The lives of Ebrahim Raisi and Hossein Amirabdollahian, his foreign minister, were “at risk”, an Iranian official said during a large search and rescue mission.

Ahmad Vahidi, the Iranian interior minister, blamed the crash, which came just a month after Tehran launched an unprecedented missile and drone attack against Israel, on poor weather conditions. State media described the incident as an “accident”.

The chief of staff of the Iranian military ordered the entire army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to be put to use. More than 65 search and rescue teams, medical crews and drones were deployed to the area near Jolfa, a city on the border with Azerbaijan, some 375 miles north-west of Tehran.

But the rescue effort was hampered by thick fog and the arduous terrain. Searches using helicopters had to be called off when darkness fell.

“It is dark and it has started raining, but the search continues. Rescue teams have reached the area… however, the rain has created mud, making the search difficult,” a reporter told state TV.

The national broadcaster stopped its regular programming to show prayers being held for Mr Raisi across the country, while live coverage of rescue teams combing the mountains played in a corner of the screen.

The helicopter the officials were travelling in was a Bell 212 acquired by the Iranian military in the 1970s, during the last years of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s reign.

Iran operates a variety of helicopters – most dating to before the 1979 Islamic Revolution – and international sanctions have made it difficult to obtain spare parts for them.

Mr Raisi had been in Azerbaijan early on Sunday to inaugurate a dam with his counterpart Ilham Aliyev. After visiting one site, the president and his entourage took off in a convoy of three helicopters to inaugurate another when contact was lost with his aircraft.

“At around 1pm, the president left Tabriz to inaugurate two projects but the helicopter lost contact shortly after leaving,” said Mohsen Mansouri, the head of the search and rescue teams.

Also on board the missing helicopter were the province’s Friday Prayer leader and the local governor.

“Three helicopters left Tabriz but, half an hour later, two of them lost contact with the one carrying the president,” the official said. “The army, IRGC, police, Red Crescent and everyone are looking for the helicopter. Progress is slow due to the weather conditions and the challenging terrain of the region.”

The Iranian border forces said late on Sunday that they were close to the crash site, although the helicopter had still not been located.

An Iranian official has told state TV that brief contact was made with one of the passengers and one of the crew members after it crashed. However, Hossein Hatami, the representative of Kalibar, where the helicopter crashed, said that no such contact had been established with the passengers. “There is no information about any of the passengers inside the helicopter, and access to their mobile antennas has not been possible,” he said.

Iran’s cabinet, chaired by first vice-president Mohammad Mokhber, held an emergency meeting on Sunday night, after which the health minister and executive vice-president were instructed to travel to the area.

The crash comes at a time of widespread dissent within Iran. The country’s clerical rulers face international pressure over Tehran’s support for Russia in its war against Ukraine, as well as its nuclear programme. Tehran has recently begun enriching uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader who holds ultimate power in the country, sought to reassure citizens, saying there would be no disruption to state affairs.

“The people of Iran should not worry, there will be no disruption in the work of the country,” he said. “We hope that Almighty God will return the respected and honourable president and his companions to the arms of the nation. Everyone should pray for the health of this group of servants.”

The country’s presidential spokesman said Iran was going through a “difficult” situation.

“We are experiencing difficult and complicated conditions. It is the right of the people and the media to be aware of the latest news about the president’s helicopter accident,” Ali Bahadori Jahromi said. “In these moments, patience, prayer and trust in relief groups are the way forward.”

Mr Raisi, a hardliner who formerly led Iran’s judiciary, quickly ascended the ranks of the Islamic Republic, and is now considered a potential successor to the supreme leader.

He won Iran’s closely stage-managed 2021 presidential election, a vote marked by the lowest turnout in the Islamic Republic’s history.

His victory brought all branches of power under the control of hardliners, after eight years in which the presidency had been held by Hassan Rouhani, a pragmatist who entered into a nuclear deal with Washington.

However, Mr Raisi’s standing may have been dented by widespread protests against clerical rule and a failure to turn around Iran’s economy, hamstrung by Western sanctions.

He was sanctioned by the US in part over his involvement in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988, when he served as a member of the “death chamber” that decided their fates.

