the Port of Kavala marked a historic milestone by hosting its first U.S during a rotation that underscored the port’s strategic importance and Deputy Mayor of Kavala Panayiotis Aggelidis Their presence highlighted the collaborative efforts between U.S and Greek authorities to strengthen regional defense The M/V Endurance’s arrival served as a proof of concept for the robust utilization of Kavala’s port facilities demonstrating its potential as a hub for multifaceted operations Rear Admiral Ismail emphasized the shared commitment to security noting the critical role of every NATO ally in maintaining peace and stability Major General Kostakis praised the deepening U.S.-Greece relationship while Deputy Mayor Aggelidis underscored the economic and strategic benefits for Kavala positioning the port as a vital link in regional prosperity This milestone event not only showcased the operational capabilities of the Port of Kavala but also reinforced the enduring partnership between the United States and Greece Kavala: The Old City of colours, stone and history You must be logged in to post a comment Wrongly Detained Rights Defender Awaits New European Court Ruling The groups called for Kavala’s immediate release and for his conviction to be overturned to give effect to the binding judgements of the European Court was convicted on baseless charges of attempting to overthrow the government following a manifestly unfair trial He remains in prison despite two binding judgements from the European Court holding that his detention is arbitrary and serves political purposes Kavala is serving a life sentence without parole and four others convicted with him are serving prison terms of 18 years for their alleged roles in the 2013 mass protests triggered by an urban transformation plan around Istanbul’s Gezi Park Kavala submitted a new application to the European Court alleging that there had been multiple further violations of his rights since the court’s 2019 ruling which found that he had been detained without reasonable suspicion and that his detention was politically motivated to silence him Kavala’s lawyers focus on his continuing unlawful detention and contend that multiple violations of Kavala’s right to a fair trial as well as violation of the principle of legality demonstrate that the Turkish authorities have continued to pursue the political aim of silencing and punishing Kavala as a human rights defender They also contend that the proceedings against him and life sentence without parole amount to a violation of the prohibition on inhuman and degrading treatment and torture The European Court is expected to issue a judgment in the coming months The European Court has accepted Human Rights Watch and the Turkey Litigation Support Project as intervenors in the case the groups submitted a third-party intervention to provide further relevant information and context for the court to consider as it adjudicates Kavala’s application The submission focuses on a well-documented pattern of conduct in Türkiye designed to circumvent the implementation of European Court judgments in politically sensitive cases notably those involving perceived dissidents The rights groups also point to the following features of the domestic system: the capture of the judiciary by the ruling political parties; the lack of independence of the Council of Judges and Prosecutors which has become a mechanism for consolidating undue influence over the judiciary; serious concerns as regards the independence and effectiveness of the Turkish Constitutional Court; and persistent defiance toward European Court judgments and standards in its caselaw Increasing Barriers to Accessing Sexual and Reproductive Health Care in Romania Poverty and Gender in Germany’s Social Security System Get updates on human rights issues from around the globe Human Rights Watch is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit registered in the US under EIN: 13-2875808 I don’t know if you still remember what you wanted to tell me I don’t know how important it was or whether it still holds relevance in today’s world What I do know is that I carry a deep feeling of rendez-vous manqué within me—a sense of missed opportunity It’s been a while since I’ve wanted to ask you “How are you?” but I am afraid to do so The world outside your prison is not the same place since we last saw each other at the eighth International Hrant Dink Award ceremony in Istanbul as I was briefly in Istanbul on my way to Antep (officially Gaziantep though its ‘victory’ came at the cost of my people’s existence) I was traveling to conduct research on Syrian opposition groups and the challenging humanitarian situation in areas under their control We met in the hall of the Hrant Dink ceremony and you told me you wanted to speak with me A Syrian opposition leader wanted to see me and I promised I’d return to Istanbul to meet you I haven’t returned to Istanbul—a city I used to visit two to dream together of ways to make our world a better place I am afraid to see ugliness where I once saw beauty.  I’m sure you’re following the news from your prison cell Since your arrest under unfair and unjust accusations and the efforts you championed for mutual understanding and a culture of dialogue have become more challenging to achieve Instead of moving toward peace with the Kurds with Kurdish villages attacked nearly every day Rather than acknowledging the Armenian genocide and attempting to repair what still can be repaired Turkey supported Azerbaijan in attacking Armenia leading to the ethnic cleansing of the entire Armenian population there Karabakh Armenians share our fate: their towns occupied Vladimir Putin has decided to “liberate” Ukraine killing Ukrainians and destroying every town in his path a country founded by survivors of genocide now faces accusations of committing genocide against another people The killing of innocent Palestinian civilians continues daily to a point where I can no longer bear to watch the news Israel is devastating Lebanon—the country where I was born and raised—destroying village after village Our so-called ‘Western democracies’ support these war crimes rather than aiding the victims while silencing those who dare to criticize these crimes in the Middle East or question their own governments’ complicity you have been in prison for too long now—seven long years Thousands of people continue to enjoy the beautiful trees of Gezi Park millions remain enslaved to those in power Those accusing you of ‘criminal activity’ or ‘violence’ either do not truly know you or they fear the beauty of the person you are I still dream of a world where I can return to Istanbul where we can meet again and talk about how to make our world a better place the outside world is a much less beautiful place activist for civil and cultural rightsSituation: Pre-trial detention Facing life sentence.#ImprisonedWriter #FreeOsmanKavala Read Solidarity Letter From Andrey Kurkov To Osman Kavala he was acquitted of those charges only to be told hours later that a new investigation had been opened against him and he was returned to prison it was announced that he would face a new trial on charges of threats to ‘constitutional order’ that carries a life sentence with an additional 20-year sentence for ‘espionage’ PEN International considers the charges against Osman Kavala to be a direct violation of his right to freedom of expression motivated by his promotion of civil and political rights It calls that the charges against him be dropped and that he be immediately released Tell others: share Osman Kavala’s case and his work Give to our Day of Imprisoned Writer appeal Read solidarity letter from Andrey Kurkov to Osman Kavala Halt judicial proceedings against Osman Kavala drop the charges against him and release him immediately Deeply concerned that Osman Kavala remains in detention for more than three years on charges that are aimed at penalising him for his support for democracy and civil rights; Also concerned that the charges and lengthy detention are designed to deter others from practicing the legitimate right to peacefully challenge and advocate for change; Drop the charges against Osman Kavala and release him now #ImprisonedWriter #FreeOsmanKavala @abdulhamitgul Minister of Justice of the Republic of Turkey Mr Abdülhamit Gül (Salutation: Dear Minister) Adalet Bakanlığı 06659 Ankara Twitter: @abdulhamitgul Email: [email protected] Send copies to the Embassy of Turkey in your country: http://www.mfa.gov.tr/turkish-representations.en.mfa Publish articles and opinion pieces in your national or local press highlighting his case; Raise Osman Kavala’s case with cultural institutions and publications specialising in culture and the arts; Share information about Osman Kavala and your campaigning activities via social media; please use #Imprisoned Writer and #FreeOsmanKavala; Please let us know about your activities and actions This helps us monitor the impact of our campaigning On Day of the #ImprisonedWriter join @PEN_Int and call for release of Turkish publisher facing life in jail #FreeOsmanKavala [insert link] Imprisoned writers rely on PEN to advocate for their freedom and to defy those who want to silence them From practical support for writers seeking asylum or in exile to using our platforms to share their words to putting pressure on the powerful – this work is only possible with your support You know that this summer 1000 pebbles were laid out on Parliament Hill This was done to mark 1000 days that you spent in Silivri prison having been arrested on the 1st of November 2017 You were acquitted by local court and the European Court of Human Rights ruled that your detention was unlawful Then new accusations were brought against you accusations which reminded me of Stalin's terror of 1930s – you were accused of espionage a charge that indicates that the authorities want to keep you locked up for life I cannot explain myself why the Turkish Authorities are so afraid of you Is being an active member of civil society a crime Is it a crime to be a co-founder of publishing house that gave Turkish readers access to books by many world class writers my first and only book in Turkish was also published by Iletisim Publishers And now you are still in Silivri Hight Security prison – definitely the most modern and the biggest prison in Turkey and probably in Europe too I have read that this prison is a marvel of the Turkish penitentiary system it is called a prison campus which might make one think of academia and higher learning from the beach and you have a freedom to lock your cell from inside you have in your cell a button to press if you want to call for help Or have I misunderstood the purpose of this button According to feedback on Google Maps the prison guards that might appear if you press this button are quite impatient and impolite Your entire situation seems to me so surreal that if I did not know that it was your reality I would assume it was a story by George Orwell I know many people are thinking of you and wishing you freedom The world of human humans is on your side and will be standing by you until the decision of the European Court of Human Rights is fulfilled and you are acquitted for good from all the false accusations I love your country and its history and that makes me feel even more bitter I invited the most known Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk to visit Ukraine and as a result we have now many of his novels translated into Ukrainian He is also one of the authors published by Iletisim Publishers He is one of writers who brought Turkey to the world I would be happy to welcome you in Ukraine once you are free I would be very happy for you to return to civil society activities and cultural projects Facebook or Instagram to highlight Osman’s case Osman Kavala has dedicated his life to promoting open dialogue and peace, human rights, and democratic values in Turkey. He helped establish a number of civil society organisations, including Anadolu Kültür (Anatolian Culture) a cultural association that aims to foster a celebration of diversity through cultural and artistic exchange He also helped found İletişim Publishing in 1983 which has since become one of Turkey’s largest publishing houses The trial started on 24 June 2019 and ended on 18 February 2020 with Kavala’s acquittal the Public Prosecutor announced that they were appealing the acquittal and opening a new investigation against him He was returned to detention where he remains today Amnesty International notes that this new indictment provides Kavala’s cultural projects details of his travel inside Turkey and abroad as ‘evidence’ of the two charges and that his previous prosecution in the Gezi trial is referenced without mentioning that he was acquitted of all charges in February 2020 The decision to hold Osman Kavala in prison and to proceed with his prosecution flies in the face of a December 2019 ruling by the European Court of Human Rights ordering his immediate release The court found that Kavala’s detention ‘pursued an ulterior purpose…namely that of reducing [him] to silence’ Contact UsFAQs CampaignsPrivacy & GDPRJoin Our TeamSubmit Whistleblowing Report PEN International is a registered charity in England and Wales.Registered Charity Number: 1117088.Company Number: 05683997PEN International 2022 ©167-169 Great Portland StreetLondon Website Design by Vibras Creative Studio It's Day 2 of our Mediterranean cruise and the Celestyal Journey cruise ship arrives at Kavala in Northern Greece a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major archaeological site with ruins of temples We also stop off at a winery and eat some of Kavala's most famous exports: kourabiedes or Greek almond biscuits and partake of the cruise ship's fine dining restaurant So what is the food like and is Kavala worth a stop Kavala is a popular northern Greek town with