★ According to the daily Duvar, the Turkish National Defense Ministry dismissed five newly graduated officers and three of their supervisors from the military for drawing their swords and chanting "We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk)" during their oath ceremony.

  Earlier, President Erdoğan targeted the lieutenants by saying, "To whom are you drawing these swords?"

  The daily Duvar writes that political analysts see the incident as another conflict between secularism and Islamism.

  Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was Turkey's independence war hero and the first president of Turkey who enacted many reforms and established the separation of religion and state. Conservative governments, including that of President Erdoğan, oppose his reforms.

★ Turkish authorities arrested Suat Toktaş, an opposition broadcaster Halk TV's Editor-in-Chief.

  Authorities released four journalists under judicial control measures within the same investigation launched regarding the broadcasting of a phone call with Satılmış Büyükcanayakın, an expert witness in the string of cases against opposition Republican People's Party mayors.

  Büyükcanayakın's report resulted in the arrests of Republican People's Party Istanbul district mayors Rıza Akpolat and Ahmet Özer.

  During a January 26 press conference, Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu accused Satılmış Büyükcanayakın of misconduct.

  An Istanbul public prosecutor has consequently investigated Ekrem İmamoğlu's remarks.

  İmamoğlu is a potential presidential candidate in a future election who can oust President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

  İmamoğlu has several investigations against him. He said the Erdoğan administration is trying to design upcoming elections through the judiciary.

★ The parliament has established a commission to investigate the fire at a hotel in the Kartalkaya ski resort in Bolu, northwestern Turkey, which claimed 78 lives on January 21.

  Following the incident, the Culture and Tourism Ministry and the opposition-controlled Bolu Municipality blamed each other for the inadequate safety measures. The owner of the hotel, one of 19 people arrested, said the ministry inspected and approved the hotel.

★ A Turkish defense delegation visited Syria on January 29.

  The Ministry of Defense spokesperson said the delegation had a meeting with its Syrian counterparts to enhance defense and security cooperation.

  The spokesperson said that they made it clear to the Syrians that they will not allow any terrorist formation in the region, referring to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls the northern parts of Syria.

  Turkey sees the Syrian Democratic forces as an extension of the Turkish-Kurdish rebels.

★ ECONOMY

★ On January 30, Turkey's Education Minister Yusuf Tekin warned they would close down the private schools for their exorbitant tuition fee hikes. He said there are 12,000 private schools, but only 22 schools charge high fees.

  Meanwhile, Private Schools Association head Zafer Öztürk said, "Our costs are constantly increasing from electricity to natural gas, water to internet, but we receive no support or incentives. However, whenever private schools announce their fees, a lynching campaign starts against private schools in the print and broadcast media."

  According to ENAG, the independent inflation research group, in Turkey, inflation was 83.4% last year.

★ According to the news outlet Bianet, the latest statistics show that the number of registered workers in Turkey reached 16 million in 2024.

  Including unregistered labor, labor experts estimate the total workforce in the 2020s was around 22-24 million, making up nearly 28% of the population.

  However, the unionization rate has dropped to half of its 1970s level of 25-30%, now standing at 15%.

★ According to Reuters, recent rate cuts by Turkey's central bank are resulting in a return of foreign investors to Turkey's debt markets.

  As we reported last week, on January 23, the central bank lowered the rate to 45%.

  Reuters wrote that local bonds received $1.24 billion of foreign cash the week ending January 17. Read more >> here <<

★ Turkey's ENKA Sanat will open the new season with a special concert titled "Echo of Traditions: The Harmonious Meeting of East and West" on February 4. Borusan Quartet will perform the works of Ludwig van Beethoven and Cesar Frank in the concert titled "Masters of Chamber Music" on February 18 and the works of Claude Debussy and Bernard Hermann in the concert titled "Reflections" on May 6.

  The play "Nobody Told Me What Happened" will be on stage on February 13. İbrahim Selim won the "Most Successful Actor of the Year" award at the Afife Theater Awards with this play.

  "Garbage Monster" for little art lovers on February 23 and "Is It Dying or What?" on February 25.

  On March 11, "Tomorrow Maybe," March 19, Shakespeare's immortal work "Macbeth" will be at ENKA Sanat, and on March 21, the play "Inspectors" written by Melih Cevdet Anday, one of the representatives of the Garip movement, will meet theater lovers.

  On April 7, "Long Live Mercaniye" and on April 14, the play "Estragon Wears His Hat Instead of Lucky's and Passes Lucky's Hat to Vladimir" will be on stage.

  ENKA Sanat stage will be busy in the last week of April.

  On April 24, Elif Temuçin's "Am I a Seagull?" adapted from Chekhov's play "The Seagull" will be on the stage. The work called "Towers of Babel" will meet the audience on April 28.

  ENKA Stage project, whose artistic director is Cihat Aşkın, celebrates its fifth anniversary this year.

  The Advisory Board, including Fazıl Say, identified young talents.

  On March 16, there will be a gala concert at ENKA Auditorium, and on April 22, ENKA Sanat's YouTube channel will broadcast it.

