A total of 41 criminals, who were wanted at international and national levels by the General Directorate of Security Interpol-Europol Department, Ministry of Justice officials, KOM, Intelligence and Narcotic Crimes Departments, Cyber, Public Order and Counter-Terrorism Departments, were caught in 10 different countries, including Georgia (27), Bulgaria (5), Germany (2), Albania, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Iraq, United Kingdom, Montenegro and Slovenia. 23 people wanted on an international red notice were caught and sent to Türkiye.

“WE FOLLOWED THE TRACE METICULOUSLY”

Making a statement on the subject, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said, “The EGM Interpol-Europol Department, Ministry of Justice officials, KOM, Intelligence and Anti-Narcotic Crimes Departments, Cyber, Public Order and Counter-Terrorism Departments, meticulously tracked down the individuals who fled abroad and for whom a search warrant was issued. With the joint cooperation with the law enforcement units of the relevant countries, the captured individuals were extradited to our country. We congratulate our Department Heads and heroic police officers who contributed.”

Minister of Internal Affairs Mustafa Çiftçi stated that in the fight against crime in 2026, a comprehensive and determined fight will be carried out, especially against new generation criminal gangs, money laundering, illegal gambling, virtual betting organizations and narcotic crimes. In his evaluation to Sabah Newspaper News Coordinator Abdurrahman Şimşek and A Haber Special News Chief Mehmet Karataş, Minister of Internal Affairs Mustafa Çiftçi stated that the fight against money laundering, illegal gambling and virtual betting organizations will be among the top priority issues. Çiftçi said that efforts to cut off the financial resources of criminal organizations will be increased and the technological capacity of security units will be strengthened.

NO PASSAGE TO VIRTUAL BETTING

Minister Çiftçi also pointed out that crime methods have changed with digitalization and stated that a new fight concept will be implemented against cyber crimes, virtual betting organizations and financial crimes. Referring to his position as Governor of Erzurum, Minister Çiftçi stated that there has been a significant decrease in cyber crimes, narcotic crimes, public order incidents and virtual betting crimes and said, “Thanks to the effective combat model we implemented in Erzurum, we have achieved a serious decrease in crime rates. We will spread this success to the whole of Türkiye.” Representing Turkuvaz Media, Sabah Newspaper News Coordinator Abdurrahman Şimşek and A Haber Special News Chief Mehmet Karataş visited the Minister of Internal Affairs Mustafa Çiftçi in his office and expressed their best wishes for his new position.

A new milestone has been achieved in the Terror-Free Türkiye goal, which was put forward by the state as a declaration of will. Öcalan published a message a year ago and called on the terrorist organization PKK to “dissolve the organization and lay down its arms.” Heeding this call, the terrorist organization decided to dissolve itself and began to lay down its weapons. Abdullah Öcalan published a new message on the first anniversary of February 27, when he called on the PKK to “disarm and dissolve”. Öcalan stated that the era of violence-based politics is over and said, “There can be no Turks without Kurds, no Kurds without Turks. Now is the period of positive construction.”

IT STARTED WITH THANKS

The highlights of Öcalan’s message, which thanked President Erdoğan and Bahçeli, are as follows:

MENTAL PEACE WITH THE REPUBLIC: We managed to overcome the negative rebellion period with a basically unilateral will and practice. The organization’s decisions to disband and put an end to its armed struggle strategy demonstrated not only officially and de facto but also mental purification from violence and a preference for politics. This is also a declaration of mental peace with the republic.

WE MUST MOVE TO THE POSITIVE CONSTRUCTION PHASE: Now we must move from the negative phase to the positive construction phase. The door is opening to a new era of politics and strategy. We aim to close the era of violent politics and open a process based on democratic society and law, and we invite everyone to create opportunities and take responsibility in this direction.

THERE IS NO TURK WITHOUT A TURK, THERE IS NO TURK WITHOUT A KURD: There is no Turk without a Kurd, there is no Kurd without a Turk. This relationship dialectic has a historical specificity. The basic texts in the founding process of the Republic expressed Turkish and Kurdish unity. Our February 27 call is an attempt to revive this spirit of unity and a demand for a democratic republic.

WE ARE REMOVING THE OBSTACLES OF BROTHERHOOD: We are removing the obstacles to brotherhood, which has been tried to be reversed in the last two centuries, and we are doing what is required by the law of brotherhood.

AS IMPORTANT AS THE BEGINNING: Democratic integration is at least as important as the beginning of the republic. At its core is the democratic society model. The transition to democratic integration requires peace laws. Citizenship relations should be established on the basis of ties with the state, not on belonging to the nation.

CALL TO THE ENTIRE MIDDLE EAST: Our call aims to find a solution to the problem of living together and the crisis it creates, not only in Türkiye but also in the Middle East.

