NEWS

Storms bring an end to summer heat

Thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday have swept away the summer heat and humidity in Fethiye, leaving the air cooler and fresher – for now.

Türkiye has suffered scorching temperatures continuing into October, with temperatures in Antalya reported to have reached 41 degrees last weekend.

According to Arabia Weather, the rise in temperatures was the result of a wind descending from the tops of the Taurus mountains in a weather phenomenon called Foehn wind.

While temperatures have cooled in the past days to more manageable temperatures across Türkiye’s southern coast, the mercury’s high point last weekend was a reminder of how relentless 2022’s heatwave remains deep into the autumn.

The longevity of the heatwave, and the fact it hit so many countries across the globe, underlined the alarming effect of man-made global warming. Many scientists warned that such temperatures – and the damage they can do to people and natural resources – will become increasingly common.

Source: The Independent

Opposition, NGOs slam Türkiye’s draft law on criminalising ‘disinformation’

Journalists’ associations and unions have slammed a new draft law in Türkiye that would criminalise the spread of “disinformation”.

Reporters say the bill is an attempt by the government to censor freedom of expression and restrict independent media.

The disinformation bill will allow the government to tighten its control over the digital realm by channelling more resources to pro-government online media and expanding censorship. Its wording is vague enough to give prosecutors broad discretion to criminalise almost any criticism of the public authorities. The new law can be used to narrow public debate on politically sensitive issues such as migration and the economic crisis. It also makes it easier for the authorities to remove content from social media platforms and prosecute individuals for their views. This will create fear among citizens and lead to self-censorship.

Under the law, citizens can face between one and three years in prison if they are deemed to have intentionally spread “misleading information”.

Social networks will also be forced to remove “false” content under the law and share account details with the authorities.

Platforms must already remove content that’s reported as offensive by individuals or the Turkish government.

The new bill was tabled by the AK party of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in May and has already been approved by two parliamentary committees.

The Turkish parliament is due to begin debating the controversial new legislation on Tuesday.

Source: https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2022/10/04/opposition-ngos-slam-turkeys-draft-law-on-criminalising-disinformation

Plane’s tire catches fire on landing in southern province

The tire of a Turkish Airlines plane that took off from Istanbul burst into flames while landing on the runway of the airport in the southern province of Hatay on Friday.

Overheating in one of the landing gears of the plane led the tire to explode, said Yahya Üstün, an officer from Turkish Airlines, adding that the firefighters immediately intervened to extinguish the fire.

Hatay Governor’s Office stated that the plane stopped at approximately 2,000 meters from the beginning of the runway with its fuselage intact.

Some 105 passengers and six flight crew members were deplaned, while the plane was removed from the incident area.

The airport’s runway was reopened to flight traffic after 24 hours of closure.

Source: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/planes-tire-catches-fire-on-landing-in-southern-province-177523

Stone heads of Mt Nemrut to be ‘technically botoxed’

The tiny cracks on the large stone heads at Mount Nemrut in the southeastern province of Adıyaman will be filled with special lime grout in a procedure similar to Botox operations, and the heads will be wrapped with a special fabric to protect the 2,000-year-old artifacts.

The local media has reported that the joint project, conducted with the country’s culture and tourism ministry and Mideast Technical University (ODTÜ), aims to hold the stone heads standing in an upright posture for 2,000 more years.

According to reports, the cracks on the stone heads will be filled with nanoparticle-infused lime grout in a meticulous work, that can be likened to “Botox operations in humans.”

The tourism season in Mount Nemrut ends in November with the start of the precipitation and restarts in April.

Speaking to local media on the condition of anonymity, an official said, “The rain and snow sneak inside the tiny cracks and causes the cracks to get bigger. This Botox-like work will prevent infiltration and protect the stone heads.”

According to another expert, the work will start by November with one artefact. “By the end of the precipitation, we will see if we have succeeded in protecting the artefact from rain and snow. If we see that we have, then the work will be continued on other stone heads over five years.”

SPORT

Türkiye wins Amputee Football World Cup title

Türkiye won the 2022 Amputee Football World Cup on Sunday, beating reigning champions Angola 4-1 in the final in Istanbul.

At the last Amputee Football World Cup in Mexico in 2018, Türkiye finished as runner-up after losing to Angola 5-4 in penalty shootouts.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Türkiye is hosting the 2022 Amputee Football World Cup.

Thank you to Brian Lloyd for the Fethiyespor update.

Fethiyespor

Fethiyespor Youth U14 team’s player, Yunus Selen, has been selected for the squad representing Türkiye. The team wish him every success in the future.

The new season football shirts are now on sale at the Fethiye stadium from Monday to Friday, 11 am to 5 pm. Shirts are available in sizes from small to XXXL and are priced at 250 TL each.