Mr Özgürgün was widely expected to contest the party s leadership.

Addressing a press conference in occupied Lefkosia this morning, Mr Özgürgün pointed to what he called a general support for the idea of the former leader Dervi Erolu taking office for another term .

He said that taking account of this fact, he decided not to stand as a candidate in the forthcoming extraordinary Party Congress on February 11th.

Responding to questions, Mr Özgürgün said he knows that the UBP Lefkosia deputy Tahsin Erturulolu will stick to his position and contest the party leadership.

Mr Erturulolu is the only candidate to have officially registered for the upcoming election, until now.

[07] The Turkish Director of the UNDP is candidate for the post of Kofi Annan

The paper, quoting Los Angeles Times, report that the ideal candidate to succeed Kofi Annan as UN Secretary-General should be diplomatic and self-confident. But, should not advertise himself, in the protocol full of the UN world.

The paper goes on and reports that after Butros Butros Ghali from the Middle East and Kofi Annan from Africa, now the turn is for an Asian candidate. Thai Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart Sathirathai and Sri Lankan former UN nonproliferation Desk chief Jayantha Dhanapala have been publicly nominated. The name of other possible candidates who were being floated are: Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski and Jordan´s ambassador to the UN Prince Zeid Raad Hussein. (LA Times).

[08] Rauf Denktas is participating in a campaign against the Armenian Genocide

C/S

[09] Ankara Anatolia reports on the bird flu virus

A child from Mus has been sent to Diyarbakir for suspected bird flu.

A family from Kiyibasi village called the crisis center saying they could not bring the child's high temperature down. An ambulance was sent to the village and the 14-year old N. A. was checked at Mus State Hospital. The child was subsequently sent to Diyarbakir for suspected bird flu. H. A. from the same family was also hospitalized, but at Mus State Hospital.

The family said they suspected that they contracted bird flu from a chicken they consumed a while ago, and that 2-year old B. A. died at home two weeks ago.

Later the same day Ankara Anatolia reported the following from Ankara:

"We have culled 988 thousand fowl so far," Turkish National Coordination Center for Bird Flu announced on Wednesday.

According to the center, bird flu was detected in 13 cities while there were suspected bird flu cases in 59 localities in 25 provinces. The provinces where bird flu was seen are as follows: Igdir, Erzurum, Agri, Sanliurfa, Erzincan, Bitlis, Yozgat, Ankara, Bursa, Istanbul, Van, Aydin and Kars.

Meanwhile, the provinces of Mus, Kars, Yozgat, Bayburt, Sanliurfa, Ardahan, Erzurum, Isparta, Izmir, Elazig, Diyarbakir, Karaman, Sivas, Konya, Siirt, Samsun, Eskisehir, Mugla, Karabuk, Batman, Van, Malatya, Gaziantep, Hatay and Tekirdag are under risk.

Finally Ankara Anatolia news agency also on (18.01.06) reported the following from Erzurum:

Prof. Dr. Akin Aktas, head doctor of the Ataturk University Medical Faculty Aziziye Research Hospital in eastern city of Erzurum, has indicated that a child suspected to have the bird flu disease died on the way to his hospital from Bulanik town of eastern city of Mus today.

S.A. (11) was initially diagnosed as a pneumonia patient and sent to Erzurum's Karacoban State Hospital but lost her life on the way to the Aziziye Research Hospital.

Aktas remarked that blood samples taken from S.A. were sent to Ankara to determine if she actually died of bird flu.

Meanwhile, Aktas noted that another patient F.T., who tested positive for bird flu, and is being treated at Aziziye Research Hospital is in a stable condition and can eat and drink. ''F.T. is under close observation at the hospital.''

[10] The leader of the Democratic Society Party argues that Ocalan´s condition causes social tension

The DTP administrators and 56 DTP mayors held a news conference on the condition of Abdullah Ocalan, who, they say, has been sentenced to solitary confinement.

