Turkey has sacked 2,756 more people from its public service sector for alleged links to terror groups as it presses ahead with purges launched following last year's failed military coup.
According to two government decrees published on the online legal data bank Official Gazette, those dismissed in the new wave of purges include 637 military personnel, 360 gendarmerie force members and 150 academics or other university personnel.
Turkey blames the July 2016 coup on US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen. Some 50,000 people have been arrested and more than 110,000 civil servants have been dismissed for alleged links to Gulen or militant groups in a crackdown since then.
The government says the purges are needed to counter the continuing danger posed by followers of Gulen's movement. Gulen denies involvement in the coup.
Critics say the government is using its emergency powers to jail opponents and silence dissent.
According to Sunday's decrees, defendants who are on trial on terrorism charges will from now on appear in court wearing "almond and gray-colored uniforms."
The decision comes months after a defendant accused of links to the coup wore a T-shirt with the word "hero" emblazoned on it, sparking a public outcry. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to ensure that Gulen supporters wore uniforms similar to those worn by prisoners at Guantanamo Bay when appearing in court.
On Sunday, Erdogan told reporters the uniforms would be worn by male defendants. Justice ministry officials would also work out a dress code for female defendants.
According to Human Rights Watch (HRW) people accused of links with terrorist groups or the military coup have been abducted and tortured whilst in police custody.
“Given Turkey’s dark history of enforced disappearances, the authorities need to locate the men still missing, and ensure that anyone held by state agents has regular access to a lawyer and their family knows where they are,” said HRW Europe and Central Asia Director.
Several local and international human rights organisations have expressed alarm at the ongoing crackdown, with HRW calling it "symptomatic of the government’s increasing authoritarianism." Turkey came under immense scrutiny following the arrest of 11 human rights activists, including the Amnesty International Turkey director.
Press freedom has also been targeted, with the Committee to Protect Journalists naming Turkey the world's worst jailer for the second consecutive year with 73 journalists behind bars while hundreds of outlets have been shut down or taken over.
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Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
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RESULTS
Bantamweight title:
Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) bt Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
(KO round 2)
Catchweight 68kg:
Sean Soriano (USA) bt Noad Lahat (ISR)
(TKO round 1)
Middleweight:
Denis Tiuliulin (RUS) bt Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
(TKO round 1)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR) bt Joachim Tollefsen (DEN)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 68kg:
Austin Arnett (USA) bt Daniel Vega (MEX)
(TKO round 3)
Lightweight:
Carrington Banks (USA) bt Marcio Andrade (BRA)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 58kg:
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) bt Malin Hermansson (SWE)
(Submission round 2)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (CAN) bt Juares Dea (CMR)
(Split decision)
Middleweight:
Mohamad Osseili (LEB) bt Ivan Slynko (UKR)
(TKO round 1)
Featherweight:
Tarun Grigoryan (ARM) bt Islam Makhamadjanov (UZB)
(Unanimous decision)
Catchweight 54kg:
Mariagiovanna Vai (ITA) bt Daniella Shutov (ISR)
(Submission round 1)
Middleweight:
Joan Arastey (ESP) bt Omran Chaaban (LEB)
(Unanimous decision)
Welterweight:
Bruno Carvalho (POR) bt Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
(TKO)
Company Profile
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Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 6 (McTominay 2', 3'; Fernandes 20', 70' pen; Lindelof 37'; James 65')
Leeds United 2 (Cooper 41'; Dallas 73')
Man of the match: Scott McTominay (Manchester United)
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Terra
Started: 2021
Based: Dubai
Founder: Hussam Zammar
Sector: Mobility
Investment stage: Pre-seed funding of $1 million
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe
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Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
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Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
ALRAWABI SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
Creator: Tima Shomali
Starring: Tara Abboud, Kira Yaghnam, Tara Atalla
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: SmartCrowd
Started: 2018
Founder: Siddiq Farid and Musfique Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech / PropTech
Initial investment: $650,000
Current number of staff: 35
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Various institutional investors and notable angel investors (500 MENA, Shurooq, Mada, Seedstar, Tricap)
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
THE DETAILS
Deadpool 2
Dir: David Leitch
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Justin Dennison, Zazie Beetz
Four stars
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures