News

The women's associations of Alanya held a protest against the actions of the municipality, which canceled the play about Matilda Manukyan. The action took place near the Cultural Center, where the play about Manukyan was supposed to be shown. Bahar Hajibektashoglu, the author and performer of the role in the play, also participated in the protest. The statement made on behalf of the women's associations reads as follows: "We are gathered here today to condemn with equal cruelty the cancellation of the play "Manukyan", for which ticket sales have long begun and which is scheduled to be shown at the Alanya Cultural Center on February 19, 2024. We condemn the harassment that led to the persecution of the screenwriter and actress of the play Bahar Hajibektashoglu, subjected her to pressure and censorship, and damaged the reputation of a female actor in the eyes of society. This theatrical production is a product of art, and the most basic property of art is to reflect all sides of society. It is unacceptable that the right of art lovers to access art in such a large area as Alanya is suppressed in such vile ways and that politics and dirty thoughts are mixed with art to such an extent. The play in question has been approved by the Ministry of Culture and has been staged for 10 years, and for the first time it was unreasonably canceled." You can read the post about the "queen of brothels" of Turkey Matilda Manukyan here: https://t.me/alanyabrand/6978

According to TURKSTAT, the number of married couples, as well as the number of divorced couples, has decreased compared to last year. The number of married couples in 2023 was 565,435. The number of divorced couples was 171,881. It was also noted that the age of first marriage increased and amounted to 28.3 years for men and 25.7 years for women. The province with the highest number of married couples is Kilis (8.09 per thousand people), followed by Aksaray (7.81 per thousand) and Gaziantep (7.57 per thousand). The province with the lowest number of married couples is Gyumyushkhan - 4.52 per thousand people.

Rajiv Tariqat, who lives in Al Ain, won more than $4 million by choosing ticket numbers corresponding to the dates of birth of his children. It was his first win in almost 3 years of participating in the lottery. Rajiv said that the amount will be divided equally between him and his 19 friends, with whom he bought lucky tickets. His friends, like Rajiv himself, are low-income people, and winning was a real blessing for everyone. Despite the win, Rajiv and his friends' lives have not changed radically: they have returned to their daily chores and work. He stressed that he has not yet made a final decision on how to use the money, but promised to continue to purchase lottery tickets in the future.

Due to the approaching deadline for paying rent tax, the Ministry of Finance has resorted to a new method of identifying those who do not pay rent tax. With the records of the land registry at its disposal, the Ministry of Finance obtained the residential addresses of landlords and compared the data for about 5 million apartments. It turned out that about 1.4 million rented apartments had not been taxed. It is assumed that 400 thousand of these apartments are not taxed, since children or parents of homeowners live in them, and 1 million homeowners intentionally do not pay tax. For this reason, the financial service visits these apartments and finds out the amount of rent. Violators will have to pay the following fees: - the unpaid tax itself- penalty for double tax loss- penalty for non-payment of tax on time in the amount of 3.5 % per month- penalty for failure to submit a declaration.

The UAE has adopted an amendment to the law, which greatly simplifies the process of abortions in cases where the mother's health is at risk. Now, in emergency situations, when urgent medical intervention is needed, the husband's consent is not required. The innovation is an important step in protecting women's health and rights. From now on, a pregnant woman can independently decide whether to have an abortion in case of a threat to her life or if pregnancy poses a serious risk. The senior lawyer, Hadiel Hussein, stressed that these changes give priority to a woman's consent. Doctors welcome this step, considering it a relief for women faced with difficult choices. "The amendment also gives the Cabinet of Ministers the authority to issue decrees defining other cases when abortion is allowed," said lawyer Nadine Mukhtar. According to Nadine's lawyer, these changes demonstrate the UAE's commitment to modern standards and openness.

The universities of the United Arab Emirates have demonstrated significant success by entering the world's top 200 universities according to the reputation rating conducted by Times Higher Education. Three educational institutions of the UAE - Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Zayed - have been included in the list of two hundred best world universities for the first time in recent years. Abu Dhabi University and Al Ain University took positions in the range 101-125, and Zayed University in the range 151-175. An analysis conducted by the Times Higher Education showed that the reputation of these universities has improved nine times since 2021. This result indicates significant progress in education and science in the UAE and recognition in academic circles. The World University Ranking compiled by Times Higher Education is based on surveys involving scientists from all over the world. They express their opinion on the reputation of universities in the fields of scientific research and educational activities. The information received from 38,796 respondents from 166 countries becomes the basis for the formation of the rating.

