Turkish Press Review
Tuesday's papers covered Turkish leaders' statements on the Kurdish reconciliation process in the wake of the killing of three soldiers on Saturday.
ISTANBUL
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On Tuesday, Turkish papers mostly covered Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu’s and Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc's remarks regarding the killing of three off-duty soldiers in the southeastern province of Hakkari at the weekend.
Daily AKSAM reports that Davutoglu contacted the fathers of the killed soldiers, informing them that the murderer was found in less than 48 hours.
Davutoglu, according to the YENI SAFAK daily, stated that the investigation was continuing and "if there were any other people behind the incident, pursuance on them would also be done."
"We will take any measures we can and continue to struggle against those who are pro-violence until we establish public order in each part of our country," the daily quoted Davutoglu as saying.
Arinc spoke about the impact of the soldiers’ deaths on the Kurdish solution process.
VATAN run the headline "We won't be the side who quits," a reference to Arinc’s statement.
"Our only condition is the security of life and property. We are not obliged or bound to the solution process. We won't be the side who quits but our determination is strong," the daily quoted Arinc as saying.
In a related story, the SABAH daily covered Monday’s story of the apparent seizure of explosives by members of the illegal PKK.
"They seized trucks laden with explosives," said Arinc, pointing the finger of blame at members of the outlawed PKK, according to SABAH.
Military sources claimed that members of the PKK seized a coal-mine truck loaded with about 400 kilograms of explosives earlier on Monday in the Silopi district of Turkey’s southeastern Sirnak province.
SABAH quoted Arinc as saying that the group who seized the truck were "prepared professionally" and that he hoped they would be "captured by the unmanned air vehicle and helicopters sent to the region, before they reach Mount Judi [a PKK stronghold] in southeastern Turkey."
Some dailies also covered yesterday’s announcement by the Turkish Health Ministry that no sign of any biological warfare material was found in the suspicious letters opened last Friday in five consulates in Istanbul.
"Harmless yellow powder," reported daily YENI SAFAK, publishing parts of the ministry's statement where it said that it had tested for anthrax, plague, tularemia, ricin or botulinum but no signs of any such material was found in the powder samples.
The STAR daily stated that letters with the same powder were also sent to the Hungarian consulate and an Ankara courthouse on Monday morning, too, adding that the Istanbul governorate stated that six personnel – who were exposed to the letter – were taken to the hospital.
In international news, some Turkish dailies also covered Tunisia's parliamentary elections where the ‘Call of Tunisia’ party won most seats, followed by the Islamist Ennahda Party.
"Victory of secular party in Tunisia," HURRIYET reported.
On Sunday, millions of Tunisians voted in the country's first parliamentary poll since the 2011 revolution that swept long-serving president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali from power.
The daily stated that the Call of Tunisia party won the elections with 38.7 percent, although the Ennahda Party – which was considered as the absolute favorite for the elections – fell behind with 31.7.
The results came as a surprise to many local and foreign observers, given that Ennahda had won a majority of seats in Tunisia's constitution-drafting assembly in a 2011 vote.
The MILLIYET daily said that Ennahda had not tried to monopolize rule in Tunisia "unlike the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt."
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