ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000896

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2005

THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE
THEMES:

HEADLINES
BRIEFING
EDITORIAL OPINION
-------------- --------------

HEADLINES

MASS APPEAL
The Guardian: US masses troops in northern Iraq - Hurriyet
Damascus is prime suspect in Hariri assassination - Hurriyet
US recalls ambassador from Damascus - Sabah
Washington toughens against Damascus - Milliyet
Fear reigns in Middle East - Aksam
Al-Qaeda holds Syria, Israel responsible for Hariri killing
- Aksam
Allawi: New Iraqi government will be `Islamic' - Milliyet
Moderate Islamist Caferi to take Iraq prime minister post -
Hurriyet

OPINION MAKERS
Eyes turned to Syria-Israel-US after Hariri assassination -
Zaman
US, UN send tough message to Syria - Cumhuriyet
Civil war fears in Lebanon - Cumhuriyet
Hariri wanted Syria out of Lebanon - Radikal
Israel sows seeds of anarchy in Lebanon - Yeni Safak
US builds up troops in northern Iraq against Turkish
intervention - Yeni Safak
PM Erdogan given warm welcome in Tirana - Yeni Safak
Kyoto Protocol takes effect - Cumhuriyet
Bush urgently requests $81.9 billion - Radikal
Cheney's daughter to run `GME' project - Radikal
Israeli troops kill Palestinian child, ceasefire in jeopardy
- Zaman
US second missile shield test fails - Zaman
Woman governor in Afghanistan - Radikal
Tsunami victims to sue US -Yeni Safak

SIPDIS

BRIEFING

US Masses Troops in Northern Iraq: All Turkish papers cite
a story from "The Guardian" claiming that the US has massed
troops in northern Iraq in an effort to block a possible
Turkish military intervention. Domestic pressure is
increasing on PM Erdogan to intervene in Kirkuk, the article
claims. An unidentified Turkish diplomat said Kirkuk is a
potential `powder keg,' a city like Jerusalem for the Turks.
`Kirkuk belongs to all Iraqis. We wouldn't like to see our
`red lines' -- Kirkuk and attacks on ethnic minorities --
violated,' the diplomat said. US reluctance to remove some
4,000 PKK militants from northern Iraq may be another factor
that could force Ankara to take action, "The Guardian"
notes. The story also claims that US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice tried to assuage Turkish concerns during
her recent visit to Ankara.

Assassination of Refik Hariri: All Turkish papers give
extensive coverage to the assassination of former Lebanese
PM Refik Hariri and the international reaction to the
killing. Turkey's FM Abdullah Gul portrayed Hariri as a
figure who had worked for peace, security and development in
Lebanon. His friends in Turkey are `deeply saddened' by the
killing of Hariri, Gul said, and voiced hope that the
assassination will not open the way toward more terrorism in
Lebanon.

Erdogan Blames Turkmen for Low Turnout in Elections: PM
Erdogan said at a party meeting on Monday that Turkey would
`update' its Iraq policy according to the latest
developments in that country, "Hurriyet" reports. `Our
Iraqi Turkmen brothers did not show enough interest in the
Iraqi election - they were either disorganized, or under
pressure,' Erdogan reportedly said. Erdogan blamed the
Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) for failing to get its people to
the ballot box.
PM Erdogan Visits Albania: PM Tayyip Erdogan met his
Albanian counterpart, Fatos Nano, on Tuesday. The two sides
agreed on the need to increase military and economic
cooperation, and to open a Turkish university in Tirana,
papers report. Erdogan said after the talks that Turkey
would support Albania's membership in NATO.

Council of Europe Report on Religious Education: The AK
Party government is angry with a Council of Europe report
calling for an end to compulsory religious education in
Turkish state schools, papers report. Parliamentary speaker
Bulent Arinc said that the category of religion can be
removed from identity cards, an issue raised in the report,
but said the Council's report showed that the Europeans
`don't understand Turkey.' PM Erdogan said the report could
be discussed in parliament if necessary. State minister
for Religious Affairs (Diyanet) Mehmet Aydin said that since
99 percent of Turks are Muslims, they have the right to
teach Islam to their children in schools.

