Last week, the Turkish Grand National Assembly voted to authorizethe use of force in Syria and Iraq. Turkish legislators also voted to permit the deployment of foreign forces in Turkey for the purpose of fighting against the Islamic State (IS). The votes were heralded in the Turkish and U.S. media as proof that Ankara is a dependable ally in the ongoing battle against the Islamic State. So why are Turkish forces sitting idly along the border while jihadist militants advance toward the border?
Demonstrators, sometimes numbering in the tens of thousands, have taken to Hong Kong's streets over the past week to demand free elections for the city's leader in 2017, a display of civil disobedience initially met with tear gas from riot police and later attacks by unidentified men.