Raisi presided over crackdown on protests

Under Mr Raisi, Iran has continued arming proxy groups in the Middle East, such as Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

He also presided over the crackdown on several nationwide protest movements, the most recent being those that swept the country after the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman detained for improperly wearing a headscarf.

More than 500 people were killed and 22,000 detained in the months-long crackdown by the morality police and security services.

Mr Abdollahian, 60, has been Iran’s foreign minister since 2021 and is known for his support of the Iran-backed “Axis of Resistance” against Israel and the US.

According to the constitution, the vice-president would assume power after the death of a president, with elections to follow.

Russia, now one of Iran’s closest allies, offered its help in the search for Mr Raisi. “Russia is ready to extend all necessary help in the search for the missing helicopter and the investigation of the reasons for the incident,” Maria Zakharova, the foreign ministry spokesman, said.

The US State Department said it was closely following the incident, and Joe Biden, the US president, had been briefed on the situation.

Ilham Aliyev, the Azeri president who had been with Mr Raisi on Sunday morning, said: “Today, after bidding a friendly farewell to the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, we were profoundly troubled by the news of a helicopter carrying the top delegation crash-landing in Iran.”

Source: The Telegraph

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The Falcon 9 rocket, which is carrying the Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) crew, including Gezeravcı, was launched as planned at 00:49 (03:00 GMT) by private space exploration firm SpaceX in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Along with Gezeravcı, four space travelers from Spain, Italy, and Sweden will conduct more than 30 scientific experiments and demonstrations on the ISS as part of the Ax3 mission.

With all their military pilot experience, crew members are escorted by a former NASA astronaut who now works for Axiom Space, the company behind the launch.

The capsule is expected to arrive at the space station on Saturday.

The crew will spend two weeks conducting dozens of experiments and living their space experience before returning to their home planet.

SpaceX live-streamed the first emotions and thoughts of the Ax-3 crew aboard the Dragon capsule as it began its 36-hour journey to the ISS.

“I would like to start this moment with the words of our great leader, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our modern Türkiye: The future is in the skies,”Gezeravcı marked his first words in space.

Erdoğan delivered a video message as part of Türkiye’s inaugural crewed space flight under the National Space Program and said the country is experiencing a pinnacle of collective pride and is witnessing a historic moment.

“We are taking a step into the second century of our Republic, the Century of Türkiye, with the manned space mission we have undertaken for the first time,” Erdoğan stated.

Erdoğan emphasized that after extensive preparations and training, Gezeravci has embarked on a journey to the International Space Station, highlighting the heroic service of the first Turkish astronaut.

“By accomplishing this, we are fulfilling one of the objectives outlined in our National Space Program, which was publicly declared in 2021.”

During the fourteen-day mission, Gezeravcı will conduct thirteen experiments prepared by Turkish scientists aboard the International Space Station, according to Erdoğan.

The Ax-3 mission also includes mission leader Michael Lopez-Alegria representing the United States and Spain, pilot Walter Villadei of the Italian Air Force, and Marcus Wandt of Sweden representing the European Space Agency.

Axiom billed the trip to the space station as “the first all-European commercial astronaut mission.”

Astronauts are transporting symbolic objects such as a Swedish Nobel Prize medal, Italian fusilli pasta, and tokens of the nomadic culture of Türkiye.

Two Americans from NASA, one astronaut each from Japan and Denmark, and three Russian cosmonauts will greet the crew on the ISS if everything goes according to plan.

Source: Hurriyet Daily News

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ATHENS

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Wednesday that his country has achieved a significant normalization in its relations with Türkiye.

In an interview with public broadcaster ERT, Mitsotakis noted that the normalization is reflected in concrete developments such as a visa facilitation scheme announced during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Athens in December, fighting irregular migration and negotiations to improve bilateral economic and commercial ties.

Recalling that he and Erdogan met three times last year, Mitsotakis noted that he is much more optimistic over prospects for Greek-Turkish relations.

He noted that there are numerous disputes between the two countries which Athens intends to approach in a good mood to resolve.

He added, however, that Greece and Türkiye should be able to learn to co-exist in a region tested by various challenges even if their differences remain unsolved.

Asserting that relations with the US have been elevated to a very high level, as affirmed by US Secretary State Antony Blinken, whom he met last Saturday, Mitsotakis said this brings economic, military and diplomatic benefits to the country.

