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British consul general killed in bomb blast at Istanbul consulate, diplomatic sources say. Details soon

When I am at home, I never go near the synagogue unless, say, there is a bar or bat mitzvah involving the children of friends. But when I am traveling, in a country where Jewish life is scarce or endangered, I often make a visit to the shul. I always feel vaguely foolish doing this (the sensation of being a slight impostor is best conveyed in "Christian" terms by Philip Larkin's marvellous poem "Churchgoing") but as a result I have seen some fascinating evidences of survival in Damascus, in Havana, in Dubrovnik, in Sarajevo, and in Budapest, among other places....

ISTANBUL : Turkey's Jews came together in a high-walled cemetery in Istanbul for the funeral of six victims of the bomb attacks that tore through two synagogues in the ancient city at the weekend. Several hundred mourners, including Israeli parliament speaker Reuven Rivlin, gathered despite driving rain to bury the six who were among 25 people killed in the bombings suspected to be linked to the al-Qaeda terror network. Security was tight for the emotional ceremony, with a police helicopter circling overhead as armed police in bullet-proof vests lined neighbouring streets and conducted searches of those entering the cemetery in...

THE WORLD'S UGLY DISEASE CALLED "ANTI-SEMITISM" AND ITS AIM TO DESTROY THE OLD TURKISH JEWISH FRIENDSHIP (A Personal View) Mahmut Esat Ozan Chairman-Editorial Board The Turkish Forum-USA The dastardly attack perpetrated against two of Istanbul's renowned Jewish Synagogues is, without a doubt, the work of heartless Islamist terrorists. It does not make any difference whether they are of domestic or of foreign origin. Their work has been utterly despicable. There are those who sent their 'deep condolences' to the Turkish authorities, from afar such as: France, Germany, the Vatican, and Scandinavian countries, expressing their sorrow for the great loss of...

LONDON (Reuters) - London-based Arab language newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi said on Sunday it had received a statement from al Qaeda claiming responsibility for the attack on two Istanbul synagogues which killed at least 23 people. Abdel-Bari Atwan, the editor of the newspaper, told Arab satellite television Al Jazeera from London, that the statement was sent in an email from an al Qaeda division called Brigades of the Martyr Abu Hafz al-Masri. "The statement said that they carried out the operations after they found out that Mossad agents were working at the synagogues and therefore they bombed them," he said. Political...

November 15, 2003 The Bombing of Synagogues in Istanbul: An al-Qaida Operation or a Revival of Turkish Islamist Terrorism? Ely Karmon ICT Senior Researcher Background On November 15, 2003, two nearly simultaneous carbomb attacks targeted Istanbul synagogues, killing at least 24 people and wounding more than 255. The Neve Shalom synagogue, where most of the deaths reportedly occurred, was the scene of an earlier attack in 1986, when Palestinian terrorists members of the Fatah – Revolutionary Command (better known as the Abu Nidal organization, or ANO) killed 22 worshippers and wounded six others during a Sabbath service. On March 1,...

Israeli security officials believe that Al-Qaida or an affiliated Islamic extremist group is responsible for the car bombs that exploded at two synagogues in Istanbul on Saturday morning, which officials said killed at least 23 people and wounded at least 308. The assessment comes despite the claim by a militant Turkish Islamic group, widely believed to be backed by Iran, that it was responsible for the blasts. The security officials are inclined to believe that Hezbollah was not behind the bombings, and some said that before Saturday they had never heard of the group that took responsibility. Meanwhile, Israeli security...

Turks Concerned Over Rising Christian Missionary Activity  Missionaries target locals in earthquake-stricken areas By Sa'ad Abdul Majid, IOL Correspondent ISTANBUL, November 13 (IslamOnline.net) - The deputy head of Turkish Parliament vowed opposition to U.S. and E.U. requests to reopen an Orthodox religious school, that was closed more than 40 years ago, in the predominantly Muslim country as Christian missionary work is growing in the poorly-inhabited areas in Turkey, with 39 churches built in Istanbul in the last five years. "Shutting down the school was in accordance with the Lozan Agreement, Ankara had signed with the Allies after World War...

15 Nov 2003 12:18:33 GMT Turkey sees "international links" in blasts (Combines SECURITY-TURKEY-GUL and SECURITY-TURKEY-SUICIDE, adds Erdogan, Sezer) ISTANBUL, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said he believed there were "international links" in two bomb attacks which ripped through two synagogues in Istanbul on Saturday killing at least 16 people. Gul also said in televised remarks he believed that suicide attackers were behind the blasts, which struck as worshippers were celebrating the Jewish sabbath. "It is clear that this is a terrorist event with international links," Gul said. "These attacks will have no effect on our policies....

Turkey Blasts Condemned, Death Toll Hits 20 More than 200 people were injured ISTANBUL, November 15 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - The international community fiercely condemned the devastating bomb attacks Saturday, November 15, near two synagogues in Turkey as the death toll has risen to 20. An official from the city's health department told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that more than 200 people were hurt in the explosions, adding that the exact figure was difficult to determine because injured people were being transferred between hospitals. Both blasts, which officials say were caused by explosive-laden vehicles, went off near synagogues during Sabbath...

ISTANBUL, Turkey - Suicide car bombers attacked two synagogues in downtown Istanbul at almost the same time Saturday, killing 23 people, the interior minister said. One explosion went off outside the Neve Shalom synagogue, the city's largest. The other severely damaged the Beth Israel Synagogue in the affluent district of Sisli, three miles away. An outlawed Turkish radical group called the Great Eastern Islamic Raiders' Front claimed responsibility, the semi-official Anatolia news agency said. Interior Minister Abdulkadir Aksu said 23 people were killed, while Anatolia said more than 80 were wounded. He said both attacks were suicide car bombings. Television...

CNN Turk: Explosion rocks Neveh Shalom synagogue in Istanbul, Turkey; five reported dead (Reuters)

Istanbul -- In the battle of the Marne in 1914 Marshall Foch allegedly sent the following message to the French general staff: ''My center is giving way and my right is in retreat. Situation excellent. I shall attack.'' There were echoes of this bravado in President Bush's speech last week in which he outlined an ambitious strategy for establishing democracy in the Middle East as a major justification for his intervention in Iraq. In Iraq itself the security situation is getting worse. More American soldiers are being killed by cleverly coordinated attacks. Weapons of mass destruction remain to be found...