a population of 60,000 people with architecture very typical of a Northern Greek city Kavala is divided into two parts: the left hand side of Kavala is all new reclaimed land from the 1950s and 60s while the right hand side is the Old town with steep There are also 4 beaches inside the city and all are designated blue flag beaches for marine environmentalism one of the most scenic areas of Kavala and adjacent to the Old Town of Kavala and the castle Today we are joining Celestyal Cruise's shore excursion called Greek Wine and Holy Water: Philippi and Beyond and because we are part of the Steps of Paul tour a lot of fellow guests are coming along for religious reasons Our tour guide Angela shows us the Imaret house that was built 2 centuries ago and is now 5 star hotel built built by Mohammed Ali who later became the King of Egypt and founder of last dynasty of Egypt He was always fond of this birthplace and left money for Kavala - his money went towards feeding people who could not afford to eat Kavala built its wealth on the tobacco trade and was an important city in Ottoman times Big tobacco factories have been restored to become malls and museums Private houses of tobacco merchants have become city halls partly because of the population exchange of the 1920's The city once comprised of 70% refugees and 30% natives and were mostly Turkish and Muslim refugees The symbol for these refugees is the yellow eagle that adorns some buildings We end up at the Ancient City of Philippi which is quite interesting me included were expecting a wine tour but the first 2 hours or so are spent here It is interesting to see how people lived in this ancient city and where the gladiators would fight lions in the amphitheatre made of local marble Kavala was known as the place where Apostle Paul first preached in Europe Around 11.30am we head towards our second stop at the winery Oenogeneisis The winery is located in the valley foothills of the mountains of Drama in Greece His French father came to Drama with a dream to start his own winery Oenogeneisis is housed in a large 4,000m2/43,000f2 tower house inspired by Old Macedonian mansions The region proved perfect for a winery - the mountains buffer any aggressive winds while the limestone soil means less humidity which is good for grapes At night they get cold Northern winds; having a big difference between day and night makes grapes need longer time to mature so they have a better balance of sugar and flavours Their two vineyards locations were chosen because in Drama the weather is very much like Bordeaux so they grow their French varieties here while in Kavala they grow the Greek varieties Alexandro shows us the bottling machine and afterwards we follow him into the barrel rooms filled with French and American oak barrels The room is set to 60% humidity which is ideal for wines For €20 they will keep or age your wine for 20 years at the correct temperature Often people leave their wines to their children or bestow them as gifts to friends We taste four types of wine from the Skertso demi sec Mataroa Red and the Thyrsus White Dry all with ham cheese and baguettes spread with cream and olive tapenade we have one last stop at St Lydia's Baptistery the first European convert to Christianity by the Apostle Paul The site is set along the Zygaktis River as it is a very busy site for pilgrimages By the time we get back to port we have 45 minutes before we have to leave. We go for a quick walk around the town and it's such a charming little town I wish we had longer there. I buy some kourabiedes almond cookies dusted in a thick coating of icing sugar that Kavala is known for These come in the traditional round shape or crescent You can buy these in flavours like strawberry and dark chocolate or you can also buy these fresh from a bakery like Allotino bakery where they're super soft and melt in the mouth - their kourabiedes even have whole After we board the ship I go straight to the bar for refreshments While there is a full matcha menu they seem to have run out of matcha on board so I go for a smoothie that is absolutely delicious I sip it with some of the koubourbiedes that I bought We head back to our room for a nap for Mr NQN and some work for me At 6pm it's time for a pre dinner drink and dinner Tonight's dinner is at one of the Celestyal Journey's specialty restaurants: Grillseekers Grillmasters is the most upmarket restaurant option on the ship and while service starts off a little awkward a virgin Mojito for Mr NQN and I go into full holiday resort mode with a frozen strawberry daiquiri We luck out and happen to be seated on the right side and watch a riotous sunset turn from mild to technicolour right in front of our eyes The bread selection arrives and I try a soft pretzel which I choose while Mr NQN has a seeded dinner roll I had not seen the pretzel at the buffet so I think it is only available here at this restaurant toasted pita breads and a tomato cream cheese dip while we are waiting There are only two choices on the menu for a starter so we ordered one each Mine is the creamy wild mushroom and black truffle soup which is very creamy and rich and with plenty of mushroom and truffle flavour But the item that you really want for the wow factor is the antipasto platter They wheel out a huge trolley laden with cured meats cheeses and marinated and fresh vegetables with fresh figs Mr NQN asks for a bit of everything and they gladly oblige putting together a plate with fresh prawns It's fresh and tasty and such a stunning way to present an antipasto platter There is a bit of a wait for our mains while the restaurant fills up this Monday evening beautifully presented so that it is easy to eat and you don't have to struggle with prying the meat out of the tail It comes with scallops on the side with the roe on and they add some garlic butter at the table The lobster tail is perfectly cooked until tender and the garlic butter is a nice addition to the lobster With each main you get to choose two sides and I had chose the grilled asparagus which is on the side and the country potato fries that come in a basket These are like wedges that are cut in the centre and butterflied so that they're very crispy I love dry aged steak so when I asked if any of the steaks were dry aged the question flummoxed the waitstaff a bit and they had to check with the chef It turns out that none of the steaks on board are dry aged but this beef ribeye is good and cooked medium rare as requested We asked for several sauces to try and the green peppercorn is the definite pick We ordered this with sides of sautéed vegetables and potato gratin that went well with the steak We are given the option of Grand Marnier or Cointreau for our crepes suzettes and the head waiter Ali starts preparing our Crepes Suzette at the trolley flambeeing the sauce The crepes are perfectly thin and with that delicious orange They also bring us a generous serve of vanilla ice cream each that goes well with the crepes suzette but also our other dessert This is an incredible knafeh and it's worth waiting the 15 minutes for this to be made fresh I love knafeh - what's not to love about stretchy cheese syrup and crispy kataifi noodles but Mr NQN is so enamoured that he eats three quarters of this while doing a little dance in his seat I've never seen him do this so I think we may have to come back later in the cruise for this again would you prefer to do shore excursions or wander around by yourself NQN and Mr NQN were guests of Celestyal Cruises but all opinions remain her own A similar cruise is priced from $1289AUDpp twin share for a 2025 voyage: https://celestyal.com/au/our-cruises/7-nights-au/idyllic-aegean/ Vietnam Airlines offers 23 flights per week connecting Sydney Melbourne and Perth to Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi Vietnam Airlines is continuing to add new routes having recently announced new flights to Milan https://www.vietnamairlines.com/au/en/home Professor Ayşe Buğra, the wife of jailed businessman and rights activist Osman Kavala, has criticized the Council of Europe (CoE) for its inaction in her husband’s case amid Turkey’s refusal to enforce the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in favor of Kavala, saying that it erodes the court’s credibility, Turkish Minute reported Buğra spoke to journalist Cansu Çamlıbel in an interview for the T24 news website who has been imprisoned since November 2017 on charges related to the 2013 anti-government Gezi Park protests Kavala was sentenced to life in prison in 2022 for allegedly attempting to overthrow the government of then-prime minister and current president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeals in September 2023 Turkey has refused to release Kavala despite a 2019 ECtHR ruling that found his detention was in pursuance of an “ulterior motive,” that of silencing him as a human rights defender The non-implementation of the rulings prompted the CoE’s Committee of Ministers to launch an infringement procedure against Turkey in February 2022 that is still ongoing Buğra told T24 that the effort to avoid imposing sanctions on Turkey which would normally be applied to a CoE member state for failing to comply with ECtHR decisions “It undermines the credibility of the institution and the trust in the principles it is built upon … I believe these processes are not free from political considerations,” Buğra added When asked if she thought the ECtHR and the CoE were delaying the sanctions they should have imposed due to political concerns Buğra said they want international relations to “continue smoothly and positively.” she mentioned that there are other steps that could be taken and sanctions that could be imposed before reaching that point and she expressed disappointment that these have not been considered “I am upset both about our own situation and because I believe the system has been damaged I think the ECtHR system and the CoE have been harmed by this helplessness,” she said In response to whether the Kavala case is a personal matter for Erdoğan They may have thought that criminalizing the Gezi protests was necessary and that they had found a good strategy.” She also suggested that another possible reason for Kavala being targeted could be that within the government there was a faction wanting to sever ties with the European Union and push Turkey away from democracy and the rule of law and that they might have viewed such an arrest as a means to furthering that goal When asked about Ayşe Barım, the well-known celebrity manager recently detained on the accusation of “attempting to overthrow the Turkish Republic or prevent it from fulfilling its duties” as one of the alleged “organizers” of the Gezi Park protests Buğra said she didn’t know her and had never heard her name mentioned by her husband The professor complained of widespread silence in the society about her husband’s situation due to an environment of fear citing the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (TÜSİAD) as one of the silent groups Buğra said the members of the association were “afraid” to speak out “Especially when considering the situation we’re in I don’t think anyone can act very courageously in such an environment today but also cultural and art organizations,” she added Buğra also spoke about the book “Bir Dava Hikayesi: Osman Kavala’nın Yedi Yılı” (A Trial Story: Seven Years of Osman Kavala) the coordinator of Anadolu Kültür Foundation an organization co-founded and chaired by Kavala which tells the story of Osman Kavala’s legal proceedings was an effort to state the truth about Kavala who was targeted by the media with publications that attacked his character and portrayed him as “Turkey’s darkest man.” When asked whether Kavala was concerned about being perceived by a part of society as a “dark figure,” his wife recalled a statement included in the book in which Kavala said … People who read the book will probably know the truth I found this statement quite significant,” she said A leading figure in Turkey’s civil society educated in the UK and ran a cultural center before being thrust to prominence He was accused of financing the Gezi Park protests against Erdoğan’s government in 2013 The Gezi Park protests began in the summer of 2013 as a reaction to government plans to demolish a park in central İstanbul but quickly escalated into widespread anti-government demonstrations The protests were met with violent suppression resulting in the death of 11 demonstrators due to excessive police force has been widely criticized as politically motivated and has drawn significant international condemnation and domestic protest In a secluded corner of northern Greece lurching over the bustling seaport of Kavala and looking south to the forested island of Thasos is a grand ochre palace with domed lead roofs The complex was built 200 years ago by Mohammad Ali Pasha, a tobacco merchant turned Ottoman governor turned international statesman who founded modern Egypt and a dynasty that ruled the Arab world’s most populous state well into the 20th century At the peak of his power, Mohammad Ali’s armies waged war from modern-day Saudi Arabia to Greece’s Peloponnese and made a two-hour car journey further east along the revamped Roman-era highway to visit the baroque Ottoman complex Mohammad Ali built in his birthplace.  The complex once housed two madrassas, student dormitories, a Quranic primary school, hammam (bath house) it has been refashioned into a hotel - a bastion of opulence in an otherwise hardscrabble Balkan port town - called Imaret a play on the Turkish word for soup kitchen The discreet hotel is all the more intriguing because it is owned by the Egyptian government through the state’s Waqf as a holdover of the Mohammad Ali dynasty's control of Egypt When I arrive on Poulidou Street in the old Muslim quarter of Kavala Imaret appears sealed tight. I try knocking on several doors but no one answers Outside, black SUVs with licence plates from Bulgaria and Turkey battle for control of small cobblestone streets Tourists at a nearby taverna dig into platers of kebab garnished with paper-thin slices of onions and tomatoes A ferry in the port below sounds its horn for Thasos The caller instructs me to walk to a double glass door up the road I see a plaque bearing an inscription in Arabic a Kavala native whose eye for fine antiques and Ottoman history is the driving force behind the hotel.  