Author: Yara Emre

Michelin is pleased to present the new selection of restaurants to appear in the İstanbul, İzmir, Bodrum MICHELIN Guide. In total, the Michelin inspectors recommend 111 establishments, including – for the first time – 15 in İzmir and 19 in Bodrum. Of these, 3 restaurants in İzmir and 2 in Bodrum are awarded One MICHELIN Star, while 8 receive a Bib Gourmand (2 in Bodrum and 6 in İzmir). In İstanbul, 25 restaurants are also newly joining the selection or are being promoted, including 2 restaurants being awarded One MICHELIN Star and 8 receiving the Bib Gourmand. This brings the…

New information system will use data from the real estate market for the assessment of values. The next adjustment of property rates used for tax purposes, known as “objective values,” will take place in 2025 with a new automated assessment system. Although the existing values are already considered outdated, they will be maintained for at least another year. The zonal values will be “aligned” with the state of the market by employing appropriate algorithms. The modifications, which are part of the tax bill that is presently undergoing public consultation, call for the establishment of a real-time updated database of real…

Istanbul branch of the Turkish main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Nov. 13 started a sit-in protest in front of the Çağlayan Courthouse. The “Constitution Watch” was organized against the recent judicial crisis incited by the Court of Cassation’s refusal to comply with the Constitutional Court’s (AYM) decision to release imprisoned Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP) deputy Can Atalay. CHP Istanbul chair Özgür Çelik invited all Istanbul residents to join their protest on his social media. He said, “We are in front of the Istanbul Courthouse to say stop to the judicial coup attempt.” The sit-in will continue indefinitely,…

Turkish president Erdogan said that Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu was a “goner” from his post. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Israel was a “terror state” committing war crimes and violating international law in Gaza. Speaking to lawmakers in the country’s parliament, Erdogan repeated his view that Hamas was not a terrorist organisation. Called on Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to announce whether Israel had nuclear bombs or not, Erdogan said that the Israeli premier was a “goner” from his post. He said Hamas was a political party that had been elected by Palestinians. This comes after Israeli forces entered…

If prolonged for long, the war in Israel could deal a blow to Greece’s tourism industry, with the total number of arrivals and travel receipts likely to drop by up to 2%, according to market sources who spoke to Kathimerini. These numbers are based on the percentage that Israeli tourists have in the Greek tourist market, having significantly increased in the last three years. In the last 24 hours, hoteliers and airlines are recording continuous cancellations by individual travelers and groups, while several airlines have stopped flights between Greece and Israel or have significantly modified their itineraries and frequencies. However,…

Paris, Frankfurt (13/10 – 42) Twenty-First Century technology has a way of speeding everything up – often overdriving events beyond human control. Exhibit “A”: the internet. Hamas and its supporters were undoubtedly aware of the multiplication impact of social media when they mounted their recent murderous attack on a “peace party” along the Israeli border (twist the irony dial); Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, intent on a blanket reprisal on the Palestinians, apparently does not care what the internet thinks, says or reports. It is perplexing to the simple-minded when there are no “good guys” in a fight. Note how the…

Cooperation between Greece and China on shipping finance is set to receive a boost after a conference held at the major Greek port of Piraeus on Wednesday. The Export-Import Bank of China (Exim Bank) and Greek shipowners discussed the issue within the framework of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for global infrastructure development at the conference co-organized by the Association of Banking and Financial Executives of Hellenic Shipping (ABFEHS) and the Chinese Embassy in Greece. “Greece is a platform of safe investments for the seagoing trade” and “it is open for both financial institutions and private investors,” ABFEHS President…

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that next month, facing a busy schedule, if given the chance he might hold face-to-face talks with his Russian counterpart to discuss the Black Sea grain deal. “In September, there is the G-20 meeting in India and the UN General Assembly in the US. If we find the opportunity in this busy environment, we will meet and talk with (Vladimir) Putin face to face,” Erdogan told reporters late Sunday on the presidential plane while returning from a visit to Hungary. Erdogan paid a one-day visit to the capital Budapest for St. Stephen’s Day, Hungary’s…

The key government goal of Rewire is to establish clear boundaries between legal entrepreneurship and illegal activities that encroach on public space, according to Minister of State Akis Skertsos. Skertsos emphasized that the lack of protection of public space, both in cities and natural areas, has been a long-standing issue in Greece. As the country seeks to promote strong growth, controlling overtourism and protecting its unique natural resources will be challenging but necessary tasks. Skertsos specifically highlighted the government’s actions on the island of Mykonos as an example of their commitment to addressing this issue. He stated that those who…

Generally favorable conditions for spring grain planting will see Kazakhstan harvest 14 million tonnes of wheat in marketing year 2023-24, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture. The latest forecast for wheat is 1 million tonnes higher than FAS Post Astana’s original outlook in April with no significant changes to planted area at 12.9 million hectares, about 10,000 more hectares than 2022-23. Kazakhstan is estimated to have produced 16.4 million tonnes of wheat the previous marketing year. Wheat exports are seen at 9.5 million tonnes, the same…