This was announced by Turkish Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu. A total of 83,892 ships passed through the Turkish Straits, 39,000 - through the Bosphorus Strait and 44,892 - through the Dardanelles. Uraloglu also noted that global maritime trade grew by 3%, and that in 2024, maritime trade is expected to grow by another 2.1% to 12.636 billion tons. "Given that many ports are closed due to the war on the Black Sea, and those that are open are not operating at full capacity, we believe that an increase in the number of ships passing through the Turkish Straits will lead to a further increase in maritime traffic in the Black Sea," the minister added. The number of cruise ships entering ports in 2023 amounted to 1,192, an increase of 20% compared to last year, and the number of cruise passengers visiting ports amounted to 1 million 542 thousand 522 passengers, an increase of 52.6% percent compared to 2023, and said: "The largest number of cruise ship calls (531 vessels) visited the port of Kusadasi. "These figures are the highest since 2015, and our goal for 2024 is to reach 2 million passengers," Uraloglu said.

In 2023, Dubai reached a new record, becoming the world leader in luxury real estate sales and defining London, New York and Paris. In the field of luxury housing in Dubai, a total of 176 deals worth $850 million were concluded, including one of the largest deals worth $111.6 million for a penthouse in the Bulgari Lighthouse complex on Jumeirah Island. This significant growth highlights the growing interest in Dubai as a premium destination for real estate investments, attracting millionaires due to its high standard of living, return on investment and security. The data shows that Dubai has not only consolidated its position as a global center of luxury and wealth, but also continues to attract investors from all over the world interested in the unique lifestyle and investment opportunities that the city offers.

Turkish scientists have received an award for global innovation at the World Government Summit in Dubai.Their project to develop robot bees for the healthy reproduction of bees that are endangered worldwide has been selected as one of the two best global innovation projects. In total, 13 global projects were presented to the jury. Erol Shahin, Professor of the Department of Computer Engineering, spoke about his project called "Roboroyal", supported under the EU Horizon program. Stressing that if bees disappear, the entire ecosystem will be at risk of collapse, Shahin said: "As part of the project, we have developed an artificial intelligence system that can conduct round-the-clock monitoring inside the hive and monitor the health of bees in the hive. We have also developed the first prototype of a micro-robot bee, which simulates worker bees and can help the queen bee by feeding it from the outside. In addition, we are working to ensure that in the future our robots can clean, feed and maintain the hive. With this system, we aim to protect the health of the entire hive and improve its productivity."

Dubai Islands Beach, the first beach in Dubai where dogs are allowed to swim, offers pet owners and their furry friends a new park with animal facilities. There is a 460 m2 park equipped with ramps, an obstacle course, special exercise equipment, as well as bins, dispensers for dog waste, an animal shower and a drinking fountain. The opening of the Dubai Islands Beach park aims to strengthen the reputation of this place as an ideal place for dog owners where they can spend time in the company of their four-legged friends. The Dubai Islands Beach Dog Park is open every day from 8:00 to 18:00. The beach can be reached by car or by water transport via Nakheel Marina Dubai Islands.

1st place - Ibrahim Erdemoğlu - $5.3 billion - founder of Merinos Halı, owner of 51% of shares of SASA Polyester company.2nd place - Murat Ulker (Murat Ülker) - $5 billion.- Chairman of the Management Board of Yıldız Holding, the largest food company in central and eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.3rd place - Ali Erdemoglu - $4.7 billion - Managing Director of SASA Polyester, together with his brother Ibrahim Erdemoglu owns more than 75% of the company.

Shenol Vaivalako, a jeweler from Antalya, has created four rosaries in 2.5 years, each of which is estimated at more than 200,000 dollars! In their production, he used gold, silver, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, Ottoman amber and diamonds. It is noteworthy that Shenol works in a small workshop with an area of only 9 m2. Vaivalako said that he wants to exhibit his rosary beads in the museum, and present one of them to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Emphasizing that each of the rosaries he created has its own story, Vaivalako says: "I depicted Hector and Achilles during the Trojan War, the helmet of the prophet Solomon, the owl he was talking to, and his army. This is a very difficult art! I think the cost of four rosaries is approaching a million dollars!"