friends in Athens cautioned me about Missirian who has earned an uncompromising reputation Deep-pocketed Imaret guests - who shell out as much as 1,000 euros a night to stay at the hotel - have been kicked out for simply speaking too loud Other visitors claim to have been turned away at the door for violating an unwritten dress code.  I’m whisked through vaunted antechambers to meet Missirian stylishly dressed in a silk scarf and chic blue reading glasses I decide to tackle the allegations straight on Deep-pocketed Imaret guests have been kicked out for simply speaking too loud reclined on the terrace and clutching an E-cigarette “I’m not impressed by someone's ability to spend but by the qualitative way they choose to enjoy special moments.. The view from Imaret's terrace is a breathtaking mix of refined Ottoman grandeur and contemporary Balkan grit.  Kavala’s new town unfurls into an amphitheatre of concrete apartment blocs and rusty water tanks that stretch from the Aegean Sea to the foothills of Mount Symvol0. But we are cocooned in another world Chimneys poke up from the students’ dormitories turned hotel rooms. Imaret's distinct lead roof is comprised of more than a dozen small cupolas whose humps resemble a reptile's shell, evoking Ottoman artist Osman Hamdi Bey’s painting The Tortoise Trainer The swimming pool below is guarded on the perimeter by tall At the head of the pool is an old marble washing station I can imagine the scholars and tarboosh-wearing students that once used to roam these grounds making their way to midday prayer Missirian has run the gamut of rulers in Cairo She enjoyed good ties with the Mubarak family,  her connections to them helped her secure a 50-year lease on the hotel. But she had difficulty with Mohammad Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood government But I've come to Imaret to discuss more than just its architecture and rich history Missirian’s eyes sharpen when I describe Kavala as part of a wider Middle East encompassing the broader Eastern Mediterranean.  That is what makes the region so intriguing and fascinating" Mohammad Ali Pasha was born in Kavala in 1770 to a Turkish-speaking family with roots in the Central Anatolian city of Konya he may have passed through life as an illiterate he was recruited into a force by Sultan Mahmud II to expel Napoleon’s army from Egypt Combining a shrewd judge of character and ruthlessness he was named governor of the Ottoman pashalik he orchestrated a slaughter of the Mamluks—the elite class of Muslim soldiers descended from slaves from the Caucasus 'An Eastern Mediterranean identity is not only seen as compatible with a European identity - Mark Mazower, The Greek Revolution: 1821 and the Making of Modern Europe  Mohammad Ali began Western-style reforms that laid the foundations for the modern Egyptian state that exists today The first wing of Imaret was built in 1813 a lecture hall and 60 small rooms for students Imaret’s expansion would dovetail with the military prowess of Mohammad Ali’s army In recognition of his role in fighting Wahhabis in today’s Saudi Arabia in 1813 giving Mohammad Ali ownership of the island of Thasos and its tax revenue Mohammad Ali’s endowment to his native city grew The soup kitchen and third courtyard were completed by 1821 the preeminent historian of Mohammad Ali Pasha said that Imaret is integral to understanding the aura of one of the Middle East’s “subtlest and most complex leaders,” who fashioned himself an Ottoman Napoleon “Mohammad Ali was telling Kavala - his hometown - that he had made it in the Ottoman world and was here to stay,” said Fahmy author of Mehmed Ali: From Ottoman Governor to Ruler of Egypt Mohammad Ali Pasha’s fate was intimately tied to Greece which during his lifetime was politically and culturally a part of the Levant a region that today is associated with the Arab world but has traditionally encompassed the entire Eastern Mediterranean When the Greeks revolted against the Ottomans in the 1820s the Sultan called on Mohammad Ali to violently subdue them and then on the mainland Peloponnese two years later waged a scorched-earth campaign against the revolutionaries slaughtering villagers and shipping thousands of Greeks off to slave markets in Cairo His name is still synonymous with brutality in popular Greek history “He was perceptive enough to see the Greek revolution as a lost cause for the Ottomans,” Fahmy said He lobbied the Sultan to reach a negotiated settlement with the Greeks—and their European backers Mohammad Ali was unable to extricate himself from the conflict The blow to the Ottomans that he foresaw came in 1827 at the Battle of Navarino when Ibrahim’s fleet was destroyed by the British The Greek revolt was a watershed moment for the birth of nation-states The century it ushered in saw the collapse of Christian monarchies in Europe as much as it did the slow death of the Ottoman Empire. The Greek war was also a turning point for Mohammad Ali and Egypt.  he began to think of himself as a Mediterranean ruler whose interests He decided never again to collaborate with the Sultan,” Fahmy said Mohammad Ali prepared his army for a conquest of Syria setting the stage for a direct clash with Constantinople Mohammad Ali's modernised troops inflicted a humiliating defeat on the Ottomans sweeping across Syria and winning a decisive battle at Konya European powers intervened to prevent the collapse of the Ottoman Empire negotiating a settlement that guaranteed Mohammad Ali’s family heredity rule in Egypt an agreement that lasted until General Gamal Abdel Nasser ousted Mohammad Ali’s great-great grandson flourishing as a trading port for the tobacco producing hinterlands of Thrace and Macedonia Levantine merchants were building eclectic villas in Kavala attesting to its wealth and cosmopolitanism Imaret functioned as a school and Islamic religious centre right up until Kavala was wrested Ottoman control by Greece in 1912 during the first Balkan War The complex would have fallen into ruin were it not for Missirian who is married into one of Kavala’s wealthy tobacco families She negotiated a 50-year lease on the property with Egypt’s Waqf and after a two-year renovation opened Imaret in 2004 as a luxury hotel but her discreet hotel has attracted a cult following of discerning travellers as are members of the deposed Egyptian royal family Imaret is proof of Greece's place in the Levant She believes Kavala is a transition zone between East and West To advance her case, she cites the ancient Greek philosopher Thucydides who said that the border of the historic regions of Macedonia and Thrace is the river Strymonas which places Kavala geographically in the latter Thrace's modern borders extend between Greece and Turkey and roughly a third of Greek Thrace’s 350,000 residents are Muslim Kavala is the point where Europe-as we mean in our Western world-actually meets the East,” Missirian said Kavala is a city on the edge of Europe.  her family hails from what used to be Constantinople and Smyrna Kavala absorbed thousands of Greek refugees fleeing persecution during the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and Greek-Turkish war the Treaty of Lausanne ended the war and mandated a population exchange that saw 1.5 million Greek Orthodox Christians expelled from modern-day Turkey and 400,000 Muslims from Greece. Greek refugees sheltered at Imaret up until the 1960s Mohammad Ali himself lived in a time when borders and identities were more fluid The Kavala native arrived in Egypt at the age of 30 He had little connection to the Egyptian fellahin that he ruled over and never learned Arabic The cosmopolitan world of Kavala was Mohammad Ali’s millieu Even as he waged war on the Greeks on behalf of the Sultan merchants and sailors into his realm.  I travelled to Imaret to see the echoes of Mohammad Ali’s world in this region today.  The borders that once defined the Eastern Mediterranean are breaking down; driving a debate over migration in Europe, but also leading to massive flows of capital from Middle Eastern investors into cities like Athens the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea are once again in play on the geopolitical chessboard with wars raging in Ukraine and Gaza.  and Turkey's growing independence from the West has put northeastern Greece on the radar of policymakers in Washington and Brussels an hour and a half drive to the east of Kavala is now a hub for US weapons travelling to Ukraine.   Changes are felt below the surface in this provincial seaport Some locals are worried about an influx of Bulgarian and Turkish tourists altering the local fabric of their city The Ottoman’s centuries-long rule over Greece is still widely remembered as a time of occupation but a new generation of historians and academics are re-examining Greece’s place in the region “Kavala gives you a different angle to understand the development of Greece The Ottoman past is much more intimate here,” Mark Mazower a professor of history at Columbia University and author of The Greek Revolution: 1821 and the Making of Modern Europe “Northeastern Greece used to be the forgotten backwater of a country that saw itself as a bastion of the Cold War West,” Mazower added And an Eastern Mediterranean identity is not only seen as compatible with a European identity making Greece one of Europe’s fastest-growing economies but also raising concerns about unchecked development author Mehmed Ali: From Ottoman Governor to Ruler of Egypt Missirian has slowly been shrinking the number of rooms at the hotel shwaya,” she explains using the Arabic word for slowly The plan is to condense Imaret’s 19 suites to just 10 in the coming years and impose five-night minimum stays Missirian wants Imaret to be a base for guests to explore Thrace and reflect on its Roman Imaret’s restaurant is already an ode to this historic region with a dinner menu that changes nightly and ingredients sourced exclusively from local Thracian producers.  wood-paneled bar and greeting guests individually The restaurant is decorated with sketches of Greek Alexandrian poet CP Cavafy and Greek You'd half expect to see the candles casting a dim light on Freya Stark or Lawrence Durrell musing in the shadow of Mohammad Ali Pasha “Imaret isn’t a normal hotel designed to make money it was chosen to be saved,” Missirian said Copyright © 2014 - 2025. Middle East Eye Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters Middle East Eye          ISSN 2634-2456                      India’s Adani Group is reportedly planning to enter the European port market as it seeks to boost its presence in international trade routes Adani Ports& Special Economic Zones Ltd (APSEZ) - is preparing to invest $2 billion in acquiring European terminals “We are scouting for terminals in Europe which accounts for 40 percent of global sea trade Two or three terminals are under consideration with the deals expected to happen in the near future,” a spokesperson from Adani Group told The Hindu The quiet announcement comes a month after Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani hosted ambassadors from the European Union Denmark and Germany at the company’s headquarters in Ahmedabad Part of the envoys’ visit included a tour of India’s largest commercial port Mundra APSEZ has been working to acquire large ports in Europe Reports emerged last year that Adani Group was eyeing key Greek terminals which would act as a strategic gateway for the rising India- EU trade The two ports mentioned included Kavala in northern Greece and Volos But Adani Group’s reputation has taken a big hit following the recent corruption accusations by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S Adani is alleged to have paid or promised about $265 million in bribes to Indian officials in order to sell them costly power from India’s largest solar project These charges have seen other Adani deals scrutinized or even canceled including the $1.85 billion project to modernize Kenya’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). “The deals have been canceled based on new information provided by our investigative agencies and partner nations,” said Kenyan President William Ruto Tanzania said it would honor its contracts with APSEZ to run Dar es Salaam Port Tanzania entered into a 30-year concession with Adani Ports to operate Container Terminal 2 in Dar es Salaam Port Adani Group also controls ports in Vietnam Top image: CeeGee / CC BY SA 4.0 In April 2024, the European Court of Human Rights published details of and granted priority status to a second case lodged by Kavala in January 2024 concerning violations of the European Convention on Human Rights perpetrated against him since the Court’s ruling of December 2019 (Articles 3 The case was referred by the Court to Türkiye on 21 March 2024 which appeared to have failed to comply with a request to reply by 16 July 2024.  has dedicated his life to promoting open dialogue and peace He is a prominent businessman who helped establish a number of civil society organisations which has since become one of Türkiye’s largest publishing houses.  