More specifically on the country’s long-awaited request for F-35 fighter jets from Washington, he said: “The Greek government has submitted a substantiated request to acquire F-35 jet fighters, and I believe this request is mature and will be approved by the American authorities…relatively soon, in my opinion.”

Also speaking on the much-contested issue of same-sax marriage, Mitsotakis reiterated that the government remains committed to legalizing it.

Nonetheless, he noted that the government’s bill would not include approval for the use of a surrogate mother by same-sex couples. ​​​​​​​

Source: AA

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The latest Mideast mission by America’s top diplomat opened with talks in Turkey and Greece before shifting to the region for “not necessarily easy conversations” with allies and partners about what they are willing to do “to build durable peace and security.”

Blinken’s fourth visit in three months comes as developments in Lebanon, northern Israel, the Red Sea and Iraq have put intense strains on what had been a modestly successful U.S. push to prevent a regional conflagration since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, and as international criticism of Israel’s military operation mounts.

Blinken held meetings with Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, in Istanbul about what Turkey and others can do to exert influence, particularly on Iran and its proxies, to ease tensions, speed humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza and begin planning for reconstruction and governance of postwar Gaza. Much of the territory has been reduced to rubble by Israeli bombardments.

In Chania, a port city on the Mediterranean island of Crete, Blinken later visited with Greece’s prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, at his residence. “These are difficult and challenging times,” Mitsotakis said.

Blinken’s day was ending in Jordan, with stops in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Sunday and Monday. Blinken will visit Israel and the West Bank on Tuesday and Wednesday before wrapping up the trip in Egypt. He said his priorities are protecting civilians — “far too many Palestinians have been killed” — getting more humanitarian aid into Gaza, ensuring Hamas cannot strike again and developing a framework for Palestinian-led governance in the territory and “a Palestinian state with security assurances or Israel.”

The ultimate goal, he said, is lasting peace, and his talks will focuses on what U.S. allies and partners are prepared to do to help with that process.

“These are not necessarily easy conversations. There are different perspectives, different needs, different requirements, but it is vital that we engage in this diplomacy now both for the sake of Gaza itself and more broadly the sake of the future for Israelis and Palestinians and for the region as a whole,” Blinken said.

“There is clearly a strong desire among the majority of people in the region for a future that is one of peace, of security, of de-escalation of conflicts, of integration of countries and that’s one path, that’s one future. The other future is an endless cycle of violence, a repetition of the horrific events that we’ve seen and lives of insecurity and conflict for people in the region, which is what virtually no one wants.”

Turkey, and Erdogan in particular, have been harshly critical of Israel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the prosecution of the war and the impact it has had on Palestinian civilians.

But Blinken told reporters before he flew from Crete to Amman that “from our conversations today, it’s clear that Turkey is prepared to play a positive, productive role in the work that needs to happen the day after the conflict ends and as well more broadly in trying to find a path to sustainable peace and security.’’ Blinken would not go in details about what he heard from the Turkish officials.

“I think they’re also prepared … to use the ties, the influence they have, the relationships they have with some of the critical players and some of the critical countries in the region to do everything possible to deescalate and to prevent the conflict from spreading. … They clearly have a shared interest with us in doing just that and I’m confident from these conversations that they’re going to make every possible effort,” Blinken said.

Hours before Blinken’s meetings, Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah militia fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel and said the barrage was an initial response to the targeted killing, presumably by Israel, of a top leader from the allied Hamas group in Lebanon’s capital this past week.

Stepped-up attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have disrupted international trade and led to increased efforts by the U.S. and its allies to patrol the vital commercial waterway and respond to threats. The coalition of countries issued what amounted to a final warning to the Houthis on Wednesday to cease their attacks on vessels or face potential targeted military action. Since Dec. 19, the militants have carried out at least two dozen attacks in response to the Israel-Hamas war.

From the Turkish officials, Blinken sought at least consideration of potential monetary or in-kind contributions to reconstruction efforts in Gaza and participation in security arrangements, according to U.S. officials.

Blinken also stressed the importance that the U.S. places on Turkey’s ratification of Sweden’s membership in NATO, a long-delayed process that the Turks have said they will complete soon. Sweden’s entry to the alliance is seen as a significant response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

A Turkish official said Fidan told Blinken that Israel’s “increasing aggression” in Gaza was a threat to the region and he called for an immediate cease-fire and the delivery of “uninterrupted” humanitarian aid. Fidan said negotiations for a two-state solution should begin “as soon as possible,” according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issues in the private talks.

