Istanbul

The awe-inspiring discovery of a Byzantine basilica in İznik and a massive underground city near Cappadocia bookended 2014, but the year also brought with it times of triumph in the cultural sphere, as well as farewells to doyens of archaeology.

Doyenne of Turkish archaeology dies aged 98
Jan 12, 2014

From notorious terrorists to naughty cats and salacious kisses, 2014 has been a year of oddities in Turkey. Here are our picks: 1) Al-Qaeda mastermind featured in Turkish cosmetic ad

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made the headlines with several statements in 2014. When he was still Turkey’s prime minister before Aug. 10 presidential elections, many of his sensational comments targeted his political rivals – or the Internet as a whole.

Istanbul's Yerebatan Cistern, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city, is drawing interest from national and international filmmakers, as well as tourists Constructed over 1,400 years ago, Istanbul's Yerebatan Cistern has in time become one of the city's most famous tourist sites, drawing millions of visitors every year to its splendid columns and mystical Medusa sculptures.

Three Turkish workers have been killed due to a collapse at a tunnel construction site on a highway near Arbil.

The construction of a portion of the highway between Arbil and Salahaddin is being done by a Turkish company.

Two separate targeted hits in one day in upscale Istanbul neighborhoods that left three people dead late Dec. 24 were part of Amsterdam-based mafia wars over drug trafficking, according to Dutch media.

The killings in Istanbul might be related to mafia wars in the Netherlands which are related to drug trafficking, the BBC Turkey service cited Dutch television station NOS as saying.

Two separate targeted hits in one day in upscale Istanbul neighborhoods that left three people dead late Dec. 24 were part of Amsterdam-based mafia wars over drug trafficking, according to Dutch media.

The killings in Istanbul might be related to mafia wars in the Netherlands which are related to drug trafficking, the BBC Turkey service cited Dutch television station NOS as saying.

Two separate targeted hits in one day in upscale Istanbul neighborhoods left three people dead late Dec. 24, just days after a bodyguard was killed in front of a bar in Istanbul's Nişantaşı neighborhood.

Interior Minister Efkan Ala said there was no concrete data in their hands that would allow them to say if the two hits were related but that they were working on that possibility.

An Istanbul court has decided to release one of the four arrested suspects in the case of the elevator accident at an Istanbul construction site that left 10 workers dead.  

Housing sales to foreign buyers have jumped by close to 60 percent for the January to November period, as data from the Turkish Statistical Agency (TÜİK) has shown.