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RR RUEHDA
DE RUEHDA #0161/01 1940907
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 130907Z JUL 06
FM AMCONSUL ADANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4224
INFO RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 0825
RUEUITH/AFOSI DET 521 ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 0772
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0669
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000161 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JULY 11, 2006 
 
This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for July 11, 2006. 
 Please note that Turkish press reports often contain errors or 
exaggerations; AmConsulate Adana does not vouch for the accuracy 
of the reports summarized here. 
 
POLITICAL, SECURITY, HUMAN RIGHTS 
 
HURRIYET:       A group of PKK members opened fire at a police point 
in Sirnak's Idil district with long-barreled automatic guns and 
killed two policemen at 10 p.m. yesterday.  A large-scale 
military operation has been started following the incident. 
 
HURRIYET:       A PKK terrorist reportedly surrendered himself to 
security officers in Tunceli's Ovacik district. 
 
HURRIYET:       Burial place of a 27 year old PKK member, Aziz 
Askol, has been found in Kars's Kagizman district upon tip-off 
given by shepherds in the area.  The autopsy report stated that 
the PKK member died as a result of blows in the head with a 
stone.  However, pro-PKK Firat News Agency reported on May 25 
that Askol died in an accident as he fell from rocky cliff 
during an operation carried out at night. 
 
ZAMAN:  A commemorative ceremony will be held in Van's 
Bahcesaray district to mark PKK massacring in July 18, 1993 of 
twenty-four people. 
 
EVRENSEL:       Diyarbakir Mayor Osman Baydemir, district mayors, 
union and civic society members commemorated Vedat Aydin, HEP 
(People's Labor Party) Diyarbakir Provincial Chairperson, who 
was killed in July 9, 1999 after allegedly being kidnapped by 
JITEM members. 
 
BOLGE / ZAMAN:  PM Erdogan will come to Adana tomorrow to 
attend June 13 opening ceremony of Baku-Tibilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) 
pipeline's terminal in Adana's Ceyhan district. Meanwhile, 
preparations for the official opening ceremony have reportedly 
been finalized.  Matt Bryza, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of 
State, who came to Ankara for a two-day visit to hold talks with 
senior foreign affairs ministry officials, will attend the BTC 
opening later. 
 
HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):    PM Erdogan will attend the 
ground-breaking ceremony of Ilisu Dam in Bitlis on August 5. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Kurdistan National Congress in Brussels 
announced May 14 as a day to celebrate Kurdish Language Day. 
 
ZAMAN:  Zaman daily cited Tunceli mayor Songul Erol Abdil as 
reportedly dismissing the allegations in some media reports 
claiming that Abdil demanded to expose those people responsible 
for veiling the heads of female folkloric dancers with turbans 
as they danced at an opening ceremony held on Saturday in 
Tunceli (see press summary 07/10). 
 
ZAMAN / EVRENSEL / HURRIYET:    DTP National Chairperson Ahmet 
Turk and party assembly member Aysel Tugluk gave their 
statements at the Ankara Court Hall because of alleged pro-PKK 
propaganda they made during their speeches at a June 25 DTP's 
first convention held in Ankara. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Ibrahim Sunkur, DTP Van Provincial 
Chairperson, paid a visit to Hangedik village of Van's Caldiran 
district which suffered from flooding on July 2.  A woman was 
killed, 58 houses were ruined and 300 farm animals were killed 
in the disaster.  Sunkur demanded that authorities urgently 
address the problems of the local people living in tents. 
 
HURRIYET (CUKUROVA) / OZGUR GUNDEM:     More than 600 manhole covers 
have been stolen in one year in Diyarbakir.  The thieves have 
reportedly been selling the covers as junk material. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Chairperson of Chamber of Agriculture in 
Bitlis's Tatvan district claimed that hoof-and-mouth disease 
erupted and it reached a hazardous level in Budakli village. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   UN Special Rapporteur for Violence against 
Women talked with Kurdish origin women who immigrated to or took 
refuge in Holland, and discussed their problems.  Holland is the 
eleventh country Erturk paid a visit to. 
 
EVRENSEL / OZGUR GUNDEM:        Representatives of 
non-governmental organizations in Adana convened in Adana's 
Egitim-Sen (Teachers' Union) and demanded release of Adana 
Newruz committee members in the coming June 13 court hearing and 
DTP Chairperson in Mersin during June 11 court hearing. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:   Jandarma officials, who conducted local 
inspections in Dag hamlet of Tunceli's Hozat district upon 
 
ADANA 00000161  002 OF 002 
 
 
complaints from villagers claiming that a mortar shell landed on 
a section close to their settlement area (see press summary 
07/07), allegedly mocked the villagers by asking, "Could it be a 
meteor rather than a mortar shell?" 
 
RADIKAL / ZAMAN:        Hans Jorg Kretschmer, Head of the EU 
delegation in Turkey said that village guards have been impeding 
the return the to villages project (of Turkey.) 
 
BOLGE / ZAMAN / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):    EU Information Bureau 
at Adana Chamber of Commerce will hold a "European Folk Dances 
Festival" on September 5-9 in Adana. 
 
BOLGE / EKSPRES:        Fourteen Turk youths living in Sweden, who 
came to Adana upon invitation from Young Communication 
Specialists in Cukurova University under the project of 
"Building Bridges", paid a visit to the Seyhan Municipality in 
the last phase of their visit. 
 
EKSPRES:        A short-length documentary film is being shot in 
Adana to mark Turco-German friendship.  The project is being 
sponsored by a Turkish businessman in Germany. 
 
HURRIYET:       Ismail Karabucak, member of a well-known family 
engaged in industrial business and farming in Adana has been 
shot dead as he was traveling from Mersin to Adana's Yuregir 
district. 
REID