Fidan also said Turkey was awaiting the outcome of its request to upgrade its fleet of F-16 fighter jets and stressed that the ratification of Sweden’s NATO membership lay in the hands of the Turkish parliament.

Source: The Star

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According to a ministry press release “views were exchanged on strengthening the cooperation between the two countries within the framework of the responsibilities of the two ministries. Ways of cooperation between the two countries for the joint fight against irregular migration and migrant smuggling were discussed. Additionally, the issue of strengthening cooperation and communication between the Greek-Turkish Coast Guard authorities was evaluated.

The Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy also paid a courtesy visit to Turkish Coast Guard Command.”

“Today is a new start in jointly dealing with migration flows at sea,” Stylianides said.

Greece’s state Athens Macedonian News agency reported that the two sides agreed that the Turkish gendarmerie will take preventive action against migrant flows to prevent them from embarking on boats for the journey across the Aegean Sea to the Greek islands. The two sides also agreed on more frequent communication between the commanders of their respective coast guards and among the port authorities.

Yerlikaya is scheduled to visit Athens in February and meet again with Stylianides, as well as Migration and Asylum Minister Dimitris Kairidis and Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis.

Source: Ekathimerini

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Latest Developments

The third-most senior Hamas figure, Saleh al-Arouri, was killed on January 2 in a Beirut blast that Lebanese authorities blamed on Israel. Arouri was among at least four people who died in an Israeli drone strike on a Hamas media office in the southern Dahiyeh suburb of the Lebanese capital, a Hezbollah stronghold, authorities said. Israeli officials had no immediate comment.

After Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh, Arouri was the top-ranked Hamas official. He pursued an especially aggressive Palestinian terrorism strategy, with a focus on the West Bank, where he ordered the 2014 abduction and murder of three Israeli teenagers, sparking a Gaza war. After a period of being headquartered in Turkey, Arouri relocated to Lebanon, where he spearheaded Hamas coordination with Hezbollah and their shared Iranian patron.

Expert Analysis

“Israel has openly vowed to take the Gaza war to all leaders of Hamas, no matter where they are. That Arouri apparently thought he might be immune in the Hezbollah heartland suggests a major miscalculation on the part of Hamas. The question now is how Hezbollah will calculate the risks of stepping up its own attacks on Israel in retaliation.” — Mark Dubowitz, FDD CEO

“Israel sent a message to all terror allies of Iran that no matter where they hide, they will never be secure. Whether Hamas leaders reside in Qatar, Turkey, Lebanon, or another country, they should assume their days are numbered. Hezbollah’s leadership must also factor this escalation into the group’s next move.” — Richard Goldberg, FDD Senior Advisor

“The elimination of Saleh al-Arouri stands as a significant blow to Hamas and a considerable victory for Israel in its current war against Palestinian terrorist groups. Nevertheless, it is important to recognize that this accomplishment is merely one of many goals Israel must achieve in order to dismantle Hamas and its partners.” — Joe Truzman, Research Analyst at FDD’s Long War Journal

Source: FDD

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If claims that the United Kingdom used its bases in the Greek Cypriot administration as a conduit for weapons transfers to Israel are true, this will not be welcomed by the Turkish Cypriot side, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Ersin Tatar said Monday.

Tatar told Anadolu Agency (AA) that “The U.K., as a respected country, must not support such a massacre” and that the island will not welcome being used for Israel’s atrocities targeting Palestinians.

Tatar reminded us that the U.K. has to fulfill its responsibilities as a guarantor in exchange for which it got the bases.

“We condemn Israel’s attacks. As the Turkish Cypriot society, we voiced our disturbance at the highest level,” he said.

Tatar further said that the U.K. stood by during the massacre of 1963 by the extreme nationalist EOKA terrorist organization on the island when hundreds of Turkish Cypriots were killed.

“While Turkish Cypriots were being subjected to massacres, while our children were being taken alive to the graves and being shot, we always waited for the intervention of the British bases as the guarantor country, but that intervention never happened,” he said.

