Headlines 14/12/2015

Headlines

• Russia Fires Warning Shot at Turkish Fishing Boat in Aegean

• Iran Ready to Help Resolve Turkey-Russia Tensions: First VP

• Organised Crime Moves in on Migrant Smuggling Trade in Turkey

Details

Russia Fires Warning Shot at Turkish Fishing Boat in Aegean

Russia says one of its warships fired warning shots at a Turkish fishing vessel in the Aegean Sea to avoid a collision.

A Russian defense ministry statement said the Turkish vessel approached to 600m (1,800ft) before turning away in response to Russian small arms fire.

The Turkish military attaché in Moscow has been summoned to the foreign ministry over the incident.

"Despite numerous attempts by the crew of the Smedley, the crew of the Turkish fishing boat did not make radio contact and did not respond to visual signals by semaphore or warning flares," the ministry said in a statement.

To prevent a collision, "small arms were fired in the direction of the Turkish vessel from a range that is not lethal".

The ministry said that "immediately after that the Turkish vessel drastically changed course" and passed within half a kilometer of the Smetlivy, still making no contact with the Russian crew.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu warned on Friday that Ankara's patience with Russia was "not unlimited", and accused Moscow of using "every opportunity" to punish Turkey for the downing of the plane. [Source: BBC]

Muslim lands no longer belongs to themselves without the Khilafah "Caliphate" and Muslims do not have any sovereignty over their own territorial waters. This is another strong reason to reestablish the second Khilafah "Caliphate" Rashidah.

Iran Ready to Help Resolve Turkey-Russia Tensions: First VP

Iran’s First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri says the recent escalation of tensions between Moscow and Ankara over Turkey's downing of a Russian jet is worrisome, expressing Tehran’s readiness to help settle the dispute.
Moscow and Ankara have been locked in a war of words since November 24, when Turkey downed the Russian Su-24 fighter jet over Syria, claiming that it had entered Turkish airspace, an accusation strongly rejected by Moscow.

The Turkish president said his country does not welcome the escalation of tensions in the region and calls for dialog to clear misunderstandings.

Erdogan added that Tehran-Ankara relations should not be affected by foreign influences and said the two sides should foil attempts to cause religious discord as soon as possible.

In response to Erdogan’s remarks, Jahangiri said the Iranian administration does not impose any restrictions on media, adding that even the administration is itself criticized in the media.

He added that Iranian officials have never made any comment against the Turkish government.

“However, your authorities have expressed many negative and incorrect statements against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the government and sanctities of the Iranian people,” the Iranian vice president added. [Source: Press TV]

Both Russian and Turkish governments want to repair the weakened relationship. United States see this situation as opportunity to increase Iran’s role in the Middle East, and encourages Iran to take action.

Organised Crime Moves in on Migrant Smuggling Trade in Turkey

In the weeks since Turkey signed a preliminary agreement with the EU to help manage the flow of irregular migrants, the gangs that carry out most, if not all, of the smuggling in Turkey have found themselves, for the first time, under sustained pressure from the police.
Nearly 800 people have been arrested and 450 convicted, said Himmet Uygun, who heads migration policies for the province of Izmir.

While the immediate impact has been obvious in places such as Cesme, it has barely dented the daily flow of migrants to Greece: almost 40,000 arrived in the first 10 days of December alone. After an initial dip, the number of people landing on Greek beaches has returned to last month’s highs.

Instead, interviews with nearly a dozen people involved in smuggling reveal a process of rapid adaptation that shows the resilience of the lucrative trade and how difficult it will be for Turkey to clamp down fully.

The Doctor, as he is known in smuggling circles, is wanted by Europol, according to two western diplomats, and runs one of the largest smuggling groups out of Turkey. That evening, he was planning on moving at least 15 boatloads of refugees but only succeeded in sending four.

He shows a picture of a 232-metre ship for which he has made a $1.5m cash down payment. He plans to use it to move migrants, nearly 400 at a time, from Mersin, on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, in a four- or five-day voyage to a point off Italy, where fishermen will take the refugees the final few kilometres.

A boat importer in Istanbul ran into similar difficulties. His import licence allowed him to bring in Chinese-made craft and sell them for as much as $10,000 each.

For three months, his business thrived until two well-dressed Turkish men in a black luxury car visited his home in late October, placed a handgun on his dining table and told him to stop his business.

He did, later learning from his smuggler friends that the Turkish mafia was becoming the largest source for boats. [Source: Financial Times]

Since there is no real authority over Muslim lands, the mafia takes the place of governments. Where governments do not provide security and justice, people seek other ways to protect themselves or take their rights.