Three human rights organizations urged the immediate release of Osman Kavala, a Turkish businessman and rights defender, in a third-party intervention with the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) The recent intervention from Human Rights Watch (HRW) the International Commission of Jurists and the Turkey Litigation Support Project details a pattern of alleged political interference in Turkey’s judiciary including a lack of independence in the Council of Judges and Prosecutors and defiance of European rulings in politically sensitive cases Kavala are intrinsically linked to two key issues,” the intervention said “the erosion of judicial independence and impartiality in Turkey… and Turkey’s flagrant and persistent failure to implement ECtHR judgments.” The groups’ intervention argues that these systemic issues reveal an intention to sideline dissident voices and avoid implementing binding European court judgments on the seventh anniversary of his arrest on Friday “The civil society work we carried out for years which I believe contributed to a culture of peace and reconciliation Kavala lodged a new application with the ECtHR alleging that Turkish authorities have continued to violate his rights focusing on issues of due process and the rights to freedom of expression His lawyers argue that these ongoing violations indicate continued efforts to silence and punish him as a vocal human rights advocate Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard also called for Kavala’s release, saying on X “Osman Kavala has been unjustly imprisoned for over seven years despite binding European court rulings.” The recent submission also cites his detention as a form of inhuman and degrading treatment The European court is expected to issue a ruling on Kavala’s latest application in the coming months An infringement procedure initiated against Turkey could potentially see Ankara expelled from the continent’s leading human rights organization Infringement proceedings can result in the suspension of the member state’s voting rights and membership in the CoE The possibility of launching infringement proceedings against a member state for failing to implement ECtHR judgments has been used twice before: first in 2017 in the case of Azerbaijani opposition activist Ilgar Mammadov and again in 2022 against Russia due to its refusal to comply with European court rulings and its invasion of Ukraine which ultimately led to Russia’s expulsion from the CoE Turkey’s judiciary is criticized by international bodies and rights groups for taking orders from the executive branch Ankara disbarred more than 4,000 judges and prosecutors immediately after an abortive military coup in July 2016 over alleged ties to the faith-based Gülen movement which it accused of orchestrating the attempted putsch The mass disbarment of members of the judiciary is believed by many to have had a chilling effect on the entire justice system intimidating the remaining judges and prosecutors into doing the government’s bidding by launching politically motivated investigations into critics He was accused of financing the Gezi Park protests against then-prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government in 2013 co-founded by actor George Clooney and his wife is among several rights organizations granted third-party intervener status in a new case involving detained businessman Osman Kavala at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) According to Turkish Minute and Deutsche Welle Turkish Kavala’s lawyers filed a second application with the ECtHR after he was convicted in the Gezi Park trial imprisoned since November 2017 despite favorable ECtHR rulings received a life sentence in 2022 for allegedly attempting to overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government was upheld by Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals in September 2023 Various local and international rights groups applied for third-party intervener status to express their views on Kavala’s case The Strasbourg-based ECtHR accepted these requests allowing these groups to contribute broader perspectives or different arguments than those presented by the case parties as aligned with Article 36 § 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights The involvement of the Clooney Foundation for Justice is expected to increase international attention on Kavala’s case the foundation offers free legal assistance to victims of human rights abuses in over 40 countries and focuses on systemic injustices affecting journalists Its donors include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Turkey claims Kavala played a major role in the 2013 anti-government protests originating in İstanbul’s Gezi Park the ECtHR found that Turkey was using detention to silence Kavala for his human rights work violating his rights to liberty and security and the prohibition on using ECHR rights for unallowed purposes Due to Turkey’s non-compliance with this ruling the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers initiated an infringement procedure against Turkey in February 2022 The committee will review Turkey’s non-compliance at its upcoming meeting from September 17-19 prioritizing Kavala’s second application asked Turkey to defend against the case by July 16 This infringement procedure could result in Turkey being expelled from Europe’s leading human rights organization a prominent figure in Turkey’s civil society and managed a cultural center before rising to prominence His and other Gezi Park trial convictions are widely criticized as politically motivated drawing international condemnation and domestic protest This article was researched and written by a GCT team member Protests at Gezi Park on 3rd June 2013.Photograph by VikiPicture The Turkish authorities must acquit publisher philanthropist and civil society leader Osman Kavala and his 15 co-defendants of all charges as a verdict is expected when their trial resumes tomorrow in Istanbul The organisation further calls on the authorities to abide by the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling and immediately release Kavala from detention Osman Kavala stands accused alongside 15 other civil society figures and arts practitioners on trumped-up charges of ‘attempting to overthrow the government’ for their alleged role in the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul in 2013 Kavala and two of his co-accused face aggravated life sentences; six others face 15-20 years in prison Kavala remains the only one behind bars, despite several applications to end his lengthy detention, and a December 2019 ruling by the European Court of Human Rights ordering his immediate release ‘The ruling of the European Court of Human Rights is explicit and could not be clearer The Turkish authorities have kept Osman Kavala behind bars for more than two years with the sole intent and purpose of silencing him As a member state of the Council of Europe Turkey must abide by and respect its international obligations and it must fully implement judgments of the Court PEN International once again calls on the Turkish authorities to drop all charges against Kavala and his co-defendants immediately That he has been jailed is a travesty; he should not have to spend another minute behind bars,’ said Salil Tripathi Chair of PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee Hege Newth, Secretary General of Norwegian PEN (@norsk_pen) and Caroline Stockford, Turkey Adviser with Norwegian PEN (@CarolineStockf1) will observe the hearing human rights and democratic values in Turkey He helped establish a number of civil society organisations including Anadolu Kültür (Anatolian Culture) The first hearing in the case took place on 24 June 2019 in Istanbul; the Court kept ruling for Kavala’s continued detention in subsequent hearings The defendants in the case, in alphabetical order of surnames, are: Yiğit Aksakoğlu (civil society professional who was held in pre-trial detention for 21 days), Memet Ali Alabora (director, actor), Hakan Altınay (chair of Open Society Foundation), Meltem Arıkan (novelist, playwright), Can Atalay (lawyer and human rights defender), Can Dündar (journalist İnanç Ekmekci (civil society professional); Yiğit Ekmekçi (Chair of Anadolu Kültür) Mine Özerden (civil society and arts project coordinator) Mücella Yapıcı (architect and engineer) and Gökçe Yılmaz (Open Society Foundation’s Turkey representative) On 6 February 2020, prosecutors requested aggravated life sentences against Osman Kavala Mücella Yapıcı and Yiğit Aksakoğlu – the most severe sentence under Turkish law after which prisoners are eligible for parole on condition of good behaviour Those convicted of aggravated life sentences also face harsher detention conditions including solitary confinement for up to 23 hours per day Tayfun Kahraman and Yiğit Ekmekçi are facing between 15 and 20 years in prison Prosecutors requested that the case against Ayşe Pınar Alabora Memet Ali Alabora and İnanç Ekmekçi – who are currently abroad – continue separately For more information about PEN International’s work on the Gezi Park case, please click here For further details contact Aurélia Dondo at PEN International, Koops Mill, 162-164 Abbey Street, London, SE1 2AN, UK Tel: +44 (0) 20 7405 0338 Fax +44 (0) 20 7405 0339 e-mail: [email protected] Journalist Gökhan Özbek was briefly detained in Ankara on Thursday due to a prison sentence he was handed down for criticizing an indictment against jailed businessman Osman Kavala, Turkish Minute reported also the owner of a news platform on X who is known for his critical views of the Turkish government was detained following a home raid on Thursday morning He was released from detention in the afternoon Özbek said on X that the cause of his detention was a prison sentence he received in 2022 for criticizing in a tweet the “unlawfulness” in the indictment against Kavala who was sentenced to life in prison in 2022 over a wave of 2013 anti-government protests in what many call a politically motivated trial Özbek said his prison sentence of around four months was converted into a fine making his release from police custody possible after paying it “Even if my comments and analyses are constantly the subject of an investigation or a [criminal] case adding that he will fight against the injustices in the country by engaging in independent journalism Meanwhile, Özbek’s lawyer, Gizay Dulkadir, who announced on X the detention of her client, lamented the fact that although the authorities know Özbek poses no flight risk, since he was detained and released before he was not summoned to a police station but rather was detained at his home after a police raid Özbek is the owner of the popular 23 Derece The platform and its critical coverage of events and government policies in Turkey makes it a frequent target among pro-government circles The journalist is known for his outspoken criticism of rights violations in the aftermath of a coup attempt in 2016 and his support for the victims of such violations Rights groups routinely accuse the Turkish government of trying to keep the press under control by imprisoning journalists overseeing the purchase of media brands by pro-government conglomerates and using regulatory authorities to exert financial pressure especially since President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan survived the failed coup in  2016 when journalists were subjected to mass arrest on bogus coup or terrorism charges local and international press organizations have released varying figures for the number of journalists jailed in the country Some journalists who were arrested in the aftermath of the coup attempt and convicted of terrorism-related charges have been released from prison after serving their sentences Turkey, which has been suffering from a poor record of freedom of the press for years, ranks 158th among 180 countries in RSF’s World Press Freedom Index published on May 3 on the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day parallels to previous arms smuggling cases “I’m amazed it didn’t crash into our houses,” said Emilia Tsaptanova the pilot of a Ukrainian Antonov An-12BK transport aircraft had reported damage to one of its engines The aircraft had been carrying Serbian-made weapons and ammunition An investigation by iMEdD and the Serbian network KRIK uncovered several shadowy aspects of this story The shipment was linked to a Serbian arms dealer allegedly connected to partners in Yemen and Liberia The Antonov was scheduled to make stops in two countries bordering war zones and another aircraft from the same operating company had previously been flagged in an arms smuggling case The aircraft was scheduled to make stopovers in Saudi Arabia and India before delivering its cargo to the Bangladeshi armed forces the crew reported a fuel leak and indicated they would return to Serbia The aircraft made a 180-degree turn east of Mount Athos but one of its engines appeared to catch fire The pilot issued a distress signal and requested an emergency landing at Kavala Airport but was unable to reach the runway Ukrainian experts noted in their report that just a month before the crash the same aircraft was involved in an accident at Poland’s RzeszówAirport it struck a lighting fixture with its right wing the Antonov was carrying 12.1 tons of “hazardous cargo.” Greek authorities claimed they were only informed of this after the crash The wreckage site was cordoned off for several kilometers, and residents of nearby villages were advised to keep their doors and windows closed. A fire department spokesman stated that firefighters at the scene “experienced a burning sensation on their lips,” while the atmosphere was covered in white powder According Serbia’s then Defense Minister, Nebojsa Stefanovic, the aircraft was carrying at least 11 tons of Serbian-made weapons Officials and company representatives confirmed that it was also carrying mortar shells The weapons and ammunition had been manufactured by the Serbian state-owned company Krusik on behalf of a Polish company which was listed as the official shipper in the cargo