Israeli daily Haaretz reported that more than 40 U.S. planes, 20 U.K. cargo planes and seven cargo helicopters transported weapons, equipment and personnel to the U.K.’s Akrotiri air base in the Greek Cypriot administration.

Greek Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said that the bases on the island were used by the U.K. and the U.S. for preparations for possible evacuations.

Meanwhile, Cyprus Mail reported on Nov. 21 that the number of soldiers at British bases in the Greek Cypriot administration and the Eastern Mediterranean has surged by around 1,000 after the start of the war between Israel and Palestine on Oct. 7.

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had also announced on Oct. 13 that the country placed two warships, three military helicopters and some aircraft on its Cyprus bases to support Israel, increase deterrence and strengthen regional stability.

Cyprus has been mired in a decadeslong dispute between the Turkish and Greek Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement.

Ethnic attacks starting in the early 1960s forced Turkish Cypriots to withdraw into enclaves for their safety.

In 1974, a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at Greece’s annexation led to Türkiye’s military intervention as a guarantor power to protect Turkish Cypriots from persecution and violence. As a result, the TRNC was founded in 1983.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including a failed 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Türkiye, Greece and the U.K.

The U.K. has maintained two military bases at Akrotiri and Dhekelia since the island gained independence from Britain in 1960.

Source: Daily Sabah

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The United Kingdom and Greece were involved in a diplomatic spat Tuesday after London canceled a planned meeting of their prime ministers reportedly over the contested Parthenon Marbles.

The snub prompted Greek premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis to accuse his British counterpart of trying to avoid discussing the topic.

Mitsotakis is visiting London and had been expected to meet British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing St. on Tuesday. He was due to raise Greece’s decades-old demand for the return of the ancient sculptures from the British Museum.

Late Monday Mitsotakis issued a statement to “express my annoyance at the fact that the British prime minister has canceled our planned meeting a few hours before it was due to take place.”

“Greece and Britain are linked by traditional bonds of friendship, and the scope of our bilateral relations is very broad,” Mitsotakis said.

“Greece’s positions on the matter of the Parthenon Sculptures are well known. I had hoped to have the opportunity to discuss them with my British counterpart, together with the current major international challenges: Gaza, Ukraine, climate change and immigration. Whoever believes that his positions are well-founded and just is never afraid of engaging in a debate.”

Britain confirmed the two leaders would not meet and said Mitsotakis would hold talks with Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden instead. It was unclear whether that meeting would happen; the BBC reported that the Greek leader had declined the invitation.

“The U.K.-Greece relationship is hugely important,” Sunak’s office said in a statement that notably failed to mention the disputed sculptures. “From our work together in NATO, to tackling shared challenges like illegal migration, to joint efforts to resolve the crisis in the Middle East and war in Ukraine.

“The deputy prime minister was available to meet with the Greek PM to discuss these important issues.”

Athens has long demanded the return of sculptures that were removed from Greece by British diplomat Lord Elgin in the early 19th century. The sculptures that originally adorned the 2,500-year-old Parthenon temple on the Acropolis have been displayed at the British Museum in London for over two centuries.

About half the surviving marble works are in London and the rest is in a purpose-built museum under the Acropolis in Athens. Appearing on British television Sunday, Mitsotakis compared the separation of the sculptures to cutting the Mona Lisa in half – a remark that annoyed the British government.

The British Museum is banned by law from giving the sculptures back to Greece, but its leaders have held talks with Greek officials about a compromise, such as a long-term loan.

But Sunak’s spokesman took a tough line Monday, saying the U.K. government had “no plans to change our approach, and certainly we think that the (British) museum is the right place” for the marbles.

“These were legally acquired at the time, they’re legally owned by the trustees of the museum. We support that position and there’s no plan to change the law which governs it,” said spokesman Max Blain.

“We have cared for the marbles for generations and our position is we want that to continue.”

Mitsotakis met Monday with U.K. opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, whose party leads Sunak’s governing Conservatives in opinion polls.

After Sunak’s meeting with the Greek leader was called off Labour said: “If the prime minister isn’t able to meet with a European ally with whom Britain has important economic ties, this is further proof he isn’t able to provide the serious economic leadership our country requires.

“Keir Starmer’s Labour Party stands ready.”