Important Mission for VP Cheney's Daughter: US envoy to
NATO, Nicholas Burns, is to replace Marc Grossman as the
State Department undersecretary for political affairs, and
Dick Cheney's daughter Elizabeth has been assigned to
supervise the US Broader Middle East and North Africa
project, Turkish papers report.

Minister Mumcu Resigns From Government, Party: Tourism and
Culture Minister Erkan Mumcu resigned from his government
post and from the ruling AK Party due to what he describes
as `strong disagreements' within the Council of Ministers.
Mumcu has criticized the government for pursuing populist
policies, particularly over the issue of an amnesty being
considered for university students. The current
distribution of seats in the Turkish parliament following
the Mumcu defection is as follows: AKP 366, CHP 171, DYP 5,
Independent 7, Vacant 1.

Abducted Turkish Businessman Released in Iraq: Turkish
shipping magnate Kahraman Sadikoglu, who was abducted in
Iraq two months ago, was released yesterday and returned to
Turkey. Sadikoglu said his kidnappers were part of former
Iraqi leader Saddam's `mujahedeen.' Sadikoglu, President of
International Marine Contractors, reportedly paid $500,000
in ransom to his kidnapers.

One Killed, Several Detained in Rallies for Ocalan: On
Tuesday, a protestor demonstrating for the release of jailed
PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan was killed in Turkey's
Mediterranean province of Mersin. Several other rallies
were held in Istanbul, Izmir, Adana, Hatay, Diyarbakir, and
Van yesterday to protest the sixth anniversary of Ocalan's
capture in Kenya.


EDITORIAL OPINION: Hariri; Iraq

"Who to Blame in Lebanon?"
Zafer Atay commented in the economic-politic "Dunya" (2/16):
"The Hariri incident seems to be an assassination with some
complexities involved. Syrian leader Asad harshly denounced
the assassination, yet it does not change the fact that all
fingers are pointing at Damascus. And that remains a strong
possibility. . There are various speculations in the
aftermath of the Hariri assassination. Some Western
countries, including the US, are accusing Syria of
manipulating the terrorists close to Damascus. The majority
of Beirut commentators believe that this incident will serve
as an excuse for Syria to remain in Lebanon because of the
elections coming in two months. Nothing is certain about
this incident, and the organization which claimed
responsibility for the assassination is another uncertainty,
because no one knows anything about it. . In any case, time
will show who is really responsible; an event of such
magnitude cannot be left in the dark."

"A Hell in Beirut"
Yilmaz Oztuna observed in the conservative-mass appeal
"Turkiye" (2/16): "The assassination of Hariri has turned
Beirut into a hell. During the Ottoman Empire's rule,
Lebanon was a prosperous, paradise-like country. Today,
Israel has withdrawn from the south of Lebanon, but Syria
has continued to bother Lebanon. Hariri was anti-Syria. It
is a possibility that the assassination was planned by
Syrian intelligence; if not, it was definitely planned by
some intelligence organization. Al-Qaida stressed that no
Islamic organization is behind the assassination. It is
rather surprising that Hariri's relationship with Saudi
Arabia has been asserted as the reason for his
assassination. As a matter of fact, everything is
surprising in the Middle East. But one can never find a
positive surprise there. It is difficult to guess what the
follow-up of the assassination will be. However, it is
obvious that a new wave of chaos will occur before the last
one disappears."

"Can Iraq Be a New Iran?"
Sami Kohen opined in the mass appeal "Milliyet" (2/16):
"There is an ongoing worry both in the Western world as well
as in some Islamic countries about the possibility of Iraq's
election-winner Shiite groups turning the country into an
Iranian-like regime. Since Iraqi Shiites and other Iraqi
ethnic groups come from a different cultural and historical
background, it is unlikely to see an Iraqi regime under
Iran's total influence. . As for SISTANI being the winner,
he was born in Iran but he never followed a Khomeini-style
policy. . On the other hand, religion will certainly play
an important role in shaping the Iraqi rebuilding process,
including the writing of a new constitution. The religion
debate will focus on finding a formula all groups can agree
on. . In this regard it will be important to see what kind
of Islamic rules will prevail in the daily lives of Iraqis
on such issues as women's rights, education, dress codes,
use of alcohol and other things."

EDELMAN