  ENKA Sanat will organize a free event on March 27, World Theater Day. The documentaries "Genco" and "Caniko" will be screened at the Documentary Marathon. "Genco" is the autobiographical documentary of renowned Turkish actor Genco Erkal. "Caniko" tells the life story of Yıldız Kenter, who is also a renowned actor.

★ The "The Story Sets in Istanbul" exhibition, curated by Ebru Esra Satıcı and Şeyda Çetin, opened at Istanbul's Meşher exhibition venue on January 23.

  It explores how Istanbul has been depicted in Western literature from the 16th century to the present, showcasing its influence on various art forms.

  The exhibition features around 300 items from the Ömer Koç Collection, including rare books, manuscripts, engravings, paintings, films, and more. Ömer Koç is a prominent Turkish businessman.

  It examines how Istanbul's people, history, and culture have inspired fictional works across genres, from fantasy to science fiction, encouraging visitors to reconsider common dichotomies like past/present and East/West.

★ Turkey's Art Gallery Dirimart opened its first international Gallery in London.

  Founded in 2002 by Hazer Özil, Dirimart provides a platform for critical dialogue and cultural exchange by bringing together artists from Turkey and the international art scene. The gallery is celebrating its 23rd anniversary this year.

  Over the years, Dirimart has participated in many prestigious events such as Photo London, Frieze Sculpture, the Venice Biennale, Art Cologne, ART SG, and The Armory Show.

  The gallery holds a significant place in the global contemporary art landscape.

★ CerModern, the Turkish capital Ankara's exhibition and arts space, has a new exhibition displaying Turkish artist Ali Teoman Germaner's visual narrative from the 1970s to the 2000s.

  Known as ALOŞ, Ali Teoman Germaner was an artist who explored the interwoven layers of time and processed collective memory through visual thoughts. Centered on his perspective on time, "ALOŞ: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow" presents a journey shaped by his ALOŞNAME drawings.

  The exhibition will be through March 30, 2025.

★ Istanbul's Art Sümer Gallery is hosting Basim Magdy's latest exhibition: "Every Subtle Gesture Casts a Shadow on the Future."

  Magdy invites viewers to explore the delicate balance between the familiar and the unknown. The works avoid fixed meanings, offering parts of stories and emotions that change with each viewer's memories and interpretations.

  Basim Magdy is an Egyptian artist born in 1977. He is known for his paintings, films, and lends-based works.

★ The second Turkey Textile Biennial will start on February 22.

  Curated by Nihat Özdal, the venues will be in Gazipaşa and Alanya in Turkey's Mediterranean province of Antalya.

  The events will take place at historical sites such as Selinus and Lamos Ancient Cities, Yalan Dünya Cave, the Red Tower, Alanya Shipyard, and Syedra Ancient City.

  With contributions from artists worldwide, the biennial emphasizes that textiles are not merely materials but carriers of stories and memories.

★ According to ArtDog Istanbul, a decision made in 2017 to build a 4 Lane Hwy. in the Antalya province is threatening historical and natural sites.

  The critics estimate that the construction will cut down 66,000 trees, affect many agricultural lands, and destroy endemic plant species.

  It will affect 17 villages and risk damaging underground water resources.

  The Kaş Environment and Culture Association has launched a petition on Change.org to oppose the project.

★ An international team of scientists, led by geneticists from Trinity College Dublin and zooarchaeologists from LMU Munich and the Bavarian State Collections of Natural History (SNSB), analyzed 118 ancient sheep genomes from archaeological remains spanning 12,000 years and stretching from Mongolia to Ireland.

  The study pointed out that the first domesticated sheep originated in Turkey. A culture who lived at the Aşıklı Höyük archaeological site is a place that had the oldest remains of domesticated sheep.

  Aşıklı Höyük is a settlement mound located nearly 0.62 mi south of Kızılkaya village on the bank of the Melendiz brook and 16 mi southeast of Aksaray, Turkey.

  Aşıklı Höyük is in an area covered by the volcanic tuff of the central Cappadocia in Aksaray Province. The archaeological site of Aşıklı Höyük was first settled in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic period, approximately 12,200 years ago.

Read more >> here <<

★ Forms listed 10 "under the radar" Turkish museums worth visiting. They are: 

• Baksı Museum (Bayburt)
• Troy Museum (Tevfikiye)
• Istanbul Cinema Museum
• CerModern (Ankara)
• Izmir Camlik Selçuk Railway Museum (Kuşadası)
• Chez Galip Hair Museum (Avanos)
• Sakıp Sabancı Museum (Istanbul)
• Zeugma Mosaic Museum (Gaziantep)
• Kenan Yavuz Ethnographic Museum (Bayburt)
• Turkish Bath Museum (Beypazari)

★ For the third year running, the Grammy Awards will honor video games this Sunday.

  PBS reported that Pınar Toprak, a Turkish American and a veteran TV and film composer, is one of the nominees nominated for the upcoming Grammy Awards with the music she made for "Avatar: frontiers of Pandora."