Source: Daily Sabah

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Spying on the Grand Vizier

Jerzy Franciszek Kulczycki (a.k.a. Georg Franz Kolschitzky) – a Polish nobleman, born in the town of Sambor in today’s Ukraine – led a rather eventful life as a soldier and spy. In an article, Jerzy S. Kulczycki, a Polish historian and also a relative of Jerzy Franciszek, writes:

He graduated from the Sambor parish school but doesn’t figure among those inheriting family estates, as he became a military man. It’s quite possible that he served under Jan Sobieski, the prospective king […]. He participated in Polish military interventions in Bukovina and Moldavia […]. At the time J. F. Kulczycki was already learning how to speak Vlach (Romanian), Turkish and also Hungarian.

Little is known for certain about the early stages of his life. Some claim that he was taken captive as a Polish soldier by Ottoman troops and was a prisoner of war for two years – which would explain how he came to know Turkish so well. Others object, arguing that Kulczycki was, in fact, a Serb, only posing as a Pole. This seems a rather far-fetched notion, given that Kulczycki’s Polish lineage has been personally traced back by his own historian relative.

There is no question, however, that in 1660, Kulczycki found himself in Vienna, where he arrived via Serbia. His command of Turkish and Hungarian secured him a job with the Oriental Company, an Austrian trade organisation doing business with the East, for which he worked as a translator in Belgrade. Three years later, he was already acting as an Austrian diplomatic courier and translator in Istanbul, where he also appeared in the same capacity in 1679. In the Ottoman Empire, Kulczycki was asked to spy on the Turkish military – he is even said to have had an audience with the Grand Vizier.

In 1680, Kulczycki returned to Vienna, where he presented the state authorities with a written report in which he informed them that Turkey was preparing for a war against Austria. Despite attempts being made by the Austrians to maintain peace, war broke out.

An endless sea of Turkish tents

On 13th August 1683, during the fifth week of the siege of Vienna by the great Turkish army, Kulczycki, along with his servant Jan Michałowicz, sneaked out of the city at night. They weren’t fleeing – on the contrary, Kulczycki was carrying out a secret mission for the commander of the city’s defence, Count Stahremberg, who wanted him to send out a plea for help. Dressed up as Turkish soldiers and using Kulczycki’s expert knowledge of the Turkish language and culture, the two managed to pass through the invaders’ camp unnoticed.

Here’s how the noted German writer Eberhard Happel described the passage in his 1688 book Thesaurus Exoticorum (Encyclopedia of Exotics):

When it began to dusk a little, an endless sea of Turkish tents unfolded before his eyes. The sight made him wonder which route to choose to pass through the camp. Nevertheless, he kept moving on together with his companion […] and to divert any suspicion from the minds of the Turks that were riding past them, every now and then he sang merry songs in their language.

The Poles eventually reached the chief commander of the Austrian forces, Duke of Lorraine Charles V, whom they presented with letters from Viennese officials and informed about the city’s desperate situation: the lack of ammunition and diseases spreading among the townsfolk. They also shared the intelligence about the Ottoman camp they had acquired during their journey. The two Polish messengers then returned to the besieged city, using the same ploy as before, to bring back word from the duke that rescue was on the way.

The good news boosted the morale of the fighters just enough for them to hold out until the famous Battle of Vienna on 12th September 1683, when a coalition of international forces led by Polish king Jan III Sobieski won a stunning victory against the Turks, saving the city. Kulczycki’s intel about the Turks’ positions most probably played an important part in that triumph.

Rewarded with food for camels

The Austrians rewarded Kulczycki for his courage. He received a house in Leopoldstadt and a nice sum of money. But what he wanted most, was something else entirely – after some effort on his part, he was allowed to run a coffee house. At the time, Kulczycki’s idea to open a café must’ve seemed rather odd as there were only a handful of such establishments scattered around of Europe – coffee wasn’t the popular drink it is today.

