VZCZCXRO1328
RR RUEHDA
DE RUEHDA #0079/01 1621136
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 111136Z JUN 07
FM AMCONSUL ADANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4538
INFO RUEUITH/AFOSI DET 521 ANKARA TU
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 1083
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0935
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEILB/NCTC WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/AFOSI DET 522 INCIRLIK AB TU
RUETIAA/DIRNSA FT MEADE MD
RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA 1141

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ADANA 000079 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PINS PGOV PHUM TU
SUBJECT: SOUTHEAST TURKEY PRESS SUMMARY FOR JUNE 11, 2007 
 
¶1.      This is the Southeastern Turkey press summary for June 11, 
¶2007.  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: 
 
¶2.      HURRIYET:       A large anti-PKK public meeting was held in 
Bitlis's Tatvan district by the "War Veterans and Martyrs 
Association." Nearly 10,000 people attended the event and people 
shouted the following slogans, "Down with the PKK", "One country 
one flag", "Baby killer Abdullah Ocalan."  Bitlis Governor 
delivered a speech during the meeting and people hung Turkish 
flags all over Bitlis ahead of the meeting.  Bitlis Mayor, 
Bitlis 6th Armored Brigade Command's Brigadier General, Bitlis 
Security Director and District Mayor attended the demonstration. 
 
¶3.      GUNDEM: The daily claims that the Turkish army started 
a mobilization in southeastern Turkey and issued a de facto 
state of emergency in Siirt, Sirnak and Hakkari provinces 
through declaring a "prohibited military security zone."  The 
daily points out that the army recently signed a protocol 
agreement with civilian intercity bus companies in the southeast 
with regard to transportation of soldiers in the southeastern 
region. 
 
¶4.      GUNDEM: DTP, in order not to lose votes of the 
seasonal workers who leave the southeastern region to work in 
the agricultural fields in the western sections of Turkey, will 
hire buses and transport the workers to the locales where they 
are registered and entitled to cast their votes during the 
election. 
 
¶5.      BOLGE / SABAH (GUNEY):  MHP held a large political rally 
on Saturday (June 9) in Adana despite the rainy weather.  MHP 
National Leader Devlet Bahceli participated in the rally and was 
reportedly pleased with the huge crowd that welcomed him in 
Adana. 
 
¶6.      EKSPRES / SABAH (GUNEY):        Hulusi Guvel, CHP's 
candidate in Adana ranking third in the CHP Adana ticket, 
claimed that CHP will turn out as the first party in Adana in 
the July 22 elections.  Separately, the daily reports criticisms 
fired against the AKP Adana ticket and especially the third 
ranking candidate who is Necdet Unuvar.  Sabah's Guney 
supplement reports Mustafa Attaroglu, AKP Adana Provincial 
Chairperson, as embarking upon diligent efforts to win 10 seats 
from Adana during parliamentary elections. 
 
¶7.      CUMHURIYET:     Turan Comez, a lawmaker from AKP, in the face 
of escalating terrorism activities in the country, proposed that 
the decision about the U.S.'s use of the Incirlik Airbase in 
Adana whose deadline is approaching, should be discussed at the 
parliament ahead of June 23, which is the expiry date for the 
use of the base by the U.S.  According to Comez, Turkey should 
explicitly state the Turkey's demands from the U.S. about the 
PKK issue. 
 
SECURITY 
 
¶8.      HURRIYET / ZAMAN:       Turkish Armed Forces announced that a 
total of 148 terrorists have been rendered ineffective since the 
beginning of military operations at the onset of spring.  In the 
last one month, namely between May 9 and June 9, the death toll 
because of the terrorism related attacks reached a total of 42 
Turkish people.  Twenty-six of these people are security 
personnel and 16 of them are civilians.  A total of 60 people 
were reportedly wounded. 
 
¶9.      CNNTURK ONLINE: Terrorists remotely detonated a mine on 
a road between Siirt and Sirvan on June 7 as a military convoy 
was passing and killed four soldiers and wounded six.  Two of 
the killed were jandarma privates.  One of them was a jandarma 
sergeant and the other one was a jandarma senior non-commisoned 
officer.  Funeral ceremonies of the soldiers were held in their 
hometowns: Osmaniye, Ankara, Gaziantep and Ankara.  Many state 
and government officials, politicians and military figures 
attended the funeral in Ankara.  Some of the people protested 
Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul as he was paying condolences 
to the family of the martyr.  Siirt Governor's Office announced 
that 18 people were detained in connection with the incident. 
 
¶10.     HURRIYET / CNNTURK ONLINE / CUMHURIYET: Terrorists 
remotely detonated a mine on a road in Sirnak's Guclukonak 
 
ADANA 00000079  002 OF 003 
 
 
district on June 9 at around 7 p.m. and killed three soldiers in 
a car two of whom were an infantry lieutenant colonel and an 
ordnance major.  Five soldiers were seriously wounded.  It is 
reported that the soldiers were returning from a village where 
they had repaired the old parts of a mosque, and, moreover, the 
lieutenant colonel reportedly had voluntarily preferred to 
continue his military duties in the southeast.  Following the 
incident, many soldiers were dispatched to the area and an 
extensive military operation was started.  Cobra and Super Cobra 
helicopters are being used in the operation.  The coffins of the 
soldiers were brought to the airport of Diyarbakir to be 
dispatched to their hometowns following a military ceremony held 
at 23rd Jandarma Border Division Command in Sirnak.  Sirnak 
Governor attended the ceremony held at the Command. 
 
