iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

If anyone's in need of a good holiday conversation starter -- may I interest you in Turkish oil wrestling? @theworld.org #shortfilm #wrestling www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z6b...

youtube.com

Why Turkish wrestlers are covered in 2 tons of olive oil

YouTube video by The World News Radio

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

We've been experimenting with video shorts at @theworld.org, and this one about Turkish oil wrestling was absolutely fascinating. (Film by Helene Franchineau, edits by Marta Franco) www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z6b...

youtube.com

Why Turkish wrestlers are covered in 2 tons of olive oil

YouTube video by The World News Radio

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The World @theworld.org · 16/12/2025

Reporter @durriethekid.bsky.social explores the tradition and cultural significance of Turkish oil wrestling. Dating back to ancient civilizations, the Kırkpınar tournament sees roughly 800 participants cover themselves in two tons of olive oil over the course of a week.

youtu.be

The 664-year-old sport where anything goes

YouTube video by The World News Radio

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 21/09/2025

English translation of a Haaretz article, asking Israelis why they don't see the parallels between starvation in Gaza and the Holocaust: robertreich.substack.com/p/a-betrayal...

robertreich.substack.com

A betrayal of the victims of the Holocaust

A view from Israel

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Foreign Media Association @fma-turkey.bsky.social · 11/08/2025

FMA condemns the killing last night of five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza by the Israeli military and stands in solidarity with our Palestinian colleagues, at least 178 of whom have been killed by Israel since the conflict began. Journalists are #NotATarget.

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Committee to Protect Journalists @pressfreedom.bsky.social · 11/08/2025

An entire news crew working for Al Jazeera was killed by Israel as they sought to bring the world firsthand reporting from #Gaza. Among them was prominent journalist Anas Al-Sharif, who had been previously smeared and threatened by the IDF. #NotATarget Full statement: cpj.org/2025/08/isra...

cpj.org

Israel kills Al Jazeera journalists in targeted Gaza City airstrike - Committee to Protect Journalists

New York, August 10, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is appalled to learn of the killing today of Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al-Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, camera operators Ibrahim Zaher and M...

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ProPublica @propublica.org · 18/07/2025

NEW: Of the 230+ Venezuelans deported to El Salvador: • Almost half had immigration cases that were not yet decided • More than 60 had pending asylum claims, some just days away from final hearings These men had followed U.S. immigration procedures. Then Trump changed the rules.

propublica.org

He Came to the U.S. to Support His Sick Child. He Was Detained. Then He Disappeared.

Like most of the more than 230 Venezuelan men deported to a Salvadoran prison, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas had followed U.S. immigration rules. Then Trump rewrote them.

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Lauren Dobson-Hughes @ldobsonhughes.bsky.social · 18/07/2025

The UN system is at a crossroads. It’s not just financial, although that’s a big part. It’s a crisis of mission, scope and purpose. The job losses are a symptom

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Howard Eissenstat @heissenstat.bsky.social · 12/07/2025

A 20-year-old American citizen from Tampa was beaten to death by Israeli settlers on Friday while visiting family in the occupied West Bank www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/...

washingtonpost.com

Palestinian American from Florida killed in the West Bank, family says

Sayfollah Kamel Musallet, who lived in Tampa and was an American citizen, his family said, was visiting relatives in the West Bank when he was killed.

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New Lines Magazine @newlinesmag.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

NEW: Turkish government policies that are clearing the way for mining, tourism and unchecked development are also fueling unprecedented forest fires in the country, show @sofiacherici.bsky.social and @aylinlc.bsky.social in this @newlinesmag.bsky.social investigation newlinesmag.com/reportage/th...

newlinesmag.com

The Political Machine Feeding Turkey’s Wildfires

The blazes ravaging the country have been worsened by climate change, but were set by policy decisions

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 04/07/2025

Forest fires in southern Turkey continue, despite a week of firefighting efforts: Four missing, and two confirmed deaths including an excavator operator fighting the fires and an 81-year-old who died from smoke inhalation, @medyascope.tv reports: medyascope.tv/2025/07/03/i...

medyascope.tv

İzmir'deki orman yangınlarında hayatını kaybedenlerin sayısı 2'ye yükseldi - Medyascope