It was often even disliked for its popularity among ‘the infidels’, as shown by the following words written around 1670 by the Polish poet Jan Andrzej Morsztyn:

In Malta, I remember, we tried coffee
A drink […] for Turks, but so very nasty
A beverage like vile poison and toxins
That doesn’t let saliva pass through one’s teeth
A Christian mouth let it never sully

Since Kulczycki had been to Istanbul before the war, he must’ve discovered the local coffee culture, which was much older and far more developed than that of other European countries. The Pole had seen the potential of the steaming black beverage. There was also another key factor at play: he was in the possession of a huge amount of fresh coffee beans. The winners of the battle had seized, along with other loot from the enemy camp, numerous sacks of coffee beans the Turks had brought with them to keep themselves alert during battle. But the victors failed to recognise the beans for what they were, presuming they might be some kind of food for camels. Kulczycki, who was well aware of their worth, managed to take plenty of them for himself.

Apparently, after the victory, King Jan III Sobieski summoned him to reward him for his efforts, allowing him to take anything he pleased from the loot they had recovered. Much to the astonishment of those present, Kulczycki chose what appeared to be the near-worthless camel feed.

Opening the Blue Bottle

Equipped with the beans and the knowledge of what to do with them, Kulczycki opened the first café in Vienna. Or did he? In some sources, you’ll find that the first Viennese café was actually opened by an Armenian by the name Johannes Diodato, two years after the battle. This version of events was suggested by the Austrian historian Karl Teply at the turn of the 1980s.

Then again, the Austrian Piarist priest Gottfried Uhlich, in his 1783 book Geschichte der Zweyten Türkischen Belagerung Wiens (The History of The Second Turkish Siege of Vienna), claims that it was indeed the Pole who was first. Although this account was accused of being false by Karl Teply in 1980, it was later backed up by the findings of Jerzy S. Kulczycki, who used his family archive to research the topic and published a detailed article on it in 2007, entitled Prawdziwa Legenda Wiedeńskiej Wiktorii (The True Legend of the Viennese Victory).

What we can say for sure is that Kulczycki opened one of the very first cafés in Vienna. The fact that he opened a popular coffee house in the city is beyond any doubt. For a long time one of the houses on Singerstrasse Street was even embellished with a plaque saying ‘Here in 1683, Kulczycki opened the first coffee house in Vienna’.

His new coffee business changed addresses and it was only after some time had passed that it re-opened at 624 Schlossergasse Street under the famous name The Blue Bottle. The name was a tip of the hat to his second wife, Leopoldina Meyer. Supposedly before the two were married, she had nursed Kulczycki back to health after he had been wounded defending the city, using a medication stored in a blue bottle.

The place quickly became popular and was frequented by Viennese aristocrats such as Count Stahremberg himself. To amuse his guests, Kulczycki would greet them wearing a Turkish outfit. And to make the taste of the coffee to their liking, he would add milk and sugar – the unaltered flavour was a bit too tart for the Austrian palate. Kulczycki is considered to be the first to mix the black and white beverages and is apparently the one who invented the classic Viennese drink Wiener Melange, a coffee drink similar to the cappuccino. Some even claim that he convinced a local pastry chef to make The Blue Bottle guests special crescent-shaped rolls commemorating the victory over the Ottomans – which later evolved into the French croissant!

Despite the controversies regarding whose café was actually the first one to be established in Vienna, even the official website of the City of Vienna acknowledges Kulczycki’s contribution to the development of the city’s rich coffeehouse culture:

The history of Viennese coffee house culture is closely linked to the end of the Siege of Vienna in 1683. Legend has it that the Viennese citizen Georg Franz Kolschitzky (1640 – 1694) was the first to obtain a licence to serve coffee in the city following his heroic actions during the Siege of Vienna. The coffee beans left behind by the Turks were the basis of his success. A street in Vienna’s 4th district was named after him and a statue was put up at the corner of Favoritenstraße and Kolschitzkygasse.

Patron saint

Thanks to his wartime deeds, Kulczycki became quite famous. Understandably, this drew attention to his café, but Kulczycki was more than just a celebrity owner. He wanted his establishment to be a meeting place, rather than merely a place of consumption – a place with a pleasant atmosphere, where one could come to relax and talk, exchange thoughts and ideas.

This approach of his was why he is still considered a ‘patron saint’ of Viennese café culture. The Viennese Coffee-Makers Guild even used to have a painting showing Kulczycki receiving the privilege of running a coffee house from Emperor Leopold I as its emblem. In the Old Polish Encyclopaedia written in the years 1900-03, the renowned Polish ethnographer Zygmunt Gloger wrote about yet another form of commemorating Kulczycki’s legacy in Vienna:

Up to this day in all the coffee houses in Vienna, every October, a portrait of Kulczycki wearing a Turkish outfit is put on display, to remember him.

