ANKARA: Turkey and Iran are deepening military cooperation following a visit by the latter’s top military chief Mohammad Bagheri to Ankara last week with a high-level delegation.
The two countries are discussing joint military action against Kurdish militants they accuse of threatening their territorial integrity.
The cooperation plan was announced by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before he headed to Jordan on an official visit.
Erdogan said Turkey and Iran will take military action against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its offshoot, the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK).
Both countries oppose Iraqi Kurdistan’s independence referendum scheduled for Sept. 25, as they are concerned that it may spur separatist ambitions among their own Kurdish populations.
The joint military action is expected to take place in the Qandil region along the Iraq-Iran border.
“Joint action against terrorist groups that have become a threat is always on the agenda,” Erdogan said on Monday.
“This issue has been discussed between the two military chiefs, including its diplomatic aspects.”
Turkey recently started constructing a 144-km-long wall on its border with Iran, aimed at tackling infiltrations of Kurdish militants and smuggling.
Bilgehan Alagoz, an expert on Turkey-Iran relations at Marmara University in Istanbul, said there has been bilateral cooperation against terrorists over the last three decades.
“But in the last six years, Turkey and Iran have had a different approach toward Syria,” he told Arab News.
“This division enabled the PKK and its Syrian branch the PYD (Democratic Union Party) to increase their activities in the region,” she said.
“Recently the two countries have great concerns about security threats, and they’re willing to crack down on PKK/PJAK terrorist activities.”
Alagoz said with greater border controls and intelligence-sharing about terrorist groups, Iran and Turkey will show intensified cooperation against regional security threats.
“But the US strategy, based on arming the PYD, creates great concern in Turkey. This is another reason why Turkey is determined to act together with other regional actors against threats on its borders,” she added.
Gulriz Sen, an Iran expert at the TOBB University of Economics and Technology in Ankara, said bilateral relations have gone through ebbs and flows since the start of the Arab Spring as the two neighbors, each keen to shape regional developments, hold diverging views on the Syrian regime and the role of Iran-backed militias in Iraq’s struggle against Daesh.
“But the recent visit of Bagheri demonstrates elements of convergence in bilateral affairs, and provides a fresh impetus for cooperation based on Turkey’s and Iran’s rejection of an independent Kurdish state in the region, which they fear would prove contagious and stir up the demands and aspirations of their own Kurdish populations,” she said.
The decision to take joint action against the PKK and PJAK reflects their common opposition to changing the region’s political map, Sen added.
Ahmad Majidyar, resident fellow and director of the IranObserved project at the Middle East Institute in Washington, said the latest political and security developments in Syria and Iraq have brought Iran and Turkey closer together, and have forced the two regional powers to cooperate to address issues of mutual concern.
“Iran believes it now has the upper hand in Iraq and Syria, and wants to defuse tensions with Turkey to consolidate and sustain its strategic interests in the region,” Majidyar told Arab News.
“And as the Trump administration is ratcheting up political and economic pressure on Iran, Tehran hopes that closer diplomatic and economic ties with Ankara will help it mitigate the impact of US sanctions.”
Majidyar said Turkey is disappointed with US policies in Iraq and Syria, namely continued support for Kurdish forces in northern Syria, and not preventing Iran-backed Iraqi paramilitary forces from participating in the recent Tal Afar operation.
“So Ankara is seeking to address some of its political and security concerns in the region by working closely with Russia and Iran instead,” he said.
“But while Turkey and Iran are taking concrete steps to cooperate on regional issues, divergent interests and policies may hinder the two major non-Arab Middle Eastern powers from developing their issue-based cooperation into a strategic relationship.”
According to AFP, Erdogan and Jordan’s King Abdallah called on Monday for new “serious and effective” peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the royal palace said.
Meeting in Amman, they urged “the resumption of serious and effective negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel to end the conflict on the basis of a two-state solution to assure an independent Palestinian state with June 1967 borders and east Jerusalem as capital.”
“New peace negotiations must take place according to a precise timetable and be based on international resolutions,” Erdogan and Abdallah said.
They also expressed their “unequivocal rejection of any attempt to change the legal and historical situation in Al-Aqsa Mosque and any unilateral Israeli action threatening the identity of east Jerusalem”.
Iran, Turkey form common front against Kurdish ‘militants’
Iran, Turkey form common front against Kurdish ‘militants’
A look at Ramadan and how Muslims observe the holy month
- Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar; the month cycles through the seasons
- Ramadan is followed by the Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Fitr
CAIRO: Observant Muslims the world over will soon be united in a ritual of daily fasting from dawn to sunset as the Islamic holy month of Ramadan starts. For Muslims, it’s a time for increased worship, religious reflection and charity. Socially, it often brings families and friends together in festive gatherings around meals to break their fast.
Ramadan is followed by the Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Fitr.
First day of Ramadan expected around Feb. 18-19
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar; the month cycles through the seasons.
The start of the month traditionally depends on the sighting of the crescent moon. This year, the first day of Ramadan is expected to be on or around Feb. 18 or 19. The actual start date may vary among countries and Muslim communities due to declarations by multiple Islamic authorities around the globe on whether the crescent had been sighted or different methodologies used to determine the beginning of the month.
This year, the start of Ramadan is expected around the same time as Ash Wednesday, a solemn day of fasting and reflection that signals the start of Lent, the most penitential season of the church calendar for Catholics and many other Christians.
Fasting is one of the pillars of Islam
Fasting is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, along with the profession of faith, prayer, almsgiving and pilgrimage.
Muslims see various meanings and lessons in observing the fast.
It’s regarded as an act of worship to attain piety and one of submission to God. The devout see benefits, including practicing self-restraint, cultivating gratitude and empathizing with people who are poor and hungry.
The daily fast in Ramadan includes abstaining from all food and drink — not even a sip of water is allowed — from dawn to sunset, before breaking the fast in a meal known as “iftar” in Arabic.
Muslims typically stream into mosques for congregational prayers and dedicate more time to religious contemplation and the reading of the Qur’an, the Muslim holy book.
Charity is a hallmark of Ramadan. Among other ways of giving, many seek to provide iftar for those in need, distributing Ramadan boxes filled with pantry staples, handing out warm meals alongside such things as dates and juice or helping hold free communal meals.
Muslims eat a predawn meal, called “suhoor,” to hydrate and nurture their bodies ahead of the daily fast.
Exemptions from fasting
There are certain exemptions, such as for those who are unable to because of illness or travel. Those unable to fast due to being temporarily ill or traveling need to make up for the missed days of fasting later.
Cultural and social traditions associated with Ramadan
Muslims are ethnically and racially diverse and not all Ramadan traditions are rooted in religion. Some customs may transcend borders, while others can differ across cultures.
Many social rituals center on gathering and socializing after the daily fast. Some Muslims decorate their homes, put out Ramadan-themed tableware and centerpieces or throng to markets and Ramadan bazaars.
In Egypt, Ramadan is typically a festive time. Colorful lanterns, in different shapes and sizes, dangle from children’s hands and adorn homes. Ramadan songs may be played to welcome the month.
Ramadan’s soundscape in Egypt has traditionally included the predawn banging on drums by a “mesaharati” who roams neighborhoods, calling out to the faithful, sometimes by name, to wake them up for the suhoor meal.
New TV shows and communal meals
A lineup of new television series is another social fixture of the month in some countries, and advertisers compete for viewers’ attention.
In various regions, some Muslims worry that the month is getting commercialized, and say an emphasis on decorations, TV shows, outings or lavish iftar banquets can detract from Ramadan’s religious essence. Others say that a balance can be struck and that, in moderation, such rituals are part of the month’s festive spirit.
In Indonesia, Ramadan rituals vary across regions, reflecting the diversity of cultures. In deeply conservative Aceh province, animals are slaughtered during Meugang festivities, the meat cooked and shared with family, friends, poor people and orphans.
Hundreds of residents in Tangerang, a city outside the capital, Jakarta, flock to the Cisadane River to wash their hair with rice straw shampoo and welcome the fasting month with a symbolic spiritual cleansing.
Across the island of Sumatra, after evening prayers, many boys and girls parade through the streets, carrying torches and playing Islamic songs.
In the United States, where Muslims make up a racially and ethnically diverse minority, gathering at mosques and Islamic centers when possible for iftar meals and prayers provides many Muslim families with a sense of community. Some Muslims also organize or attend interfaith iftar meals.