Ödemiş'te yangın söndürme çalışmasında İbrahim Demir hayatını kaybetti. 81 yaşındaki İbrahim Erkan da yaşamını yitirdi.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

We're on @npr.org 's State of The World podcast today -- talking about Iran's postwar crackdown on dissent. My colleague who made this possible can't be named for their safety, but they're doing an incredible job sharing the voices of people in Iran right now. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a...

podcasts.apple.com

A Crackdown Inside Iran

Podcast Episode · State of the World from NPR · 07/02/2025 · 9m

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

"Since I left Tehran, I feel like everything I achieved in my life has no value anymore... I felt we were so uprooted, so homeless, as if we had no voice and no agency... We are hostages who are paying the prices of the bad decisions of other people." - Meryem, 27

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

For @NPR, my colleague and I spent the day speaking to Iranians about the government's post-war crackdown on dissent -- both those still inside the country and those who have left. www.npr.org/2025/06/29/n...

npr.org

Iranians fleeing to Turkey fear for the future

Activists in Iran say the government there is cracking down in an effort to undo infiltration by Israeli intelligence.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 30/06/2025

Good morning from Istanbul. Big fires in Turkey's south have prompted evacuations: www.reuters.com/business/env... Satellite data screenshot from Copernicus fire locator this morning

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Frances Ryan @francesryan.bsky.social · 17/06/2025

At least 51 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza waiting for food trucks. Israeli forces also injured 200 people after opening fire on the crowd. “It was a massacre,” one witness said, adding the soldiers continued firing on people as they fled from the area. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...

theguardian.com

At least 51 Palestinians killed in Gaza waiting for food trucks, says health ministry

More than 200 also wounded on Tuesday morning as they waited for UN and commercial trucks to enter territory with aid supplies

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Kevin Elliott @kjephd.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

This is what rule by the confidently ignorant looks like; sabotage stuff you don't understand and then discover it was actually doing vital work well at trivial cost

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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 13/06/2025

Israel launched a series of strikes against Iran targeting the country’s nuclear program and killing three of the nation’s security chiefs. The attack prompted fears that long-simmering tensions between the heavily armed rivals were spiraling into war. Follow live updates. trib.al/KDSG5hl

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

frm @mfaturkiyep.bsky.social "(The attacks).. during intensified negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, clearly indicates that the Netanyahu government is unwilling to resolve any issue through diplomatic means and does not hesitate to risk regional stability and global peace for its own interests"

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Kai Ryssdal @kairyssdal.bsky.social · 08/06/2025

Hello. I live in Los Angeles. The president is lying.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Oh Eli 🥹 you’re the sweetest. Thank you so much — and same to you!! 🙏🌟

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Mid press-scrum on the Ukraine-Russia peace talks today, about an hour after I found out I’d been laid off due to budget cuts at @wgbh.org and @theworld.org We’re living through interesting times. Will miss covering it with some of the best people I’ve ever met.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Says Ukraine and Russia agreed to a prisoner exchange of specific categories including severely sick and wounded soldiers, as well as bodies of dead soldiers. “There needs to be work done to determine a number.”

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Ukrainians say they are unable to respond to Russian proposal today, because they only received it during the meeting a couple of hours ago. “We will provide an evaluation when we are ready to do it.”

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 02/06/2025

Following Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul today, coming on the heels of a weekend full of drone attacks. Ukrainian delegation is asking for an unconditional ceasefire of at least 30 days, exchange of all prisoners of war, and the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 26/05/2025

Wanted to explain another social media silence. Or maybe all of them – over the past six years of living in Turkey. www.durriebouscaren.com/post/on-prot...

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

This much we know -- the rise of autocracy will come for your right to speak first. If you stand for human rights at all, you have to be consistent.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

Meanwhile, U.S. authorities appear to have revoked the visa of a Turkish Tufts student, Rümesya Öztürk, and imprisoned her 1600 miles away in Louisiana. For cowriting an opinion piece in a student paper asking her school to recognize genocide in Gaza. I'm floored. nytimes.com/2025/03/26/u...

nytimes.com

Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts Student, Is Detained by ICE

The university was told that the student’s visa had been terminated, its president said in a late-night email to students and faculty members.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

Turkish judge has just ruled for the release of seven journalists arrested for covering pro-democracy protests in Istanbul. Journalism is not a crime!!

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Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 24/03/2025

I’ve seen video of IDF bombing Nasser Hospital, where a friend of mine is on a humanitarian mission to treat patients. My friend survived the bombing but a teen patient he treated and who was set to go home today was murdered. Are you warmongers not tired and sick of this yet? This horror

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MLSA @mlsaturkey.org · 24/03/2025

Police detain journalists covering protests: NOW reporter Ali Onur Tosun, photojournalist Bülent Kılıç, journo Zeynep Kuray, AFP's Yasin Akgül, journalist Hayri Tunç, IBB photojournalist Kurtuluş Arı, Sendika.org reporter Zişan Gür and photojournalist Murat Kocabaş in İzmir have been detained.

sendika.org

Sendika.Org - Üreten Biziz Yöneten de Biz Olacağız

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 23/03/2025

This morning an Istanbul judge ordered @ekrem-imamoglu.bsky.social and several city employees imprisoned, pending trial. During his indictment he denied all charges. "I feel the power of our nation behind me a million times more," he said in sworn testimony. "I cannot even describe my courage."

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Turkish politics analyst @yusufcan.bsky.social told me this extraordinary move was intended to demonstrate İmamoğlu's appeal across the country: "It makes them look quite democratic in this in this context, plus it gives them a very strong legitimacy in the eyes of the people."

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Tomorrow, members of Turkey's main opposition party, @herkesicinchp.bsky.social, will go to the polls for the party's first-ever presidential primary. İmamoğlu will be the only candidate on the ticket. I'm told another 250K people have registered to vote since his arrest on Wednesday.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

İmamoğlu's diplomatic advisor, Mustafa Osman Turan, told me that Istanbul's city hall at Saraçhane has become a symbol of Turkish democracy: "It's sad that we have to go through this, but it's a political struggle that needed to be made to pull our country out of this darkness."

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Right now, employees at the city hall in Saraçhane are sleeping there, taking turns so they don't leave İmamoğlu's post vacant. They're deeply concerned that Erodgan will appoint a loyalist trustee to oversee the city, has he's already done in 12 districts, mostly Kurdish ones

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Almost goes without saying -- none of the protesters I have interviewed thus far were comfortable sharing their full names. But they're a diverse group -- ranging from college kids who were children during Gezi, to a retired nurse who called this moment an 'explosion point.'

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

It should also be noted that insulting a public official is illegal in Turkey, and punishable with jail time. So is publishing what a judge deems 'misinformation.' It's not unusual for people to face court cases over social media posts or their work as journalists.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Erdogan's communications office quickly put out a statement calling any suggestion that İmamoğlu's charges are politically motivated "an act of audacity and irresponsibility... the judiciary does not take orders from anyone."

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Turkish political analyst Soner Çağaptay told us at @theworld.org that it's very likely that Erdoğan saw İmamoğlu's popularity as a threat, and wanted to 'nip this in the bud' days before he was crowned the opposition's nominee for presidential elections. theworld.org/segments/202...

theworld.org

In morning raid, Turkish police arrest prominent Erdogan rival - The World from PRX

Police arrested Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul and a likely contender to unseat the country’s longtime president. Expecting an outcry, authorities blocked roads, stopped metro services and bann...

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

İmamoğlu and dozens of his colleagues are accused of an elaborate conspiracy including bribery, embezzlement, and contact with terror groups. His supporters call these charges ludicrous -- equivalent to an attempted coup d'etat.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Some protesters are big fans of the inprisoned mayor, but many are not. "He was wronged," one 19 year old protester told me last night. "But we are not here for İmamoğlu, we're here to show how the people can scare the seat (of power)."

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

The arrest of @ekrem-imamoglu.bsky.social, mayor of Istanbul and a prominent rival of the president of Turkey, has set off pro-democracy protests across the country. That's despite a four-day ban on gatherings. So here are some notes, while we wait for him to go in front of a judge tonight.

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Durrie Bouscaren @durriethekid.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

For years, NPRmageddon has been this legendary Twitter feed that makes apocalypse-themed images of public radio people, I've secretly always wished they would find me but I wasn't really in a newsroom and i am HONORED you guys, thank you 😅❤️ (They don't have a BlueSky maalesef)

photoshopped, satirical image of woman surviving a zombie apocalypse, with famous Istanbul monuments in the background

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