¶11.     HURRIYET / ZAMAN / GUNDEM:      In a conflict between the 
security forces and the terrorists in Bitlis's Mutki district, a 
terrorist was killed.  Separately, security forces, upon 
receiving a tip-off that terrorists would attack a highland area 
in Mus, launched an operation in the area and exchanged fire 
with the terrorists they encountered.  A terrorist was killed 
and two others were caught alive.  Two female civilians, who 
were caught in the terrorists' fire, were wounded.  The Gundem 
daily claims that the village guards opened fire at a house they 
alleged were hiding PKK members and wounded those aforementioned 
women.  Separately, a village guard died in a conflict that 
erupted between security forces and terrorists in Diyarbakir's 
Kulp district. 
 
¶12.     CNNTURK ONLINE: A soldier, who stepped on a mine planted 
by the PKK near a border area in Hakkari, was seriously wounded. 
 Separately, a civilian health official stepped on a mine in 
Tunceli's Pulumur district and was wounded in his leg. 
 
¶13.     HURRIYET / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA): The website of the 
Turkish General Staff announced that the security forces 
checking a rough terrain area in Sirnak yesterday morning (June 
9) identified and rendered safe a pressure-sensitive explosive 
device planted in the ground by the terrorists.  Hurriyet's 
Cukurova supplement reports that jandarma in Osmaniye held an 
anti-PKK operation and detained a person in a district of the 
province.  The detainee was convinced to show the place where 10 
kilograms of C-4 explosives were hidden. 
 
CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT 
 
¶14.     HURRIYET ONLINE:        Anti-smuggling branch of the Turkish 
Police in Gaziantep examined many gas stations in the province 
and seized 32,770 liters of smuggled diesel oil and 250 liters 
of smuggled gas in nine separate gas stations.  Prosecution 
process was started against the owners of the businesses. 
 
ECONOMY 
 
¶15.     ZAMAN:  Turkey's biggest and the world's second 
biggest shipyard will be constructed on 800,000 square meter 
land at the Yumurtalik Free Trade Zone of Adana.  The 
groundbreaking ceremony will be held on July. 
 
CULTURE / SOCIETY / ENVIRONMENT 
 
¶16.     HURRIYET / BOLGE:       Kadir Inanir, a well-known Turkish 
actor, uttered a few remarks at the stage as he was about to 
give the award for The Best Actress during the final awards 
ceremony for Adana's Altinkoza (Goldenboll) Film Festival. 
Inanir said that he deeply appreciated the support Adana Mayor 
Aytac Durak was extending to the film festival.  Inanir, as he 
appreciated Mr. Durak, stirred controversy when he further 
described governors as not longstanding figures in a province, 
as compared to the Adana Mayor Durak who reportedly never quit 
Adana and continued his work to date.   Adana Governor, who went 
up the stage to present an award, expressed his resentment in 
his following response, "I was invited to present award, but I 
may not be an appropriate person to give an award since I am 
only temporary governor here.  But, like how Kadir Inanir 
rendered his name eternal through his work, I will render my 
name eternal, and leave afterwards." This contoversy was 
broadcast live on state-run national TRT 2 TV. 
 
¶17.     BOLGE / EKSPRES:        A 30-person group protested recently 
escalating terrorism in the country in the Ataturk Park of 
Adana.  People waved Turkish flags and shouted the following 
slogans, "Down with hands intervening in the duty of the Turkish 
Army", "Martyrs shall not die, and, the country shall not be 
 
ADANA 00000079  003 OF 003 
 
 
divided." 
 
¶18.     BOLGE / SABAH (GUNEY):  Seyhan Municipality opened a 
Martyrs' Park in a section of Seyhan district in Adana.  Adana 
Governor Ilhan Atis; Adana deputies from AKP; Adana Mayor Aytac 
Durak; Seyhan Mayor Azim Ozturk; Emine Kurt, Chairperson of 
Association for Families of Martyrs and Disabled Veterans, and 
Murat Caner, war veteran, attended the park's opening ceremony 
which was carried out in sorrow because of the recent death toll 
in the southeastern region. 
 
¶19.     RADIKAL / HURRIYET (CUKUROVA):  Youth and Sports 
Directorate in Hakkari organized a Sports Festival at a highland 
area at 3700-meter altitude in Hakkari.  The area was reportedly 
opened to public use for three years.  Despite news about 
military operations going on in the southeast, young people of 
Hakkari were able to have a great time during the festival which 
had been defunct for 20 years because of terrorism. 
 
¶20.     HURRIYET (CUKUROVA)     :       A graduation ceremony was 
held and seventy-three students graduated this year from Tarsus 
American High School in Tarsus district of Mersin. 
GREEN