Turkey: From a bridge to an island in the Mideast

Fadi Hakura*

(CNN) -- Egypt expelled the Turkish ambassador and scaled back diplomatic relations at the weekend over Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's vocal and persistent criticism of the interim government that replaced the former short-lived presidency of Mohamed Morsy, who hailed from the Muslim Brotherhood.

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LMU needs interculturalism

Kellyn Kawaguchi

The next time you walk into a room, I want you to notice how many people are the same ethnicity as you. Chances are, if you’re white, you’re part of the majority. While this observation shouldn’t make a difference, it affects the 51 percent of students who make up the non-white portion of LMU.

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#BBCtrending: Turkish Twitter war over education

Plans to abolish "prep schools" in Turkey have sparked a huge feud between two of the country's most powerful forces on the micro-blogging website Twitter.

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Islamic scholar Gülen urges followers to stick to path despite attacks

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen called on his followers on Monday to “just keep walking and not stop” in the face of controversial government plans to abolish privately-funded educational institutions known as dershanes, which assist medium and high school students to prepare for national college and university admission examinations.

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"Turkish government defiant as battle over prep schools rises"

The tension recently peaked, with Erdoğan describing the group’s objection to his government’s plans as a “smear campaign.”

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Erdoğan launches another war

Mustafa Akyol

Last week I wrote a piece in this column titled, “Behind the war over prep schools.” In fact, it was not a full-scale culture war then, but rather a growing tension. But Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan made it obvious to everyone this week by announcing on a TV show that he is determined to close all prep schools and he, as usual, will “not take a step back.”

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At home and abroad, Erdogan shoots himself in the foot

Mahir Zeylanov

“I voted for [Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party] but I feel ashamed for their move,” Nazlı Ilıcak, a columnist with pro-government daily Sabah and long supporter of the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, recently said, referring to a government intention to inspect mixed-gender student housing.

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Kimse Yok Mu becomes first charity to reach Philippines from Turkey

Turkish charity Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There) was the first such organization from Turkey to send aid to the Philippines, which is struggling to recover after being hit on Friday by Typhoon Haiyan.

Reaching the area with military helicopters, a team of 10 people began search and rescue activities and 25 tons of food packages were distributed to 6,500 victims in cooperation with Philippine officials.

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Hizmet (Gulen movement) contributes to world peace

Following the international Hizmet Symposium in Washington D.C., Rumi Forum held its second day of the conference with academics from more than twenty countries.

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Professor Wagner: With Gülen, the key is love

In his recent book, “Beginnings and Endings -- Fethullah Gülen’s Vision for Today’s World,” Professor Walter Wagner shares his insights about Gülen’s take on Islamic eschatology and the challenges of the contemporary word. According to the Wagner, the world is faced with a leadership crisis whose resolution could fulfill the prophetic message of love to human beings. In the last century, the world suffered under authoritarian leaders who were unable to meet the needs of the people.

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