and conflict. Just last week, Israel bombed Beirut and killed another high-ranking Hezbollah commander. Turkey is a country with an often uncomfortable and dark past with Christians Many expected the Pope to make his first visit to his hometown of Chicago, or perhaps to Peru, where he served as a missionary for two decades. Instead, he decided to follow the schedule made by his predecessor, Pope Francis, before he fell ill.

Hundreds of Turkish Islamists have attacked a satirical magazine after claiming that it published a cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammad. Protestors chanted 'tooth for tooth, blood for blood, revenge, revenge' outside the office of LeMan, which denied that the image was of Muhammad. Police quickly intervened, erecting barricades and firing pepper spray. But instead of cracking down further on the Islamists, the Turkish authorities appear to now be targeting the journalists. Four employees of the magazine have been arrested and the chief public prosecutor's office has opened an investigation into claims that the cartoon 'publicly insult(ed) religious values'.

An earthquake of 6.2 magnitude hit Istanbul in the early afternoon. Lasting around 20 seconds, the city was sent into panic, with most of the residents rushing to the streets, looking for some of the rare open areas in the densely built quarters.  Although no deaths or major damage have been reported so far, the unpreparedness of the city was obvious from the first moment. I arrived at the closest designated assembly zone – the courtyard of a mosque – and found the gates locked. When the local imam finally turned up, he was not even aware that it was an assembly zone. His confidence that the Fatih quarter is a holy place in Islam, thus no harm would befall the residents here, was not too reassuring.

Hundreds of thousands of protestors have taken to the streets of Istanbul following the arrest of Ekrem İmamoğlu, Istanbul’s mayor and the most popular opposition leader. İmamoğlu and his Republican People’s Party (CHP) claim the arrest and prosecution are politically motivated: revenge for winning three local elections in Istanbul, and a measure to prevent him from running against president Erdoğan in the next election. Will the protests against İmamoğlu's arrest trouble Erdoğan? The authorities are certainly worried. Governors of major cities have banned all demonstrations and gatherings in the major cities, despite the constitution stating ‘the right to hold unarmed and peaceful meetings and demonstration marches without prior permission’.

Ekrem Imamoglu, Turkish president Erdogan's main rival and the mayor of Istanbul, was arrested in the early hours on Wednesday. The warrant was issued on allegations of fraud, corruption, and aiding a terrorist group. Imamoglu recently announced his intentions to run against Erdogan, even though no election is scheduled for another three years. Most opinion polls show Imamoglu as the most popular politician in the country. He is generally regarded as the man with the highest chance of defeating Erdogan in the elections. His arrest comes as a major blow to his People’s Republican Party (CHP) and the opposition at large. In recent months, government pressure on opposition groups surged, with several politicians, activists, and journalists put on trial or arrested.

On Sunday, thousands of Syrians poured out onto the streets of Istanbul to celebrate the fall of Bashar al-Assad. The 3 million refugees living in Turkey were as surprised as anyone by the spectacular collapse of the regime. The celebrators were euphoric, waving flags and shooting fireworks. For years, many of them lived in fear, feeling a need to hide their Syrian identity, only whispering Arabic on public transport. Yesterday, they proudly chanted in their mother tongue: ‘Death to Assad’.  ‘I have never been this happy,’ said Omar Faruk Altavel, a young Syrian who fled Damascus nine years ago. ‘We will return now, rebuild the country, open our factories. It might take 30 years but it will start today.

Today marks ten years since Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was elected president. There will be no celebrations, and Turkish media may make little mention of the anniversary. The date is an important milestone, nonetheless, in Erdoğan’s remarkable career as Turkey’s most successful modern leader since the father of the nation, Kemal Atatürk. In the past ten years, Erdoğan overcame illness, a coup, social unrest and the hostility of several world powers to consolidate his iron grip on the country. Before the 2014 election, the presidency was mostly a ceremonial role. Erdoğan came to power as prime minister in parliamentary elections in 2002 as head of the AK party. The shift did not happen overnight.