Free Republic

Turkey's 'creeping Islamisation' divides nation By Gethin Chamberlain in Alanya, Sunday Telegraph Last Updated: 1:17am BST 15/07/2007 It could have been a scene from any beach in Turkey: a cluster of young women reclining on sun-loungers, soaking up the midday rays, thumbing through novels and smoking cigarettes, while fellow holidaymakers splashed in the sea. Women in bikinis and hasema swimsuits mix on the beach at Alanya Yet there was not an inch of bare flesh on them; these sun worshippers were clad from head to toe in headscarves and cover-all swimsuits. A couple of girls strolled past, their skimpy bikinis...

Byzantine underground city and cistern unearthed in Talas Tuesday, January 3, 2006 ANKARA - Turkish Daily News An underground city and cistern dating to the Byzantine era have been discovered at the foot of Mt. Ali in the Talas district of Kayseri. Talas Mayor Rýfat Yýldrým said archaeologists have so far unearthed 300 meters of the underground city and that the cistern is estimated to be 60 meters in length and 5 meters wide. Noting that they had initiated excavations following reports of the existence of a city and cistern, Yýldýrým said: “We have unearthed parts of the underground city...