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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADANA 000177 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR AUGUST 7, 2006 
 
 
This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for August 07, 
¶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 
 
RADIKAL / ZAMAN / HURRIYET / BOLGE / OZGUR GUNDEM: A bomb 
exploded in front of an ATM of an OYAK bank branch in Adana on 
Friday (08/04) at 1 p.m.  Reportedly, another bomb exploded 10 
or 20 minutes later near the place where the police officers 
that came to investigate the first bombing parked their cars. 
Seventeen people were wounded.  Eight among the wounded are 
police officers and two of them are police academy students. 
The police have been looking into surveillance camera footage 
which reportedly showed a person with a white hat leaving a 
package in front of the ATM a few minutes before the explosion. 
Adana Governor and Security Director conducted studies at the 
site of the incident. (This article is from 08/05 editions.) 
 
ZAMAN / BOLGE:     TAK (Kurdistan Freedom Hawks - Teyrebazen 
Azadiya Kurdistan), a reported offshoot of the PKK, reportedly 
claimed responsibility on its internet site (teyrebaz.com) for 
the 2 bombings that took place in Adana on Friday.   Adana 
Security Directorate announced that a percussion bomb caused the 
first bombing and a fragment-impact bomb caused the second one. 
Meanwhile, security measures have been intensified in public 
spaces around the site. (This article is from 08/06 editions.) 
 
RADIKAL / ZAMAN / OZGUR GUNDEM:   An explosion took place as a 
cargo train, which was travelling from Diyarbakir to Siirt's 
Kurtalan district, was passing through a village in Diyarbakir's 
Bismil district.  Only material damage to four cars of the train 
was reported.  Diyarbakir Governor's Office announced that a 
mine caused the blast. (This article is from 08/05 editions.) 
 
HURRIYET / RADIKAL:    A military vehicle has been ambushed by 
terrorists in Gumushane's Siran district.  Terrorists opened 
fire at the vehicle and killed a non-commissioned officer and 
two privates.  Eight soldiers have been wounded.  Meanwhile, a 
mine placed on a railroad in Bingol's Genc district exploded as 
a train was passing through.  Four security personnel in the 
train incurred minor wounds. 
 
OZGUR GUNDEM:    Local people in Hakkari's Semdinli district 
decided to re-open the Umut Bookstore where a November 9 bombing 
took place in 2005 -- the ensuing legal process convicted two 
non-commissioned officers for being involved in the bombing. 
People will undertake it in turns to ensure that the bookstore 
stays open since the owner of the bookstore has been under 
arrest because of a statement a PKK defector gave against him in 
the days that followed the verdict in the Semdinli trial.  The 
bookstore is reportedly the only bookstore in the district. 
(This article is from 08/05 edition.) 
 
HURRIYET:    Upon getting a tip-off, Mersin Anti-Terror branch 
members started following a PKK member in Mersin allegedy as he 
was making preparations to launch a terrorist attack with a 
bomb.   The police caught the PKK member at his home and found 
five hand grenades, 18 electrical fuses and 8.5 kilograms of 
explosives. (This article is from 08/05 edition.) 
 
BOLGE:           Two unidentified people on a motorcycle opened 
fire with pump-action shotguns at the Iskenderun chapter of 
Democratic Society Party (DTP) in Hatay.  The incident took 
place at 2 a.m. on Saturday morning (08/5).  No casualties were 
reported and only the windows of the building have been broken. 
(This article is from 08/05 edition.) 
 
RADIKAL / EVRENSEL:      08/06 edition of Radikal daily cites 
several stories about U.S. soldiers' alleged ill-treatment 
against Turkish soldiers and asks whether Turkish people are 
being treated as second class people in Incirlik Air Base in 
Adana.  Meanwhile, Turkish General Chief of Staff (TGS) denied 
recent media reports concerning a Turkish major and his wife who 
were reportedly forced to lie on the ground handcuffed to be 
searched with dogs in 2005.  The major and his wife resisted 
when U.S. personnel wanted the major to get out of the car, 
because the major was driving out of the parking lot in wrong 
direction.  U.S. personnel had to get the people in the car out 
to take the situation under control, announced the TGS. 
 
EVRENSEL:        Publication and delivery of pro-Kurdish Ozgur 
Gundem daily has been suspended for 15 days on grounds that the 
 
ADANA 00000177  002 OF 002 
 
 
daily was making propaganda of the PKK every day.  Political 
parties, civil society members, various newspaper 
representatives, artists, intelligentsia reacted to the 
decision. 
 
ZAMAN:         A number of non-governmental organizations led by 
Human Rights Association's Adana Chapter (HRA) held an 
anti-Israel and anti-U.S. demonstration in Adana against 
Israel's attack on Lebanon.  A representative of the HRA said 
that the Greater Middle East Project was the cause of the 
massacres in Lebanon and Palestine.  (This article is from 08/05 
edition.) 
 
ZAMAN / RADIKAL / HURRIYET:   Ground-breaking ceremony of the 
controversial Ilisu Dam Project was held on Saturday (08/05) in 
Batman with participation of PM Erdogan.  Members of the 
Survival of Hasankeyf Initiative, comprised of non-governmental 
organizations and 27 regional mayors (including Diyarbakir Mayor 
Osman Baydemir), stood duty for one night before the ceremony 
day as a display of their discontent with the project.  Baydemir 
said, 'Hasankeyf is our common heritage.  The ground-breaking 
constitutes disrespect to this heritage.'  PM Erdogan said 
during the ceremony that 10,000 people would be employed during 
dam's construction process.  Erdogan also announced amount of 
money that will finance transportation of historical artefacts 
from old Hasankeyf to the area where new Hasankeyf will be 
built.  Erdogan assured people that all means of science would 
be utilized to save the historical values of the area. (This 
article is from 08/06 editions.) 
 
HURRIYET:    A bomb placed in front of CHP's (Republican 
People's Party) Diyarbakir Chapter exploded but caused no 
casualties.  Material damage on the building was reported. 
Police are suspecting that the bomb was a percussion bomb. (This 
article is from 08/06 edition.) 
EVRENSEL:       The news that Zubeyir Aydar, PKK/Kongra-Gel Chief, 
used Turkish airspace as he was traveling to the northern Iraq, 
upset the Turkish authorities. 
 
EVRENSEL:       An Italian delegation comprised of members of civil 
society organizations came to Van's Dogubeyazit district to 
conduct local studies. 
 
SABAH (GUNEY):  Reconstruction process of one of the main 
crossroads in Adana, namely the crossroad near Hilton Hotel, has 
been going on for one year and five months.  The daily reported 
that the construction will be completed soon and opening 
ceremony will be held on August 15. 
REID