documents was authorized under an export license issued by the Serbian private company Valir d.o.o Investigations by KRIK and OCCRP suggest that the real owner of Valir is Serbian arms dealer Slobodan Tešić How a cache of weapons in southern Bulgaria is allegedly linked to a Hamas cell iMEdD followed the trail of a man accused of being involved in the network Tešić was placed on the U.S. sanctions list in 2017 for corruption and bribery of high-ranking officials reports revealed that members of the Serbian government had helped remove him from a UN blacklist where he had been placed for allegedly supplying arms to former Liberian dictator and convicted war criminal Charles Taylor Tešić reportedly had the ability to purchase arms from Krusik at or even below production costs not only from official documents but also from the market itself where it is widely known that I neither own nor control the company,” he said “In accordance with the restrictions I have at the moment this is my currently active and main role in the arms sector” he said it is no longer necessary for me to be the owner of a company or be operationally engaged in business and create business by connecting and helping many.” Data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) on international arms transfers to Israel What does the data on the quantity and origin of transfers show The second chapter of the Antonov crash story unfolds in Ukraine. The aircraft’s operator, under a long-term lease, was Meridian LLC, a company based in Kyiv. In the summer of 2009, one of Meridian’s aircraft landed in Kano, Nigeria, for refueling. It was carrying weapons and ammunition and was seized by local authorities on suspicion of smuggling  “There were all (the) permits for this flight (…) There were no violations regarding either the plane or the cargo, or the documents,” a Ukrainian who was then the director general of Meridian, had said at the time Records from Ukraine’s company registry show that he remained in the same position at least until 2020 the Antonov’s registered owner was DS Air Inc A lawyer serving on Ledra’s board was later sanctioned by the U.S for alleged ties to Russian oligarchs close to Vladimir Putin DS Air then turned to a different company for management services A representative of this firm told iMEdD that he was approached by a “Ukrainian partner of DS Air” seeking collaboration on company management and accounting considering DS Air a “high-risk company due to its involvement in arms transport.” Representatives of both Valir and Meridian did not respond to written requests for comment A search of the flightradar24 database reveals that it remained on the island for about an hour Its exact route before and after passing through Greece remains unclear after which its tracking signal disappeared over the Libyan Sea the same aircraft landed in Heraklion before flying to Tel Aviv as tracking was lost over the Algerian-Tunisian border another aircraft from the same airline followed an identical flight path also with unexplained gaps in its tracking data explained to iMEdD that this type of aircraft relies on an ADS-B system to transmit location data “The first piece of the puzzle is that the aircraft was flying over areas with few signal receivers,” he noted The second piece of the puzzle is altitude Coverage from receivers on the ground is stronger at higher altitudes—”think of it as an inverted cone,” the spokesperson said This particular aircraft type flies at a relatively low altitude meaning receivers need to be nearby to detect the signal an aircraft at that altitude and in that geographic location (the blind spots on the map) is out of coverage.” Additional reporting in Serbia: Bojana Jovanovic – KRIK Read all articles and analyses of the Special Report: “Armories of the Middle East” here 22 by the weekend edition of the newspaper “TA NEA” iMEdD is a non-profit organization in an effort to enhance transparency founded in 2018 with the exclusive donation of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) but as well as being lovely it has a Jewish past and the unspoilt island of Thassos is a short boat road away Angela Epstein 4 min readWhen it comes to Jewish surnames spelling and pronunciation can make strange bedfellows When the curator at the tobacco museum in Kavala explains that one of the key figures in the Greek coastal city’s once-thriving industry was a man called Pierre “Hershogg” the penny only drops when I ask her to write it out “Like the former president of Israel?” I wonder aloud Pierre Herzog has no need for borrowed glory since this Hungarian-born banker-turned-tobacco trader is the person behind a stand-out piece of architecture in Kavala: a miniature Hungarian-style castle with striking arches Built in the 1890s to house Herzog’s home and offices today it is Kavala’s town hall having been bought by the municipality in 1937 decided to build his house right next door Wix von Zsolnay’s building is equally impressive The two buildings soar above the city’s otherwise low-rise skyline Symbols of bygone Jewish success and ambition Kavala itself is somewhat under the radar for British visitors to Greece it was built in amphitheatre-style along a curved strip of the northern Aegean I don’t hear another British voice throughout our trip One reason for this could be the limited number of flights from the UK to Kavala airport (one a week from our native Manchester and a couple from London) But it’s not much of an inconvenience to fly to Thessaloniki a city that is itself soaked in Jewish history we begin our trip to Greece by staying in the city for a couple of days an elegant hotel (electrahotels.gr) that looks down on the main square and which We take a five minute-walk from the hotel to the city’s Jewish museum to find out more about Kavala’s Jewish community an ambling hour-and-a-half’s drive from Thessaloniki The place is quite compact and clearly divided between the so-called new town by the sea and the old town of Panagia which squeezes 2,500 years of history into cobbled streets lined with bars and shops arranged around a soaring acropolis At the top of the hill is a 15th-century fortress owned at various points by the empires including the Byzantines It’s quite a trek to reach the summit but this is about the journey not the race So we stop along the way at Boulangerie boutique for some kurabie – the shortbread-style cookies for which Kavala is famous – to give us strength before completing the climb out of breath and desperate for the loo (having drunk water in excess for fear of dehydration) all is forgiven as we get a full sweeping view of Kavala’s croissant-shaped city sprawl There are lots of places to stay in Kavala but we plump for the Lucy hotel (www.lucyhotel.gr) around 1.2 miles from the centre – not only for its quiet beachside location but because in the evening we enjoy taking the 30-minute walk into town to burn off calories (don’t ask how many there are in those glasses of ouzo) before enjoying tavern life in after-hours Kavala it is Kavala’s climate and soil that made it into the most important tobacco-processing city in the region By 1905 it had become the main supplier to the Ottoman Sultan in Istanbul I learnt this in the tobacco museum where Mr Pierre Herzog’s contribution to the industry is relayed in some detail Even for a non-smoker like me it’s hard not to be intoxicated by the richly woody scent of tobacco leaves as you trail around the exhibition Jewish life in Kavala came to an tragic end in the Second World War 1943 the city was surrounded by Bulgarian soldiers and 1,484 Jews were rounded up and forced into one of the tobacco warehouses From there they were transported to Bulgaria and on to the gas chambers of Poland Today the murder of Kavala’s Jewish community is commemorated on a discreet black marble moment And yet this modest piece of masonry has been one of the most contentious monuments in Greece The City Council of Kavala initially cancelled the dedication ceremony because of opposition to having a Magen David carved into the stone including from the Greek secretary general of religious affairs Finding it standing unobtrusively on a street corner is sobering One of the reasons Brits do fly to Kavala is because it is the easiest way to connect with the island of Thassos and one of Greece’s less-commercialised islands and the very first thing we notice as the boat tacks across the Aegean is how vividly green the islands looks on the horizon set against the lap of the blue and a cornflower sky We book into the Blue Dream Palace hotel (dhotels.gr/bluedreampalace-hotel-thasos) intending to do little more than enjoy its gorgeous beach But the draw of the countryside is too much and in the late afternoon we hire bikes and head into the mountains I’m married to a MAMIL (middle-aged man in Lycra) but I cheat on an electric one Another day we take the car to the mountain village of Theologus whose narrow alleyways and beautiful stone-roof houses are matched in charm by small shops selling local produce such as olive oil and honey a visit to Costis’s little pottery workshop As mass tourism to Greece continues to focus on the likes of Mykonos and Santorini a trip to the island and mainland combo of Kavala and Thassos is proof you can still find the unspoilt and authentic On our journey home the duty-free trolley passes by selling multipacks of cigarettes We are non-smokers so it holds no attraction But the woody smell of Kavala’s tobacco museum and the memories of Pierre Herzog with his love of  “shprawnsy” architecture are certainly worth lighting up for The trip was organised through www.marketinggreece.com Tui flys directly to Kavala from Manchester and London; Travel Jewish travel Greece Create an account for a 7-day trial to access this article and all of AL-Monitor For subscription inquiries, please contact subscription.support@al-monitor.com For all other inquiries, please use contactus@al-monitor.com. Which language would you like to use this site in? Together we can fight for human rights everywhere. Your donation can transform the lives of millions. If you are talented and passionate about human rights then Amnesty International wants to hear from you. A 61-year-old man from the city of Kabala in northern Greece was charged with attempted murder on Tuesday after he repeatedly shot his 58-year-old neighbour with whom he had personal differences.  The incident took place on Monday and the victim was injured in the neck and taken to hospital. The suspect fled in his vehicle but was caught hiding in a nearby rural area. Police found nine shotgun shells at the scene of the crime and confiscated a shotgun that he legally possessed and 84 cartridges from the perpetrator’s home. Enter your information below to receive our weekly newsletters with the latest insights, opinion pieces and current events straight to your inbox. 27 Apr 2025 11:45:00 GMT?.css-1txiau5-AnswerContainer{color:var(--GlobalColorScheme-Text-secondaryText2);}Kavala won 1–0 over Ethnikos Neou Keramidiou on Sun Predicted lineups are available for the match a few days in advance while the actual lineup will be available about an hour ahead of the match The current head to head record for the teams are Kavala 2 win(s) Haven't scored in their last 2 matches Kavala have won the previous 2 matches against Ethnikos Neou Keramidiou Have scored 1 goals in their last 5 matches Haven't scored in their last 4 matches Haven't kept a clean sheet in 13 matches Who won between Kavala and Ethnikos Neou Keramidiou on Sun 27 Apr 2025 11:45:00 GMT?Kavala won 1–0 over Ethnikos Neou Keramidiou on Sun 27 Apr 2025 11:45:00 GMT.InsightsHave scored 5 goals in their last 5 matches Kavala is playing home against Ethnikos Neou Keramidiou on Sun Which language would you like to use this site in Responding to the decision of Türkiye’s highest court to uphold a life sentence against Osman Kavala and 18-year jail sentences against Çiğdem Mater Mine Özerden and Tayfun Kahraman; Amnesty International’s Campaigns Director for Europe said:“This appalling decision is a devastating politically-motivated blow for human rights Whilst it may effectively mark the end of the appeals process for Osman Kavala it marks the beginning of a new phase of our campaign to demand his release Tayfun Kahraman.“The appeal court’s decision defies all logic given that the prosecuting authorities have repeatedly failed to provide any evidence to substantiate the baseless charges laid against them It shows that the Gezi trial only ever served as an attempt to silence independent voices.“With this judicial decision this Turkish court has openly undermined the ECHR protection system and blatantly violated the Strasbourg Court’s rulings in favour of Osman Kavala’s release.