ISTANBUL: Turkiye’s top appeals court on Thursday upheld the life sentence for philanthropist Osman Kavala, broadcaster Haberturk and other media reported, while overturning 18-year prison sentences for three others in the same case.
Kavala, 65, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in April 2022, while seven others in the case received 18 years based on claims they organized and financed nationwide protests in 2013.
At the time, the verdict was seen as symbolic of a crackdown on dissent under President Tayyip Erdogan, and the punishment of the government’s perceived foes through the judiciary. All have denied the charges, saying the protests developed spontaneously.
On Thursday, the appeals court upheld the life sentence for Kavala and an 18-year sentence for Can Atalay, who was elected a member of parliament in May, and three others, Haberturk said.
The court overturned 18-year sentences for Mucella Yapici, Hakan Altinay, and Yigit Ekmekci, it said.
The ruling effectively marks the end of the appeals process for Kavala, who has been in detention since 2017. Turkiye’s Constitutional Court previously rejected his appeal too.
Hundreds of thousands marched in Istanbul and elsewhere in Turkiye in 2013 as demonstrations against plans to build replica Ottoman barracks in the city’s Gezi Park grew into nationwide protests against Erdogan’s government.
Erdogan has equated the protesters to terrorists, and has personally accused Kavala numerous times of being the financier of the protests.
Ankara’s Western allies, opposition members, and rights groups say Turkish courts are under the control of the government. Erdogan and his AK Party say they are independent.
The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that Turkiye must free Kavala and others for violations of their rights. Turkiye has not taken any action and now faces possible suspension from the Council of Europe.
Turkiye’s top appeals court upholds philanthropist Kavala’s life sentence – media
https://arab.news/nya4k
Turkiye’s top appeals court upholds philanthropist Kavala’s life sentence – media
- Kavala, 65, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in April 2022
- The ruling effectively marks the end of the appeals process for Kavala, who has been in detention since 2017
Leaders of UAE, Turkiye discuss regional developments during phone call
DUBAI: UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed received a phone call from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday during which they discussed regional developments.
Sheikh Mohammed and Erdogan discussed continued cooperation between both of their countries and joint action in all areas that serve the mutual interests.
They also reviewed and exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual concern, most notably developments in the Middle East and the repercussions of the Israeli military targeting of Iran on regional security.
They also stressed the need to intensify efforts to de-escalate tensions, and also affirmed their countries' support for promoting regional peace and stability.
What to know about bunker-buster bombs and Iran’s Fordo nuclear facility
- Fordo is Iran’s second nuclear enrichment facility after Natanz
BANGKOK: If the US decides to support Israel more directly in its attack on Iran, one option for Washington would be to provide the “bunker-buster” bombs believed necessary to significantly damage the Fordo nuclear fuel enrichment plant, built deeply into a mountain.
Such a bomb would have to be dropped from an American aircraft, which could have wide-ranging ramifications, including jeopardizing any chance of Iran engaging in Trump’s desired talks on its nuclear program. Israeli officials have also suggested that there are other options for it to attack Fordo as it seeks to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
But aside from a commando attack on the ground or a nuclear strike, the bunker buster bomb seems the most likely option.
What is the bunker-buster bomb?
“Bunker buster” is a broad term used to describe bombs that are designed to penetrate deep below the surface before exploding. In this case, it refers to the latest GBU-57 A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb in the American arsenal. The roughly 30,000 pound (13,600 kilogram) precision-guided bomb is designed to attack deeply buried and hardened bunkers and tunnels, according to the US Air Force.
It’s believed to be able to penetrate about 200 feet (61 meters) below the surface before exploding, and the bombs can be dropped one after another, effectively drilling deeper and deeper with each successive blast.
The bomb carries a conventional warhead, but the International Atomic Energy Agency has confirmed that Iran is producing highly enriched uranium at Fordo, raising the possibility that nuclear material could be released into the area if the GBU-57 A/B were used to hit the facility. However, Israeli strikes at another Iranian nuclear site, Natanz, on a centrifuge site have caused contamination only at the site itself, not the surrounding area, the IAEA has said.
How tough a target is Fordo?
Fordo is Iran’s second nuclear enrichment facility after Natanz, its main facility. So far, Israeli strikes aren’t known to have damaged Natanz’s underground enrichment hall, nor have the Israelis targeted tunnels the Iranians are digging nearby.
Fordo is smaller than Natanz, and is built into the side of a mountain near the city of Qom, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) southwest of Tehran. Construction is believed to have started around 2006 and it became first operational in 2009 — the same year Tehran publicly acknowledged its existence.
In addition to being an estimated 80 meters (260 feet) under rock and soil, the site is reportedly protected by Iranian and Russian surface-to-air missile systems. Those air defenses, however, likely have already been struck in the Israeli campaign.
Still, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the goal of attacking Iran was to eliminate its missile and nuclear program, which he described as an existential threat to Israel, and officials have said Fordo was part of that plan.
