Erdogan Given Broad Authority in Turkey

More details emerged late Thursday about the three-month state of emergency approved by Turkish lawmakers following last week’s abortive coup attempt, including sweeping new powers granted to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan which some human rights groups warned amounted to setting him up as an unchallenged dictator. “Temporary states of emergency can end up lasting a very long time,” quipped one analyst.

Municipal officials estimated that between 25,000 and 30,000 people participated in Thursday’s LGBT Pride parade in Jerusalem while a few dozen individuals showed up at a designated and barricaded off area near the parade’s starting point in Liberty Park to protest. The predominantly Palestinian population of eastern Jerusalem largely avoided the event altogether.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki told journalists in Khartoum Wednesday that the PA has teamed up with the regime of Sudanese strongman Omar al-Bashir, sought by the international criminal court for war crimes in Darfur and elsewhere, to thwart Israel’s attempts to make new inroads into Africa. In related news, reports indicate that Chad will soon become the latest African country to open diplomatic relations with Israel.

Turkey is militarily, geographically, and politically important to NATO as the alliance’s southern border and as a bridge between the Middle East and Europe. As President Erdogan and Turkish authorities employ their state-of-emergency powers, Washington and NATO will need to continue to advocate clearly for restraint and a commitment to the democratic principles upon with NATO was founded.