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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 002114 
 
SIPDIS 
 
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 
TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2006 
 
 
In Today's Papers 
 
Turkey to Submit New Anti-Terror Bill to Parliament 
All papers:  Justice Minister and Cabinet Spokesman Cemil 
Cicek announced after the council of ministers meeting 
Monday that a new anti-terror draft bill would be submitted 
to the parliament for approval soon.  According to the new 
bill, parents who allow their children to join 
demonstrations and carry out propaganda work such as 
carrying the flags of separatist terrorist organizations 
will be punished with up to five years in prison.  Security 
forces will be authorized to do searches and to suspend the 
free movement of people without getting permission from the 
prosecutor.  The new regulation brings heavy penalties for 
those printing or airing statements supportive of terrorism. 
Cicek said deficiencies in the laws will be removed in an 
effort to strengthen security forces in the struggle against 
terrorists. 
 
Iranian Hizbullah Leader Threatens Turkey 
All papers:  In an interview with Turkey's all-news station 
NTV, The Iranian Hizbullah's leader Kharrazi warned 
countries against cooperating with the United States in a 
possible attack on Iran, threatening that they will attack 
Turkey too if Turks assist the US against Iran.  Describing 
the retaliation against the US for after an attack, Kharrazi 
said, "We will use our men who have settled in the US.  If 
war breaks out, you will see that even the children of some 
US senators will join us in suicide attacks." 
 
Writing in the Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak, Akif Emre 
argues that the US is hiding its real motives regarding 
Iran: "Presenting the current crisis as an issue between a 
fundamentalist regime with nuclear power on one hand and the 
civilized world on the other is part of a psychological 
campaign against Iran.  The major objective here is the 
reshaping of the Middle East, with the fight against terror 
serving only as an excuse. The North Korea example and 
Israel's ongoing nuclear program provide proof.   All of 
this is about US efforts to gain full control over the 
region and create a new imperial system, enhancing American 
power both politically and militarily." 
 
"Islamophobia" on the Rise in Europe 
Hurriyet, Milliyet and Yeni Safak cite the European press in 
reporting a rise in "Islamophobia" in Europe with mosques 
set on fire, imams intimidated, and many Muslims subjected 
to ethnic discrimination and intolerance.  The British 
Independent reported that following the 7/7 attacks in 
London last year, groupings such as the British National 
Party and the National Front had been spreading a message of 
racial hatred, adding that the government's war against 
terror had stirred hate speech and crimes.  A poll conducted 
by the Germany-based Turkey Studies Center (TAM) with 1,000 
German nationals shows 24 percent of those surveyed see 
Islam as directly linked to terrorism, and 40 percent see a 
clash of civilizations as "inevitable."  TAM said surveys 
carried out in the Netherlands and Austria resulted in even 
higher percentages to the above mentioned questions.  A 
separate survey conducted of 1,000 Turks living in Germany 
showed that 30 percent of those interviewed want to return 
to Turkey in the face of rising Islamophobia in Germany. 
 
 
Turkish Court Rules against Compulsory Religious Education 
Hurriyet, Radikal, Cumhuriyet:  A court in Istanbul, in line 
with the request of an Alevi Muslim family, ruled that 
compulsory religious classes cannot be enforced in Turkish 
schools, stressing that the Constitution and Article 9 of 
the European Human Rights Convention granted freedom of 
 
ANKARA 00002114  002 OF 002 
 
 
worship for all.  The Alevi organizations called on Alevi 
families to apply to courts to have their children exempted 
from religious classes.  Istanbul Governor's Office objected 
to the ruling.  Papers note that in practice, Jewish and 
Christian students had been exempted from religious classes 
in Turkey, which teach a Sunni interpretation of Islam. 
 
Turkish Unemployment Rate Stands at 20 Percent 
Cumhuriyet:  Turkish National Productivity Center (MPM) 
claimed the real unemployment rate stood at 20 percent in 
Turkey, and not at 10 percent as official announcements have 
earlier said.  "About 7 million out of the total labor force 
of 22 million work in the agriculture sector in Turkey. 
Some 3.5 million of these work for their family companies 
without getting regularly paid.  And some 2 million of the 
total work force, which constitutes 10 percent, are 
unofficially employed [working simply on a cash basis]. 
Thus, the real unemployment figure is at 20 percent in 
Turkey," MPM said. 
 
 
TV Highlights 
NTV (8 a.m) 
 
Domestic News 
- Yalcin Ozbey, the Turkish fugitive implicated in the 
assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II, has not been set 
free in Belgium.  The Turkish Foreign Ministry is expected 
to demand extradition of Ozbey. 
 
- Environment Ministry specialists continue removing barrels 
containing toxic waste buried in the Tuzla neighborhood in 
Istanbul. 
 
International News 
- A Palestinian suicide bomber killed nine people and 
injured some 50 others in downtown Tel Aviv.  President 
Abbas denounced the attack whereas Hamas said it was a 
legitimate act of self-defense. 
 
- The Washington Post claimed the Pentagon has been 
preparing for a full scale war with Iran for three years. 
 
- A Newsweek article said PM Erdogan and his ruling AK Party 
have shifted to nationalism.  To the discontent of Brussels, 
Erdogan is busy strengthening Turkey's ties with the Islamic 
world. 
 
- Witnesses at the trial of Saddam Hussein said at a hearing 
Monday the former Iraqi tyrant signed documents allowing the 
killing of 148 Shiites in the 1980s. 
 
 Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
 
  http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ 
 
WILSON