DTP co-chairman Ahmet Turk said that the prison conditions of Ocalan are deepening the public concern. Ahmet Turk called for the lifting of the solitarity confinement and asked the [Kurdish] demonstrators not to succumb to provocation.

In the meantime, a DEHAP [Democratic People's Party] group in Izmir organized a demonstration at the Konak Square claiming that Ocalan has been sentenced to solitary confinement. The group marched to the DTP district headquarters and chanted slogans in favor of Ocalan. Another group with opposing views reacted to the marchers. The tension between the two groups was defused with police intervention. And some businesses in the region hung out Turkish flags to protest the marchers.

[11] General Ozkok in Paris to discuss military, defense cooperation

Turkish Chief of General Staff Hilmi Ozkok arrived in French capital of Paris upon the invitation of his French counterpart Henri Bentegeat.

Ozkok is expected to debate military and defense industry cooperation between Turkey and France during his two-day formal visit to France.

Gen. Ozkok will depart from Paris on Friday (January 20th).

[12] Mr Gul welcomes the ECHR decision on the compensation to villagers of southeast Anatolia

Speaking to reporters prior to his departure, Mr Gul referred to the aims of his visit and he noted: "Turkish Foreign Ministry declared 2006 as 'Latin America Year'. We aim to develop relations on all areas with Latin American countries this year."

On a decision of the European Court of Human Rights regarding a recourse by a villager from Southeast Anatolia who was forced to leave his house, Mr Gul said:

"The decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rejecting compensation demands of villagers who were relocated in Southeastern Anatolia (in the past, because of anti-terror measures) proves that the Turkish legal system is functioning well.

Turkey is abiding by the verdicts of the ECHR, and granted the right of individual application to its citizens a long time ago. The recent decision of the ECHR is very important (as far as Turkey is concerned).

Turkey has to protect its citizens' rights. If we harmed our citizens while fighting terrorism or in any other issue, we certainly have to compensate those losses."

The ECHR, yesterday, rejected to examine an application which was picked up as a 'pilot case' regarding the return of villagers to their homeland in Southeastern Anatolia.

The ECHR decided that the law on the compensation of losses of victims of terrorism and adopted by Turkish government in July 2004, is adequate, and it rejected the application of a Turkish citizen about the issue. The ECHR's decision affects almost 1,500 cases piled up before the Strasbourg court.

[13] Turkish Military operation against PKK in Tunceli region reported

An operation has been launched in Tunceli region against PKK terrorists who have taken shelter in caves to pass the winter. The operation, conducted by units under the Tunceli Gendarmerie Regional Command, is most intense in the Dokuz Kaylar area in the Nazimiye district, Ahpanos valley in the Ovacik district, and Kutudere and Alibogaz areas around the town of Tunceli.

In the operation, which started early morning, special airborne units were deployed on mountains.

Noting that similar operations are frequently held in various regions of the east and southeast, military sources said that the Tunceli operation was conducted within the same framework. The same sources are saying that some of the PKK terrorists in the east and southeast have this time around not withdrawn to their usual winter bases in northern Iraq and have instead taken shelter in caves to pass the winter. It is said that the aim of the operations is to prevent these groups from entrenching themselves in their positions.

[14] AKP Deputy argues that Semdinli incidents were organized.

The Parliamentary Investigation Committee which was set up to look into the Semdinli incidents has heard Cavit Torun, AKP [Justice and Development Party] Diyarbakir deputy. Torun told the committee: "The incidents were not local, but organized from a center...The two noncommissioned officers [NCO's] involved in the incidents are from the Bolu Mountain Commando Brigade."

NTV has learned that Cavit Torun told the committee that NCO's Ali Kaya and Ozcan Ildeniz are from the Bolu Mountain Commando Brigade, and that Ali Kaya was involved in similar incidents in the area in the past.

Torun charged that Kaya also threatened the owner of the Diyarbakir daily Soz. Following Torun's statement, the committee decided to hear the owner of the daily next week.

/SK

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