by Nicholas Birch | Aug 8, 2013 | The Majalla Magazine
Things are looking good for the Kurds. In Iraq, the region they control is a relative haven of peace and prosperity. In Syria, they are building a semi-autonomous entity in the northeast of the country. Later this month, Kurdish leaders from Turkey, Syria, Iraq and...
by Nicholas Birch | Jul 30, 2013 | Debate
Anybody watching Turkish TV over the last month could be forgiven for thinking that Mohamed Mursi was Turkish. News channels that broadcast wildlife documentaries during the recent Turkish protests aired long and impassioned debates about what was going on just across...
by Nicholas Birch | Jul 15, 2013 | Majalla Blogs
In mid-June, the Turkish state body responsible for promoting science and scientific research, TÜBİTAK, told a group of top scientists that it would not be providing financial support for a postgraduate summer school they were organizing. Fair enough, you might think:...
by Nicholas Birch | Apr 8, 2013 | The Majalla Magazine
Five years ago in Diyarbakır, a Kurdish city built on a volcanic outcrop over a bend in the River Tigris in southeast Turkey, I met a man who was famous for ending blood feuds. Like many in that troubled region, Sait was a pragmatist: by day, he ran a funeral parlor...
