American mezzo-soprano and soprano Grace Bumbry has died aged 86. Bumbry’s career saw her perform at the top of the operatic world for over four decades, including debuting in Paris in 1960 as Amneris in Verdi’s Aida. The following year, Bumbry’s controversial choice to play Venus in Wagner’s Tannhäuser at Bayreuth led to outrage from Wagner fans, and was fiercely opposed by the Neo-Nazi Reich Party. Bumbry’s performance of the role, however, was a triumph. Following this performance, she returned to the Kennedy White House to sing for a state dinner in 1962, returned to sing for Ronald Reagan's inauguration in 1981, and was honoured by President Obama in 2009. Throughout her career, Bumbry was known for her larger-than-life personality and commanding stage-presence, as well as the strength and range of her vocals.
Ekrem Imamoglu, mayor of Istanbul and vice-presidential nominee, was attacked with stones during a rally ahead of the upcoming election. The opposition rally was moved after local Erdogan-aligned authorities tried to pack the square with buses to block it. When the rally started it was attacked by unknown assailants, smashing the windows of Imamoglu's van and injuring seven people. The attack has been compared to the political violence seen during Turkey’s military coups in the 60s and 70s. The ruling party's justice minister condemned the attack but refused to condemn Erdogan's previous aggressive verbal attacks on the opposition.
Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag has revealed that over a dozen people have been arrested for violence against opposition supporters at a rally in Turkey’s Erzurum. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is a member of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), was campaigning on behalf of CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the main opponent against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, days before Sunday’s presidential and parliamentary elections. The minister maintained that the attack was allowed to continue by the police and pro-Erdogan officials in Erzurum. Erdogan is facing his strongest political challenge yet in the forthcoming elections, and surveys carried out since Turkey’s recent earthquakes have shown Kilicdaroglu ahead of him. Most polls for the parliamentary elections show the main opposition alliance ahead in the People’s Alliance. The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party will run for parliament under the Green Left Party banner to circumvent the party’s potential closure.
Osman Kavala, an entrepreneur, civil rights activist and philanthropist, sentenced in April 2022 to life in prison for his alleged involvement in the 2013 Gezi protests, has spoken to Deutsche Welle in a written interview, providing insight into his day to day life in prison, the accusations levelled against him and his hopes for political change in Turkey. Kavala is accused of organising and financing the protests, which began as an opposition to the construction of a shopping center and expanded to be a protest against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government. Kavala has maintained his innocence, and suggests his imprisonment is a tactic to maintain the appearance of the charges having validity.
The interview also suggests that the government’s prosecution of Kavala is a message to domestic audiences, reassuring them that authorities will come down hard on civil society activists and protest movements, as well showing the judiciary that it can act in accordance with the government’s priorities. Externally, Kavala’s persecution is an illustration of the government’s line that foreign powers are behind any social or political disruption. Germany has joined other countries and organizations in condemning Kavala’s conviction and campaigning for his release.
The interview shows that Kavala’s involvement in the protests was peripheral, his primary role being in campaigning against the destruction of Gezi Park to build a shopping mall, rather than participation in the protests themselves. He argues that cultural programs run in south-east Turkey, which promote cooperation between artists, writers and intellectuals from Istanbul and Diyarbakir, contribute to building understanding between communities, and to develop mutual trust.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could attend a summit in Riyadh on 19 May, following Syria's readmission to the Arab League, a potentially significant moment in the embattled leader's efforts to shift his position from an isolated pariah to a legitimate ruler. Regional shifts have so far helped strengthen Assad's hand, as the most powerful Middle Eastern countries pursue conflict resolution over hostility. The Arab states are demanding Assad take action to end the trafficking of the highly-addictive and lucrative amphetamine captagon across Syria's borders towards the Gulf. In return for ending Syria's isolation, Arab states want these sanctions to be abolished and for Assad to cooperate with them in ending trafficking. Assad has survived for a number of years at the head of a brutal civil war thanks to the support of Russia and Iran, who were committed to his survival at all costs, as Western nations swung their support behind the rebels fighting to topple him.
