Storm clouds in the East Med? Turkey's escalation in Cyprus, Israel's offensive against Hezbollah, and Imamoglu's trial

This week kicked off with Turkey announcing the deployment of a number of fighter jets to the occupied part of Cyprus, a move that not only represents a significant escalation in the militarization of the Eastern Mediterranean, where Cyprus has already been targeted by Iranian-made drones, but that may also violate US law.

This isn’t the only thing putting Cyprus in the headlines this week. Axios and the Financial Times reported Cyprus could potentially mediate talks between Israel and Lebanon after violence broke out between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group.

Turkey’s moves in the Eastern Mediterranean aren’t the only thing worrying analysts and observers. Developments on the domestic front are also keeping those watching the region on alert, as the trial of Ekrem Imamoglu, the imprisoned mayor of Istanbul, kicked off this week. Imamoglu’s trial is largely seen as politically motivated and an effort to prevent him from challenging President Erdogan.

Sinan Ciddi, Elisa Ewers, Lisel Hintz, and Henri Barkey join Thanos Davelis this week as we take a closer look at Turkey’s decision to deploy fighter jets to the occupied part of Cyprus, Israel’s escalating offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the trial of Ekrem Imamoglu.

Taking us to our “I am HALC” segment, we’re spotlighting Eleni Delimpaltadaki Janis, a founding member of HALC with a career that spans across government and the private sector. This includes serving as Vice President at the New York City Economic Development Corporation, and working to transform and solve some of the world’s most persistent socio-economic problems as a founder of Equivico. Stay tuned as we dig into her story.

A little more info on our guests:

Sinan Ciddi is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and director of its Turkey program.

Elisa Ewers is a senior fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Lisel Hintz is an Assistant Professor of International Relations at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

Henri Barkey is an adjunct senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and the Bernard L. and Bertha F. Cohen chair in international relations at Lehigh University (Emeritus).

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