“Osman Kavala has been arbitrarily imprisoned for more than five years for his activism be silenced in our call for Osman Kavala and the Gezi Park Prisoners of Conscience to be immediately released.”BackgroundAmnesty welcomes the fact that the convictions of three other defendants – Mücella Yapıcı Hakan Altınay and Yiğit Ali Ekmekçi – were overturned The indictment relating to their case will be returned to the lower court to be considered for a retrial The Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers has repeatedly called for Osman Kavala’s release in line with the ECtHR ruling Türkiye has ignored this legally-binding decision and refused to release him which led to case being referred back to the European Court Together we can fight for human rights everywhere Your donation can transform the lives of millions If you are talented and passionate about human rights then Amnesty International wants to hear from you 7 Co-Defendants Convicted; Outrageous Miscarriage of Justice 2022 of the human rights defender Osman Kavala and his seven co-defendants is a shocking miscarriage of justice The Istanbul 13th Assize Court sentenced Kavala to life in prison without parole on charges of attempting to overthrow the government and the seven others to 18 years on charges of aiding and abetting The charges refer to their alleged leading roles in mass protests in 2013 that began in Istanbul’s Gezi Park “The conviction of Osman Kavala and the seven others in a sham trial where wild assertions and conspiracy theories stood in for anything resembling evidence is a gross violation of human rights and ample proof that Turkey’s courts operate under instructions from the Erdogan presidency,” said Kenneth Roth “The war in Ukraine should not allow Turkey’s international allies to turn a blind eye to the severe crisis for the rule of law and human rights at home exemplified in this latest verdict and sentences.” whom the court ordered arrested immediately Kavala has already spent four-and-a-half years in detention on baseless charges of attempting to overthrow the government and the constitutional order and espionage for allegedly organizing and financing the Gezi Park protests and involvement in the July 15 2016 coup attempt against the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the court acquitted him on the espionage charge and prolonged his detention based on his conviction on the charge of attempting to overthrow the government Lawyers are appealing all defendants’ convictions and detentions In December 2019 the European Court of Human Rights found that Turkey had used detention for political ends like all European Court of Human Rights judgments yet the Turkish authorities ignored the Strasbourg court’s ruling It also ignored the call for his release and full restoration of his rights by the Committee of Ministers which represents the Council of Europe’s 47 member states the Committee of Ministers voted on February 2 to begin infringement proceedings against Turkey for noncompliance with the European Court’s ruling an important move to support human rights protection in Turkey and uphold the international human rights framework The Turkish courts and prosecutors have engaged in a series of tactics to circumvent the authority of the European Court and the Council of Europe using domestic court decisions to prolong Kavala’s detention and extend the life of baseless prosecutions The courts have issued sham release orders initiated multiple criminal proceedings against Kavala on the same facts and separated and re-joined case files accusing him of bogus offenses The convictions against Kavala and the seven others are the culmination of this process at the lower court level Turkey’s international partners should ensure that the unjust conviction of Kavala and the other defendants in the Gezi case has political consequences the European Union’s proposed “positive agenda” with Turkey is wholly incompatible with Turkey’s failure to release Kavala in line with the European Court’s judgment and made infinitely worse by the convictions and detention orders for Kavala and his co-defendants The European Commission and EU member states should urgently review their engagement with Turkey and condition the opening of talks on the Customs Union modernization requested by Ankara; to the release of Kavala and any of the others detained; repeal of the Gezi verdict; implementation of judgments from the European Court of Human Rights; and tangible progress on improving Turkey’s human rights record and ensuring the independence of its judiciary “The convictions should be read as Turkey’s defiant answer to the Council of Europe which in February took the unprecedented step of triggering infringement proceedings against Turkey over its refusal to comply with the European Court’s judgment calling for Kavala’s release,” Roth said “The European Court of Human Rights is due to rule again on the Kavala case and the convictions will surely expedite the infringement procedure against Turkey and deepen the crisis in the country’s relations with the Council of Europe.” How Kazakhstan’s Financing Terrorism List Compounds Human Rights Harms European Court of Human Rights Rules on its Order to Free the Rights Defender Osman Kavala (New York) – The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) handed down a landmark judgment announced on July 11, 2022 against Turkey for its failure to carry out the court’s order to free the imprisoned human rights defender Osman Kavala Human Rights Watch and the Turkey Litigation Support Project said today a case brought by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers that Turkey failed to fulfill its obligation under Article 46(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights to comply with its judgment issued on December 10 The judgment is an important step toward accountability for Turkey’s systemic disregard for the convention system and as recognition of the urgency of implementing the court’s order to release Kavala “This is the only second time, after Mammadov v. Azerbaijan, that the ECtHR has ever conducted infringement proceedings and determined that a member state has not complied with a European Court judgment,” said Helen Duffy of the Turkey Litigation Support Project “It is an acknowledgement of Turkey’s ever-deepening rule of law crisis which has involved seriously undermining the Convention system and the escalating use of criminal law for political purposes.” The two organizations, joined by the International Commission of Jurists, had repeatedly recommended infringement proceedings against Turkey for its failure to comply with the judgment in Kavala’s case which epitomizes the evisceration of respect for human rights in Turkey today the court held that “Türkiye has failed to fulfil its obligation under article 46§1 to abide by the Kavala v Its finding of a violation of Article 18 taken together with Article 5 in the Kavala judgment had vitiated any action resulting from the charges related to the Gezi Park events and the attempted coup It is nonetheless clear that the domestic proceedings subsequent to the above judgment which resulted first in an acquittal and then a conviction have not made it possible to remedy the problems identified in the Kavala judgment (para Turkey alleges that Kavala had a leading role in mass protests in 2013 that began in Istanbul’s Gezi Park and in a subsequent coup attempt the court held that Kavala was prosecuted and held in pretrial detention since November 2017 on the basis of his human rights activities The court found that the Turkish authorities had pursued an ulterior purpose of silencing Kavala as a human rights defender and that by using detention for political ends Turkey had violated Kavala’s right to liberty and security (article 5) and prohibition from restricting the Convention rights for the purposes other than those allowed under the Convention (article 18) the court ordered Kavala’s immediate release as a first step to implement the judgment the Turkish authorities have ignored the court’s legally binding ruling In its supervision of the process of carrying out the court’s judgments the Committee of Ministers took numerous steps calling for Kavala’s release and the full restoration of his rights to ensure that it was carried out and disjoined and re-joined case files accusing him of bogus offenses The Grand Chamber judgment addresses these practices of the Turkish authorities by stating that “the measures indicated by Türkiye do not permit it to conclude that the State Party acted in ‘good faith,’ in a manner compatible with the ‘conclusions and spirit’ of the Kavala judgment or in a way that would make practical and effective the protection of the Convention rights which the Court found to have been violated in that judgment” (para Most recently, on April 25, after Kavala had spent four-and-a-half years in detention on baseless charges, the Istanbul assize court sentenced him to life in prison without parole on charges of attempting to overthrow the government “The Grand Chamber judgment in the case of Kavala v. Türkiye is a further demonstration of Turkey’s persistent failure to respect its international human rights obligations, and that implementation of the court’s judgments is key to the effectiveness of the European human rights system” said Aisling Reidy senior legal adviser at Human Rights Watch “As the European Court has now confirmed Turkey’s failure to execute the 2019 Kavala judgment the Committee of Ministers needs urgently to take all feasible measures to ensure the judgement is respected and Kavala released,” she continued The Committee of Ministers is expected to resume its supervision process and take more robust steps to discharge its mandate of ensuring the necessary individual and general measures are taken by Turkey to implement the court’s ruling we call for the immediate release of Osman Kavala Judgments of the European Court of Human Rights must be complied with and not intentionally eluded,” Duffy said “The Grand Chamber’s judgment finding violation sends an important signal to Turkey that it cannot use judicial tactics to evade its international obligations including bringing forward multiple criminal proceedings on the same facts or handing down prison sentences based on non-Convention compliant charges.” Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Imprisoned philanthropist Osman Kavala has submitted a new appeal through his attorneys following the Justice Ministry’s rejection of a previous request for retrial references the 2017 Constitutional Amendment Referendum Zengin highlights that the referendum marked a significant shift in Turkey's system transitioning from a parliamentary system to a presidential one She argues that the previous government entities such as the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers Citing Article 311 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CMK) and the principle of "new event - new fact," she contends that the charge of "attempting to overthrow the government" is no longer applicable Zengin has requested that a copy of the petition be sent to the Presidency to inquire whether their complaints persist she sought a written opinion on whether the former parliamentary system had been integrated into the new system Citing the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) and the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) Zengin asserted that Kavala had not organized or financed any mass protests and had actively worked towards a consensus during the Gezi protests and she requested MIT’s opinion on the matter “Osman Kavala is a clean citizen of the Republic of Turkey my client Osman Kavala is not a political or military spy.” Zengin explained that the purpose of their request for retrial is to aid in the normalization of the legal system and contribute to general improvement aligning with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s efforts against clandestine structures She emphasized that understanding the significance of this statement would become clearer over time and urged those in positions of responsibility a columnist for the pro-government newspaper Hürriyet arguing that since the system of government has changed the positions of Prime Minister and Council of Ministers no longer exist and thus there can be no crime without a victim President Erdoğan is running for the presidency for the second The Supreme Election Council rejected objections to Erdoğan’s candidacy for this reason.” Businessperson and rights defender Osman Kavala was detained on October 18 in an investigation into the 2013 Gezi Park protests He was arrested on November 1 and placed in the Marmara (Silivri) Prison The justification for his arrest was his alleged attempt to 'overthrow the government' in the context of the Gezi protests and his alleged attempt to 'overthrow the constitutional order' in the context of the July 15 coup attempt He was acquitted in the Gezi Trial on February 18 he was re-arrested on charges of attempting to 'overthrow the constitutional order.’ On March 9 he was arrested again under the same trial this time on charges of 'political or military espionage' The acquittal decision in the Gezi trial was overturned he was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for 'attempting to overthrow the government' the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) determined that Osman Kavala's detention was arbitrary and based on political motives it ruled that Osman Kavala should be released immediately Due to Osman Kavala not being released in accordance with this decision the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe initiated a 'violation procedure' against Turkey the ECtHR Grand Chamber ruled that "[the decision of December 10 which found a violation of Article 5 in connection with Article 18 of the ECtHR would render any action based on accusations related to the Gezi Park events and the coup attempt null and void." courts ignored and did not implement the legally binding nature of these two decisions This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Responding to the conviction of Osman Kavala allegedly for “attempting to overthrow the government” and 18-year sentences for seven other defendants for aiding him we have witnessed a travesty of justice of spectacular proportions This verdict deals a devastating blow not only to Osman Kavala but to everyone who believes in justice and human rights activism in Turkey and beyond The prosecuting authorities have repeatedly failed to provide any evidence that substantiates the baseless charges of attempting to overthrow the government This unjust verdict shows that the Gezi trial was only an attempt to silence independent voices “This politically motivated charade has already seen Osman Kavala arbitrarily imprisoned for more than four-and-a-half years over his civil society activism We continue to call for Osman Kavala’s and his co-defendants’ immediate release as they appeal these draconian verdicts.” The Istanbul Heavy Penal Court No.13 sentenced Osman Kavala to aggravated life in prison Unless the appeals courts overturn the verdict Osman Kavala will spend the rest of his life in prison The seven co-defendants were remanded to prison the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe which monitors implementation of European Court of Human Rights rulings referred Turkey back to the Court for the government’s refusal to release Osman Kavala in compliance with the ECtHR’s emphatic ruling that he be immediately released Turkey is only the second country to face such infringement proceedings for failing to implement a binding ruling of the ECtHR Amnesty International has a large sign emblazoned in a hallway encouraging you to “Take Injustice Personally” this means not becoming hardened or cynical but allowing the suffering of others to touch us personally It is this personal sense of injustice that should motivate us to speak out on behalf of people whose human rights are violated the world over.In Europe there is a prominent victim of injustice whose case I take personally they have gone to absurd lengths to keep him behind bars That victim is philanthropist Osman Kavala one of Turkey’s best-known human rights defenders who has been unjustly imprisoned for more than four years I regularly met with Osman Kavala not only in my previous office in Strasbourg As a prominent figure in Turkey’s beleaguered civil society and with his vast knowledge of its diversity and history it was always enlightening to speak with him While Osman Kavala’s analysis and understanding of Turkey were of great value for representatives of international bodies it is for his support to the fields of arts and culture that he is most well-known and appreciated for – Osman Kavala is also a founder of the Turkish School of Political Studies a member of an association of 21 democracy academies affiliated with the Council of Europe I happen to be this association’s president Why has he been singled out with one baseless accusation after another It is for the Turkish authorities alone to answer this question there is a determination to punish and silence him for his human rights work This sends a stark warning to the larger Turkish society: no matter how legitimate or lawful your work you can be imprisoned for years without a guilty verdict Osman Kavala has faced one fantastical accusation after another it was organizing and financing the Gezi Park protests – mass protests in spring 2013 against an urban development project When a court acquitted him of that charge in 2020 he was immediately rearrested for allegedly being behind the 2016 failed coup attempt a charge that was soon replaced by ‘military and political espionage’ in a sequence of events that would be unbelievable in a work of fiction the three charges he faced were joined in one prosecution with 51 others These include 35 football fans whose 2015 acquittal for ‘attempting to overthrow the government’ during the Gezi protests was overturned by the Court of Cassation in April this year unrelated case was joined with the two existing prosecutions of Osman Kavala – Gezi re-trial following his acquittal was overturned on appeal and ‘espionage’ case – in a new mass trial barely disguising the authorities’ attempt to prolong his unjust imprisonment The form of “justice” encapsulated in Osman Kavala’s prosecution is reminiscent of the famous line: ‘show me the man Turkey’s leaders have found their man and keep trying to find a crime to pin on him This is a country where thousands of judges and prosecutors have been summarily dismissed and detained on vague accusations under anti-terrorism laws the European Court of Human Rights found Turkey had violated the liberty and security of 427 judges and prosecutors when they were detained in the aftermath of the 2016 coup attempt.It is not only me who finds the charges against him absurd whose rulings Turkey has accepted as binding delivered a judgment in 2019 calling for Osman Kavala’s immediate release as it found his detention to pursue an ‘ulterior purpose’ – to silence him the Committee of Ministers – the body composed of foreign affairs ministers’ deputies of 47 member states charged with executing judgments – has called seven times for Osman Kavala’s release.This week as they meet again these same member states can show they mean business by ratcheting up the pressure on Turkey to honour its obligations and implement a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights they could – and should – initiate ‘infringement proceedings’ That is resending the judgment back to the European Court to condemn Turkey’s refusal to comply with the binding judgment This has only been done once before in the history of the Court Azerbaijan ultimately leading to Ilgar Mammadov’s release Four years behind bars in the absence of a criminal conviction facing farcical charges without any evidential basis Representatives of the other 46 Council of Europe member states should nudge Turkey to do the right thing by insisting that human rights are a common responsibility and that Turkey cannot disregard the rules any longer The friends of human rights must vote for infringement proceedings as abstaining in the vote this week effectively means voting in favour of letting Turkey abscond from its responsibilities Let us watch where the conscience of Europe stands Will they take Osman Kavala’s rights personally THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST PUBLISHED HERE BY EU OBSERVER https://euobserver.com/opinion/153677AUTHOR Nil Muižnieks former Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights European Court Calls for Civic Leader’s Immediate Release Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said that the Turkish authorities should carry out the European Court ruling and release Osman Kavala immediately The court found that Kavala’s detention “pursued an ulterior purpose…namely that of reducing [him] to silence,” ruling that the charges he faced and the detention “were likely to have a dissuasive effect on the work of human-rights defenders.” The court found violations of Article 5/1(c) which sets out lawful grounds of detention 5/4 which guarantees all detainees a right to a speedy review of the legality of their detention which prohibits limitations on the rights of the European Convention (in this case liberty) for ulterior motives the court stressed that “any continuation of the applicant’s pre-trial detention in the present case will entail a prolongation of the violation of Article 5/1 and of Article 18.” “The European Court of Human Rights’ ruling today should lead to an end to Turkey’s indefensible persecution of Osman Kavala,” said Aisling Reidy “The Turkish authorities should immediately release Kavala and stop their wider crackdown on rights defenders” Kavala was first detained by police on October 18 2017 at Istanbul’s Atatürk airport as he was returning from a visit with representatives of the Goethe Institute to Gaziantep where he supported a project for Syrian refugees Kavala is the founder of the nongovernmental group Anadolu Kültür A.Ş. which promotes human rights through the arts and is a leading figure in Turkey’s civil society A court ordered him to be held in pretrial detention on November 1 allegedly on suspicion that he organized the Gezi Park protests in Istanbul in 2013 and was involved the July 15 he and 15 others were indicted on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government or partially or wholly preventing its functions” (article 312 of Turkey’s criminal code) for their alleged role in the Gezi protests It revolves around a 657-page indictment that purports to show the 16 defendants conspired to organize and finance the 2013 Gezi Park protests All face life in prison without parole if found guilty In addition to the main charge against them the prosecutor holds the defendants responsible for crimes allegedly committed by protesters across Turkey during the mass protests The defendants face additional charges of damaging public property unlawful possession of dangerous substances No evidence is presented to connect the defendants to any of these alleged crimes In reality the indictment is largely incoherent, packed with wild conspiracy theories, which Kavala himself called a “fantastical fiction.” In its judgment the court confirmed that it contains no credible evidence of criminal activity noting that instead it listed many completely lawful acts related to the exercise of rights protected under the Convention including freedoms of expression and assembly The court also criticized Turkey’s Constitutional Court for failing to provide a speedy or effectively review of his unlawful detention.  “Today’s judgment is not the first time the court has found that Turkey has jailed its critics but in a crude attempt to try to silence them,” said Andrew Gardner Turkey strategy and research manager at Amnesty International “Osman Kavala’s release needs to be the first of many steps beginning to reverse the damage caused by the massive crackdown on civil society over the last several years and to restore respect for human rights in Turkey today.” Kavala’s detention is only one example of the harsh crackdown by the Turkish government on its critics the government has closed down more than 1,500 associations and foundations most of them during a state of emergency that allowed the government to rule by emergency decree without effective parliamentary or judicial oversight critics of the government risk criminal charges and lengthy pretrial imprisonment Over 100 journalists and media workers remain in prison almost 130,000 public sector workers have been arbitrarily dismissed from their jobs for alleged links to terrorist organizations The Council of Europe Human Rights Commissioner in Kavala’s case before the European Court of Human Rights She did so based on her visits to Turkey and her and her predecessors’ continuous monitoring of the country which she said confirmed increasing pressure on civil society and human rights defenders in Turkey She also drew attention to longstanding concerns about the use of criminal proceedings and of detention to punish statements and acts that do not incite violence or hatred and are protected by international human rights standards The commissioner concluded that such arrests and detentions form part “of a broader pattern of escalating reprisals in Turkey against civil society activists and human rights defenders for their legitimate work.” Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have been pressing for Kavala’s immediate and unconditional release since the start of his arbitrary detention Turkey should end its crackdown on civil society and release imprisoned journalists and other civil society members against whom the authorities have not provided evidence of internationally recognizable crimes The long drive from the centre of Istanbul to Silivri the seaside town that is home to Europe’s largest high security prison is spent talking about the case with colleagues who are with me in Turkey It’s a rainy and cold morning and there is a lot of traffic to observe the case in which 11 human rights defenders including Amnesty’s own are being prosecuted We are here to observe the third hearing in the surreal prosecution of Osman Kavala and 15 others clocking 708 days on the day of the hearing The way Osman Kavala has been treated is mean and vindictive bar the large number of ring binders piled up behind the three empty chairs where the panel of judges will take their seats We learn and are relieved that the binders are not related to the Gezi case that this isn’t the court telling the defendants: ‘look at the mountain of evidence we have against you!’ While we are waiting for the hearing to start we notice that Osman Kavala is already in the courtroom surrounded yet again by around ten gendarmes He was brought in before any of us were inside the courtroom We all know the new president of the panel of judges will not appreciate cheers and claps by the observers He confirms this as soon as he takes his seat: ‘Anyone who claps or shouts during the hearing will be removed from the courtroom and face proceedings against them’ We understand he is in a prison somewhere in an Anatolian province but we don’t know much more about him and although someone behind me guesses that he might be a police officer there is no clue as to what his knowledge of the defendants might be and why is he a witness… And we will not know as the sound system isn’t working and we cannot hear him at all the testimony is abandoned and the judge moves onto the questioning of the defendants We know this is not a court where justice is delivered Reading from the transcripts of the taped conversations in the indictment one by one the judge asks Osman Kavala to explain them These unlawfully wiretapped telephone conversations are varied: from whether he could bring pastries and medical masks to protect those peacefully occupying Gezi Park from tear gas (‘yes of course’) to whether he would contribute to a pot to help with expenses such as food in the Park (‘sure I will’) through a conversation about the imminent visit by the new Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe and whether he would like to meet him (‘yes The director of Amnesty Spain for whom I am interpreting appears to be puzzled by all this: ‘sorry Milena isn’t Osman Kavala accused of attempting to overthrow the government?’ ‘Yes’ I reply attempting to overthrow the government by organising financing and expanding the 2013 Gezi Park protests It is an absurd and unfounded accusation for which the only ‘evidence’ presented is these wiretapped phone conversations all of which date from after the start of the Gezi Park protests.’ The contrast between the seriousness of the charges and the flimsiness of the ‘evidence’ presented in court is chilling Osman Kavala patiently responds to each and every question sometimes asking for clarification but never dismissing them he thanks the judge for asking him these questions about the content of the transcripts – this is the first time since he was detained almost two years ago that he has been asked about them the two giant screens on either side of the judges show images of destruction accompanying the judge’s reference to ‘vandals and vandalism during Gezi attempt’ Without disclosing the location or dates of when the photos were taken the judge asks for written evidence from Osman Kavala a social media share condemning this violence Kavala states calmly that he doesn’t condone violence a fact he has to repeat several times during his questioning has been in prison for almost two years for things that never happened We are startled by the next question: ‘who are you that all these people from abroad want to meet with you and speak to you?’ The tone and the question are both aggressive and provocative as well as strange Why shouldn’t foreign representatives want to meet a prominent civil society figure such as Osman Kavala who is knowledgeable about the Turkey of today and of the past and can offer the long view of developments in the country When Osman Kavala reveals the relevant suggested meeting never took place the absurdity of the line of questioning becomes even more apparent In actual fact he is questioned about a documentary film project discussed with co-defendant film producer Çiğdem Mater but never made then about the opening of a bank account with another co-defendant Mine Özerden and social media repudiations that could not be issued in prison for almost two years for things that never happened As the day progresses and the other defendants are also questioned about various wiretapped conversations they have had between them and with others we know this whole process may be a sham but is certainly not a joke Without any reference to anything that he has heard during the questioning the new prosecutor requests the continuation of Osman Kavala’s imprisonment we all have the feeling of the inevitable in the room as we stand and talk about the interim decision that is about to be handed down the gendarmes surrounding him stand up around him We are ushered out of the courtroom before he is taken away back to his cell despite protestations and objections: they will make him walk through the vast courtroom without any friendly faces to see him go we know this is not a court where justice is delivered; a young woman standing next to me says ‘this is mean and vindictive.’ The only saving grace is the news that the members of parliament in the courtroom have remained Osman Kavala did have a few friendly faces to see This article was first published here by Ceasefire Magazine It was a teaser for a video game about trucks I’d have scrolled right past it if it weren’t for a scene from the Corinth Canal catching my eye in the background the Rio-Antirrio Bridge and the Thessaloniki waterfront I watched and wondered how a simulation game became inspired by Greece’s roads and where the thousands of “likes” came from The game is Euro Truck Simulator and it was first developed in 2008 by SCS Software The whole idea is to give the player a realistic experience of driving a truck The rules are simple: You have to transport a shipment of goods to different parts of Europe obeying the road safety rules of each country and making sure that your truck is properly maintained and fueled up Digging through my childhood memories and my daily visits to the internet cafe I was reminded of a similar version of this game on the list of the games that were available on the computer you could pick up a load in San Francisco and take it to any other American city you’d have to cough up for around 120 minutes on the computer as trucks are hardly the speediest means of transportation The speed of the vehicles is not why people choose this simulation game they can always go for action games like Grand Theft Auto which allows the player free movement across the map representing an American city like Los Angeles Many gamers even simulate the driving experience by buying a wheel or even creating a setting that resembles a car interior is one of the best escapes from the daily grind The game began with the creation of a series of maps of Central European highways but its developers later expanded it by adding more countries from the continent The Greek universe of Euro Truck Simulator is pretty basic: The map consists of highways with very few turnoffs and these lead to a specific number of cities we also see Argostoli on the island of Kefalonia the northern port city of Kavala and the island of Chios Things like border controls are even more simplified From the enthusiastic comments by Greek streamers on YouTube we understood that the game delivers a faithful representation of the country’s roads despite the small flaws that can be attributed to AI I put on my headphones to be treated to the kind of heavy-duty “laika” favored by truckers all across the country and traveled from Patra in the west to northern Greece The trip went great and I reached my destination just as the sun was setting on Kavala Port So I switched off the engine and fell asleep in a content frame of mind This article was first published in Kathimerini’s weekend supplement Enter your information below to receive our weekly newsletters with the latest insights opinion pieces and current events straight to your inbox HOT: » What kind of news would you like to see more of? Bulgarian tourists ranked third in terms of visits to Greece Bulgarians made a total of 2.911 million visits to Greece marking a 56% increase from the previous year This surge in visits has elevated Bulgaria's position in the rankings by two spots According to a study by the Institute of the Association of Greek Tourist Enterprises The overall number of visits to Greece last year reached 36.136 million reflecting a 15.2% increase from the previous year the Central Port Authority of Kavala has released data showing a significant rise in passenger and vehicle traffic to and from the island of Thassos For the summer months of June through August 2024 nearly 1.5 million visitors traveled between Keramoti indicating a substantial growth in tourism compared to previous years We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria Bulgarian businesses are actively recruiting students to fill seasonal positions for the upcoming summer offering earnings ranging from 4,000 to 6,000 leva A Romanian family paid 3,084.60 leva (1,500 euros) for medical treatment at the Burgas University Hospital following a serious road accident A 33-year-old man from the village of Semchinovo has been taken into custody by the police for physically assaulting a 10-year-old child Bulgaria and Greece have signed a draft Joint Declaration regarding the use of the Arda River waters over the next five years following a decision by the Bulgarian Council of Ministers Bulgarian educational institutions have witnessed a growing presence of Russian cultural initiatives raising concerns about potential propaganda targeting young students Grigor Dimitrov advanced to the round of 16 at the Madrid Masters after securing a straight-sets win over Britain’s Jacob Fearnley a major British tour operator specializing in holidays to Bulgaria has halted all its operations effective April 24 chairman of the Bulgarian Hotel Association highlighted a major issue in Bulgaria’s tourism sector: a significant decline in the workforce executive director of the Bulgarian Association of Hotel Management Professionals one-third of Bulgarian hoteliers are planning a modest price increase of about 10% Tourism in Bulgaria has made significant strides toward recovery in 2024 though it still hasn't returned to pre-pandemic levels of 2019 Bulgaria continues to lag behind neighboring countries in achieving significant growth in its tourism sector Google Street View Cars Return to Bulgaria for Major Mapping Update Housing Prices Soar in Bulgaria’s Major Cities as Demand and Supply Strain Increase Turkey’s government has earned some goodwill in the West by publicly opposing Russia’s invasion and by providing Ukraine with armed drones On April 25th a lot of that goodwill went up in smoke when a court in Istanbul handed Osman Kavala one of Turkey's most respected civil-society activists a life sentence for “attempting to overthrow” the country’s government during protests almost a decade ago This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline ““Judicial assassination”” Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents George Simion will face Nicusor Dan, a mainstream candidate, in a run-off There are five luxuries it can no longer feasibly afford Friedrich Merz’s career is one of unforced errors and puzzling missteps Both Donald Trump and Ukraine’s diplomats will consider it a success 36% of all banned titles featured characters or people of color and a quarter (25%) included LGBTQ+ people or characters This week-long intensive provides an in-person workshop for early-career writers from communities underrepresented in the publishing world Learn how the creation and display of art is entwined with the U.S.’s most fraught cultural and political debates The next four years could reshape the United States for decades to come Join us in fighting every day to protect the freedom to write and the freedom to read The sentence "illustrates the totality of the government’s crackdown on free expression and the breakdown of rule of law” (New York) – Türkiye’s Supreme Court of Appeals yesterday upheld the life imprisonment sentence against Osman Kavala on September 28. Kavala, a cultural rights activist and founder of several publishing houses has been detained since 2017. In response, Liesl Gerntholtz director of the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center “The Turkish court’s decision upholding the life sentence against Osman Kavala illustrates the totality of the government’s crackdown on free expression and the breakdown of rule of law Life behind bars for peacefully expressing oneself is unconscionable it will cast a shadow on all forms of cultural and creative life in Türkiye.” “The Turkish government has the power to reverse this state of affairs and should start by freeing Osman Kavala immediately and unconditionally Writers and other cultural workers are vital in developing a collective vision of a world anchored in human rights This is why they frighten repressive governments.” Türkiye ranked seventh in PEN America’s 2022 Freedom to Write Index, with at least 15 writers behind bars last year. PEN America’s 2021 report “Cracking Down on Creative Voices” documents the overall crackdown on writers and other creative and academic professionals in Türkiye PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect open expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. To learn more, visit PEN.org For further information or to request an interview, please contact Dietlind Lerner, [email protected] / +1 310 699 8775 and learn by donating to PEN America today Copyright © 2025 PEN America. All rights reserved | Privacy Policy Following today’s European Court of Human Rights judgment condemning Turkey for failing to ensure implementation of the Court’s 2019 ruling demanding Osman Kavala’s immediate release concluding that the Court “considered that the measures indicated by Türkiye [Turkey] did not permit it to conclude that the State Party had acted in ‘good faith’ in a manner compatible with the ‘conclusions and spirit’ of the Kavala judgment” Deputy Director for Research at Amnesty International’s Europe office said: “This ruling shames Turkey’s authorities they have refused to implement the European Court of Human Rights’ 2019 judgment and release Osman Kavala Today’s ruling lays bare yet again the failure of the government to abide by a legally binding obligation Turkey’s continuing inaction compounds the egregious suffering of Osman Kavala and his family.” “Kavala’s case is emblematic of the clampdown on civil society and the rollback in human rights protections that affects everyone in Turkey If Turkey persists in its stubborn refusal to release Osman Kavala it will further debase itself as one of the Council of Europe’s founding members its member states and the European Union must urge Turkey to finally free Osman Kavala and the many others detained in similar circumstances.” Background In 2019 the European Court of Human Rights found that Osman Kavala’s right to liberty was violated and was underpinned by the government’s intention to silence him The judgment called for his immediate release Turkey’s authorities have subjected Kavala to further prosecution in charge of monitoring the implementation of ECtHR rulings initiated infringement proceedings against Turkey for its lack of implementation of the Court’s ruling of the European Convention on Human Rights Infringement proceedings for failure to implement judgments of the ECtHR have been initiated only once before in the case of Ilgar Mammadov v Azerbaijan Amnesty International declared Osman Kavala and six co-defendants prisoners of conscience following their imprisonment after unjust convictions in the Gezi trial on 25 April 2022 PAOK B remain … stuck in seventh place with 14 points while Kavala is in ninth spot with 10 points The last training session before the match took place on Friday morning in Souroti without Kottas and Rumiantsev who are both suffering from a virus who suffered a knock in the game against PAS Giannina who … will play for the Under-19s for tomorrow’s match against Aris Nikos Karageorgiou did not announce a squad as all of the players will be available for tomorrow’s game You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed.