US embassy cable - 04ANKARA4320

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 004320 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL 
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, TU, Press Summaries 
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT, 
TUESDAY, AUGUST 3, 2004 
 
THIS REPORT PRESENTS THE TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER THREE 
THEMES: 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
HEADLINES 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Turkish captive victim of Iraqi brutality - Aksam 
Lowly killing of Turkish truck driver - Milliyet 
Hooded cowards kill Turkish hostage - Hurriyet 
Low-mindedness has no religion - Hurriyet 
FM Gul: Relations with Iraq will continue - Aksam 
Zarkawi behind attacks on Iraqi churches - Milliyet 
Turkish connection disclosed in Al-Qaeda communications - 
Hurriyet 
Bush to build new intelligence team - Aksam 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Turkish hostage killed in Iraq - Cumhuriyet 
Turks on target in Iraq - Radikal 
US denounces killing of Turkish hostage - Zaman 
Attacks on Iraqi churches a threat for non-Muslims - 
Cumhuriyet 
`Orange' alert hikes oil prices - Cumhuriyet 
`Terror panic' in US - Yeni Safak 
US financial sector on alert - Radikal 
Bush to assign `Intelligence Czar' - Zaman 
Five Moroccans transferred from Guantanamo - Yeni Safak 
Sharon expands settlements in West Bank before disengagement 
- Zaman 
Sudan regards UNSC resolution as a `declaration of war' - 
Cumhuriyet 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
Zarkawi group kills Turkish captive in Iraq:  Turkish papers 
give extensive front-page coverage to the killing of a 
Turkish hostage in Iraq.  In a videotape posted on Islamist 
websites Monday, Turkish national Murat Yuce was shown being 
shot three times in the head by his hooded kidnappers. 
Yuce, a cleaner working for a Turkish catering company 
transporting goods to US soldiers in Mosul, was kidnapped by 
the "Tawhid wa al-Jihad" group affiliated with terrorist 
leader al-Zarqawi.  Following news of the killing, a major 
Turkish truckers' organization (UND) announced that it would 
stop transporting goods to US forces in Iraq.  UND leaders 
said their decision, which applied only to its own members, 
would affect about five percent of overall trade between 
Turkey and Iraq.  However, Ro-Ro Ships Operators' and the 
Combined Transporters' Association (RODER) said they would 
not abide by the UND decision: `We have to be cautious 
because there are nearly fifty thousand lorries and 
drivers,' a statement by RODER said.  `We will discuss the 
issue with the Transportation Ministry.'  The Turkish 
Exporters' Assembly (TIM) said that the UND decision was 
`premature.'  FM Gul said that efforts were underway to 
secure the release of other Turkish hostages in Iraq. 
Declining to give the number of Turkish hostages being held, 
Gul said that `many countries have faced problems in Iraq.' 
`Thus far,' he added, `we have not suffered damage, but we 
unfortunately lost one of our citizens today.' US State 
Department spokesman Adam Ereli condemned the killing of the 
Turkish captive as `a heinous and barbarous act.'  `It shows 
the true nature of the terrorists holding this hostage, and 
it shows what they're about: they're not about progress, 
they're not about working for the Iraqi people,' Ereli 
stressed.  `We will not let them succeed.  We are resolute 
in standing firm in the face of their terrorist threats,' he 
added.  A commentary in "Cumhuriyet" claims that the Iraqi 
resistance, coordinated by al-Zarkawi, has recently 
concentrated its attacks against `collaborators' rather than 
US forces in an effort to `discredit' the new Iraqi 
government. 
Meeting of secret services:  Intelligence services of 
Turkish-speaking countries met in Astana, Kazakhstan to 
discuss cooperation in the struggle against terrorist 
organizations, "Cumhuriyet" reports.  Russian and Ukrainian 
intelligence officials attended the meeting as observers. 
Participating countries included Turkey, Azerbaijan, 
Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.  The countries agreed on sharing 
anti-terror intelligence and launching joint operations, 
writes "Cumhuriyet." 
 
 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Turk killed in Iraq/Terrorism 
"First Turkish Victim in Iraq" 
Sami Kohen wrote in the mass appeal Milliyet (8/3): "The 
latest of the horrifying kidnap and murder scenes in Iraq by 
Iraqi militants is about a Turkish citizen.  He was executed 
by some Al Zarkavi members linked to Al Qaida.  His so- 
called crime was to work for a Turkish company which does 
business for the Americans in Iraq. ... The actions by Al 
Zarkavi militants constitute only one part of the huge chaos 
in Iraq where every kind of violence is practiced.  Suicide 
bombers, assassinations and other type of attacks have 
become ordinary incidents in Iraq.  The new Iraqi government 
sponsored by the US occupation forces has shown weakness to 
cope with security problems.  Therefore the Al Zarkavi group 
easily succeeds in planning and implementing its strategy. 
... The militants are well aware of infuriating the 
international community, yet their goal is to gain sympathy 
from their own people.  This process is seriously harming 
the rebuilding of Iraq as well as efforts for establishment 
of internal peace and stability. ... The Iraqi people are 
forced into the hands of extremists.  In a situation like 
this, normal life and stability in Iraq will not happen for 
a very long time." 
 
"From Iraq to Sudan" 
Ibrahim Karagul argued in the Islamist-opinion maker Yeni 
Safak (8/3): "The recent terrorism alerts have created an 
atmosphere where the occurrence of a terrorist attack has 
become more than a possibility.  It looks as if some circles 
in Washington are waiting for this to happen.  It looks as 
if they are doing their best to make sure that `something is 
going to happen' in the end.  In any case we might expect 
more `terror alerts' in the days to come.  And who knows, 
one of them might be even genuine.  This is like investing 
in terrorism, and it is not going to end after the 
presidential elections.  Regardless of the winner of the 
November elections, the US administration will never abandon 
`terror' as part of its foreign policy strategy.  Terrorism 
paranoia will be used as a pretext to launch further 
interventions in Syria, Iran, Sudan and other strategic 
locations." 
 
DEUTSCH