HE PREVIOUSLY SAID THERE ARE NO SEPARATE NATIONS AND FEDERATIONS

In his message last year, Öcalan stated that in this historical process, the terrorist organization should dissolve itself and lay down its arms. Öcalan underlined that there were no expectations for a federation and a separate state, saying, “Separate nation-state, federation, administrative autonomy and culturalist solutions, which are the necessary consequences of the extreme nationalist drift, cannot be an answer to the sociology of historical society.”

The TCG Anatolian UAV ship and other warships belonging to the Turkish Navy, which anchored in the Port of Rotterdam within the scope of NATO’s Steadfast Dart exercise, were widely covered in the Dutch press. The 232-meter-long TCG Anatolian SİHA ship, which anchored in the Port of Rotterdam on February 26 with its 3 warships, was announced to its readers by the Dutch media as an “impressive sight”. Algemeen Dagblad, in its news titled “Impressive image: 4 ships of the Turkish navy, in the Port of Rotterdam”, stated that the ships were visibly anchored in the center of the city, right next to the Erasmus Bridge. Rodi news website gave detailed information about the Istanbul and Oruçreis frigates, the supply ship Derya, and the amphibious assault ship/drone and helicopter ship TCG Anadolu, which it described as “the largest”. It was seen in their social media posts that many Turks and Dutch people living in the Netherlands went to the Port of Rotterdam to see the ships and took photos with Turkish flags, especially next to TCG Anadolu.

LETTER SURPRISE FOR COMMANDERS

The crew of the TCG Anadolu ship met at the Port of Rotterdam with letters full of pride and longing from little hearts in Türkiye. Türkiye’s Ambassador to the Hague, Fatma Ceren Yazgan, delivered the letters written by students in Izmir’s Foça district to the Anatolian Turkish Naval Task Force to Amphibious Task Group Commander Rear Admiral Mevlüt Savaş Bilican. In the letters, the messages and drawings of the students’ trust, pride and support for the Turkish soldiers attracted attention.

Indictments were prepared in the “Betting and match-fixing in football” investigation carried out by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Separate indictments were issued against 34 suspects, including Galatasaray football player Metehan Baltacı and Fenerbahçe football player Mert Hakan Yandaş, for the crimes of “match-fixing and incentive bonus” and “Fraud by Using Information Systems, Banks or Credit Institutions as Tools”. Details of the indictment prepared against Fenerbahçe football players Yandaş and Ersin Dikmen have been reached. The two men are asked to be imprisoned for up to 17 years, 10 months and 15 days for the crimes of “match-fixing and incentive bonus” and “Fraud by Using Information Systems, Banks or Credit Institutions as Tools”.

It was included in the indictment that Yandaş had information on coupons with approximately 932 different ID numbers between 2017 and 2019, but their contents were not visible because the bets were from previous years. It was determined that Yandaş had been making betting slips through the suspect Ersen Dikmen since 2019. It was stated that the suspect Dikmen created the betting slip 11 thousand 455 times, including Fenerbahçe’s matches, through legal betting sites between 2021 and 2025, when he started receiving money transfers from Yandaş. According to articles from legal betting sites; It was determined that Yandaş and Dikmen duo made 411 coupons, both in favor and against Fenerbahçe.

MEMBER OF THE BETTING SITE

Galatasaray’s Metehan Baltacı was also asked to be imprisoned from 4 years, 1 month and 15 days to 10 years, 4 months and 15 days in prison for the crimes of “match-fixing and incentive bonus” and “attempted qualified fraud”. Baltacı, who was determined to be a member of legal betting sites, participated in the Galatasaray – Rizespor match at the Galatasaray stadium on March 19, 2021, with ‘over 2.5 total goals’. Likewise, it was revealed that he made a bet on the Göztepe-Galatasaray match played on April 17, 2021 as ‘over 2.5 total goals’.

29 years have passed since the postmodern coup of February 28, 1997, against the Refah-Yol government elected by the nation. The coup plotters, who targeted the national will by saying ‘balancing’, darkened the future of millions.

AK PARTY DEPUTY CHAIRMAN LEYLA ŞAHİN MASTER: February 28 is a dark and brutal massacre. These years are etched in our memories as the years when determined Muslims, both men and women, who tried to live as they believed, were treated unfairly. Secularism is disappearing in Türkiye, the threat of reactionism is considered the biggest danger, and rights, law and justice have been put on the shelf. A period when military tutelage dominated every field. All doors were closed to us just because we were wearing headscarves. The main purpose was to protect and maintain the power of the coupist tutelage mentality. They showed no mercy, they didn’t care at all, they passed over our lives with tanks.

AMBASSADOR ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR. DR. MERVE KAVAKÇI: February 28 caused irreparable losses. Some February 28 supporters left, but they were replaced by new ones. I am one of those who think that February 28 supporters are not limited to the Ramadan-allergic segment we see these days. Leaving aside those who openly display the stick of secularism, I see and know that there is also an important segment of people who hide themselves behind masks such as democrats, liberals and libertarian leftists. They are the ones waiting in ambush! If they get the chance, they are ready to do something worse than what they did in the 90s. They’re on hold!