Taha Kılınç All daily Yeni Şafak Columns

Taha Kılınç

181 columns listing

The Collapse of Hasbara

22 November 2024, Friday

When the Third Zionist Congress convened in Basel, Switzerland, from August 15-19, 1899, one of the main topics of discussion was how to present Zionism to the global public. Theodor Herzl, the leader of political Zionism and the founder of the Zionist Congress, introduced the term “propaganda” for this purpose. At the time, the term carried no negative connotation, and Herzl urged the attendees: “Engage in propaganda for the masses; tell them who you are!” Shortly afterward, Herzl’s close associate

Fault Lines: Boundaries and British Influence in the Middle East

03 November 2024, Sunday

“We had an incredibly interesting day with Ibn Saud. He is one of the most striking figures I've ever met. Standing over two meters tall, he has a majestic appearance, carries himself with great dignity and calm, and has proven his courage as a leader of irregular troops, embodying both military prowess and statesmanship.” These were the words of renowned British agent, traveler, and explorer Gertrude Bell, who had the chance to meet and converse with the future King of Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz Ibn

After the flood...

12 October 2024, Saturday

A year has passed since the Aqsa Flood, and since then, Israel's aggression has extended beyond Gaza to Lebanon. Watching a genocide unfold from afar, helpless, first brings sorrow and anger, followed by hopelessness and inaction. However, the Aksâ Flood has already yielded concrete results and is being recognized as a turning point in many respects. It offers not despair but hope and action. Let's explore through questions and answers: What did Gaza and its people teach us? Gaza taught us resistance

Beyond Words: Can We Afford to Just Talk About Palestine?

09 October 2024, Wednesday

Since the beginning of the Aksâ Flood, I have delivered at least 346 speeches across various provinces in Turkey, under different institutions and online platforms. These discussions have covered a range of topics, including the significance of Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque for Muslims, the history of Palestine, the processes of Zionist occupation, the phases of resistance against occupation, the situation of the Muslim world, and pivotal moments in Middle Eastern history. Naturally, as these

The throne is vacant in Lebanon

06 October 2024, Sunday

On September 1, 1982, a secret meeting took place in the northern Israeli city of Nahariya. Israeli Prime Minister Menahem Begin had invited Lebanon's newly elected 34-year-old president, Bashir Gemayel, to discuss support for Israel's invasion of Lebanon, which had begun on June 6. At that time, Gemayel was leading a strong military front (Kuwatu'l-Lubnaniyye) during the ongoing Civil War and opposed the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and Syria's presence in Lebanon, identifying as a

The Lebanese Gordian knot

25 September 2024, Wednesday

On the morning of February 14, 2005, Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, witnessed one of the most shocking assassinations in recent Middle Eastern history: former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed in a bomb attack on his convoy near the famous St. George Hotel along the Beirut waterfront. Known for his close ties to Saudi Arabia, Hariri was instrumental in the Taif Agreement that ended the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) and served as prime minister twice, from 1992-1998 and 2000-2004. With immense

The English brand of colonization...

19 September 2024, Thursday

In the 1940s, when World War II was shaking Europe to its core, Britain faced serious challenges in the regions it governed as colonies and mandates. From the outside, it seemed like an empire struggling to maintain order, criticized by all sides, and unable to find effective solutions. By the early 1970s, Britain would withdraw from all its colonies, and many historians evaluating this period would often use words like “chaos,” “confusion,” “incompetence,” and “uncertainty” to describe British

The heart of Oxford..

16 September 2024, Monday

Searching for a grave in historic cemeteries can sometimes take a long time, but thankfully, that wasn’t the case at Wolvercote Cemetery north of Oxford. We found what we were looking for almost effortlessly: the graves of J.R.R. Tolkien (1892-1973) and Albert Habib Hourani (1915-1993). My curiosity about Tolkien was at a "celebrity" level, but I approached Hourani's grave with respect and admiration. Albert H. Hourani, born in England to a Lebanese Christian family, returned to the Middle East

What comes after Abbas...

22 August 2024, Thursday

The visit of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to Türkiye, and his speech at the Parliament, were among the highlights of the past week. Following President Erdoğan’s remarks in Rize on July 27, 2024, where he stated, “Some political parties in our country say, ‘The government should invite the Palestinian President to Türkiye and let him speak in Parliament.’ Who says we didn’t invite him? We did invite him, but he didn’t come. Frankly, Mr. Abbas owes us an apology for that. We invited

How is Saudi Arabia’s shift to "moderate Islam" manifesting abroad?

18 August 2024, Sunday

Two weeks ago, I was in Sarajevo for a dear friend’s engagement. After the ceremony, which took place outdoors in a lovely garden in the Ilidža area, we headed back to the city center and stopped at the King Fahd Mosque for the evening prayer. It was a place I’d always wanted to visit on my previous trips to Sarajevo, but never quite made it. The King Fahd Mosque was built between 1998 and 2000, shortly after the Bosnian War, in honor of Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd bin Abdulaziz. The mosque is part