ISTANBUL: Turkiye’s Supreme Election Board on Friday confirmed the results of the first round of Turkiye’s presidential election in which neither incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan nor his main challenger, opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, receiving the majority support needed for an outright victory.
The electoral board announced that Erdogan secured 49.24 percent of the vote, with Kilicdaroglu getting 45.07 percent and a third candidate, nationalist politician Sinan Ogan, receiving 5.28 percent, necessitating a runoff election on May 28 between the top two contenders.
Ogan, a former academic who was backed by an anti-migrant party, might hold the key to victory in the runoff now that he’s out of the race.
Speaking to Turkish media earlier this week, Ogan listed the conditions to earn his support. Among them are taking a tough stance against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, as well as creating a timeline for sending back millions of refugees, including nearly 3.7 million Syrians.
The PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency in southeast Turkiye, is considered a terror organization by Turkiye, the United States and the European Union.
On Thursday, Kilicdaroglu shifted from his more inclusive, soft-toned rhetoric to appeal to nationalist voters, vowing to send back millions of refugees and rejecting any possibility of negotiating for peace with Kurdish militants.
Meanwhile, speaking to CNN International in an interview broadcast on Friday, Erdogan said he would not bend to Ogan’s demands: “I’m not a person who likes to negotiate in such a manner. It will be the people who are the kingmakers.”
Yet on Friday a surprise meeting between Erdogan and Ogan took place at the former’s Istanbul office. No statement was made following the nearly one-hour meeting.
Turkiye’s electoral board confirms 1st round election results; Erdogan meets 3rd party candidate
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Turkiye’s electoral board confirms 1st round election results; Erdogan meets 3rd party candidate
- The electoral board announced that Erdogan secured 49.24% of the vote, with Kilicdaroglu getting 45.07%
- On Friday a surprise meeting between Erdogan and Ogan took place at the former’s Istanbul office
Israeli settlers target wells, disrupt water supply to 19 Palestinian areas near Ramallah
- Settlers broke windows, doors, control panels and cut the cables rendering the wells completely inoperable
- Attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinian homes and businesses have increased since October 2023
LONDON: Israeli settlers attacked water wells in the Ein Samia area, northeast of Ramallah, overnight, causing a disruption in the water supply for several hours, according to the Jerusalem District Water Department's report on Sunday.
The Palestinian Authority’s water authority reported that settlers targeted wells number two, four, and six in Ein Samia, disrupting their operation from Saturday at 10 p.m. until Sunday at 9 a.m. The attackers broke windows, doors, control panels and cut the cables, rendering the wells completely inoperable.
It warned that attacks on the primary water source jeopardized access to water for over 19 areas in the occupied West Bank, worsening the difficulties faced by residents near Ramallah.
Attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinian homes and businesses have increased since October 2023.
These incidents include vandalism, arson, shootings, and the destruction of agricultural lands and water sources, often intended to pressure residents into leaving their land. Israeli authorities often provide protection for settlers during attacks, including military deployment to accompany them and suppress local resistance, the Wafa news agency reported.
Excluding East Jerusalem, which was occupied and annexed by Israel in 1967, some 500,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, along with about 3 million Palestinian residents.