“This entire operation ... really has to be completed with the elimination of Fordo,” Yechiel Leiter, Israel’s ambassador to the US, told Fox News on Friday.
Why does the US need to be involved?
In theory, the GBU-57 A/B could be dropped by any bomber capable of carrying the weight, but at the moment the US has only configured and programed its B-2 Spirit stealth bomber to deliver the bomb, according to the Air Force.
The B-2 is only flown by the Air Force, and is produced by Northrop Grumman.
According to the manufacturer, the B-2 can carry a payload of 40,000 pounds (18,000 kilograms) but the US Air Force has said it has successfully tested the B-2 loaded with two GBU-57 A/B bunker busters — a total weight of some 60,000 pounds (27,200 kilograms).
The strategic long-range heavy bomber has a range of about 7,000 miles (11,000 kilometers) without refueling and 11,500 miles (18,500 kilometers) with one refueling, and can reach any point in the world within hours, according to Northrop Grumman.
Whether the US would get involved is another matter.
At the G7 meeting in Canada, Trump was asked what it would take for Washington to become involved militarily and he said: “I don’t want to talk about that.”
In a weekend interview with ABC News, Israeli Ambassador Leiter was asked about the possibility of the US helping attack Fordo and he emphasized Israel has only asked the US for defensive help.
“We have a number of contingencies ... which will enable us to deal with Fordo,” he said.
“Not everything is a matter of, you know, taking to the skies and bombing from afar.”
Israel’s offensive on Iran is a threat to everyone says Jordan’s King to EU parliament
AMMAN: Israel’s expanded offensive on Iran is a threat to everyone, said Jordan’s King Abduallah II to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Tuesday.
“There is no telling where the boundaries of this battleground will end… the attacks on Iran threaten a dangerous escalation in our region and beyond,” he said.
“If our global community fails to act decisively we become complicit in rewriting what it means to be human. If Israeli bulldozers continue to illegally demolish Palestinian homes, olive trees and infrastructure, so too will they flatten the rails that defy moral grounds,” he added.
He reiterated the need for the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state and the importance of granting Palestinians the right to freedom and statehood.
“Global security won’t be assured until the global community acts to end the three-year war in Ukraine and the world’s longest and most destructive flashpoint, the eight-decade-long Palestinian Israeli conflict,” said AlHussein.
The King cited the failure of international law and intervention in Gaza and said what was considered an atrocity 20 months ago has now become routine.
“Weaponizing famine against children, targeting of health workers, journalists and children have all become normalized after the failure of the international community,” he said.
Europe’s leadership will be vital in choosing the right course of history, said the King and assured Jordans position in its support to the EU.
“This conflict must end and the solution is rooted in international law. The path to peace has been walked before, and it can be walked again if we have the courage to choose it and the will to walk it together,” he concluded.
On Tuesday morning, Israel warned hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate the middle of Iran’s capital as Israel’s air campaign on Tehran appeared to broaden on the fifth day of an intensifying conflict.
Israel on Friday said it targeted Iran’s nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military operation on Iran would “continue for as many days as it takes” to “roll back the Iranian threat to Israel’s very survival.”
Since then, Iran has launched retaliatory attacks on TelAviv with some missiles intercepted before impact and some striking buildings in Israel.
Health authorities reported that 1,277 people were wounded in Iran. Iranians also reported fuel rationing.
The conflict has also forced most countries in the Middle East including Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon to close their airspace. Dozens of airports have stopped all flights or severely reduced operations, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded and others unable to flee the conflict or travel home.
Jordan's King to deliver speech at the EU parliament
STRASBOURG: Jordan's King Abdullah II is set to deliver a speech at the European Union parliment in Strasbourg France on Tuesday.
In his address, he is expected to focus on a range of issues, including the devastating war in Gaza and its consequences.
This will be King Abdullah's sixth visit to the European Parliament, following his previous visits in 2002, 2007, 2012, 2015 and 2020.
The king is also scheduled to meet European Parliament President Roberta Metsola.
UAE coast guard evacuates 24 people from oil tanker following crash east of Strait of Hormuz
- Emirati coastguard deployed search and rescue boats to the site, 24 nautical miles off the country's coast
- The crew was evacuated to the port of Khor Fakkan
DUBAI: The UAE Coastguard has evacuated 24 crew members from an oil tanker Tuesday after a collision between two ships near the Strait of Hormuz.
“The Coastguard of the National Guard carried out today, Tuesday, an evacuation mission involving 24 crew members of the oil tanker ADALYNN, following a collision between two ships in the Sea of Oman,” read a statement on WAM News Agency.
The statement said the Emirati coastguard deployed search and rescue boats to the site, 24 nautical miles off the country's coast, and that the crew was evacuated to the port of Khor Fakkan.
British maritime security firm Ambrey had earlier said that the incident was not security-related, as the days-long conflict between Israel and Iran, which is just across the Strait of Hormuz from neighboring Oman, continued to unfold.
The strait is the strategic maritime entryway to the Arabian Gulf and sees about a fifth of the world’s oil pass through it, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
(with AP)