Over the years the format of the Viennese coffee house evolved and eventually, it became an establishment, where not only the black beverage but also warm meals were served and the patrons were provided with newspapers. Also, it became a place of intellectual and cultural discussion, where the likes of the artist Gustav Klimt or father of psychiatry Sigmund Freud would bump into each other and have a chat or listen to a concert given by a renowned classical musician. The Viennese-style café eventually became popular in the vast territories of the Austrian Empire and became a benchmark for the continental coffee house.

Today the Viennese coffee house culture figures on UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage and it’s hard to find a ranking of the world’s top coffee cities which wouldn’t include the Austrian capital. And Kulczycki is an important part of this heritage. In September 2017, The Guardian published an article about an American coffee chain named after the Pole’s café in which Kulczycki is described as a ‘Viennese folk hero’. If Jerzy Franciszek Kulczycki were still around, maybe he’d comment on it with a merry Turkish song…

Source: Culture

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Toronto, Frankfurt (2/11 – 42)

World media are jumping all over the conflagration in Gaza following the 7 October attack, killing 1400 Israelis and kidnapping several hundred others – followed by an all-too-predictable retaliatory response from Israel, with indiscriminate bombardment and gunfire into Gaza. The number dead and injured in the Palestinian zone will likely never be known but it is currently estimated at over 5,000 – many of whom are women and children caught in the crossfire.

Is Hamas sorry about those who voted for them and support their cause being machine-gunned or trapped by crumbling concrete in a bombed building? Not at all – for them it’s just the cost of doing business.

What do the neighbors across the region say? As a matter of fact, the timing of the bloody 7 October attack was quite apt.

It was just three weeks ago that the “Abraham Accords”, an agreement  that would have “normalized” relations between Israel and several states of the Arabian Peninsula, complete with exchanges of ambassadors and new relations, were about to be signed. This landmark deal would have been followed by North African Islamic nations joining up. Precisely before the October 7 Hamas terror attack, normalization talks between Saudi Arabia and Israel were set to go. That hopeful move is gone with the wind.

That declaration of co-existence must have deeply displeased Hamas, Hezbollah, ISIS and the other murderous bandit gangs. They would clearly have been cut out of the deal. (Kindergarten Lesson One: “Follow the Money”)

Meanwhile, back in Tel Aviv, the fearsome Netanyahu was set to appear in court and face criminal charges that could have seen him in the cooler for quite a while. That trial has also been set aside. A survey shows that 80% of the Israeli public puts the blame for the surprise attack on him, particularly as his government pointedly ignored multiple urgent warnings from Egypt that an attack was being prepared. Convenient, no?

Netanyahu: “This is our 9/11 moment.” Truer words were never spoken. And just like the exceedingly suspicious collapse of two huge (and hugely unpopular) office buildings in downtown Manhattan, purportedly after being slammed into by jetliners, the 7 October attack is looking more and more like a false flag – something to give Israel the excuse the finish the job in Gaza.

Cut to the airport in Riyadh. A group is hurrying along.

A British reporter waylays a Saudi government minister. (You have to feel sorry for these guys – bodyguards blithely bump them out of the way … an expensive woman companion might give them a cat-scratch or snatch the microphone out of their hands … their target might just ignore them completely, or glower and growl “No comment, creep”)

Luckily for this journalist, the Saudi – young-looking for a Minister, and quite fluent in English – is eloquent and to the point.

Roving Reporter: “Can I just ask you… What is the first thing that has to happen, to achieve peace, in your view?”

Saudi Minister: “Right now we need a ceasefire.”

Roving Reporter: “Beyond that – “

Saudi Minister: “We have to restart the peace process.”

Roving Reporter: “Is that possible?”

Saudi Minister: “It has to be possible. If we are not willing to overcome all the difficulties, all the challenges, all the history that is involved in this issue, then we will never have a real peace and security in the region, so we must restart the peace process. The Arabs have shown that they are serious, they are willing to engage. We hope that we can do it soon.”

Dear Reader – studying this historical tragedy, do you not get the sensation that the “Arab world”, such as it is, really finds the Palestinians a monumental annoyance, deranged relatives anxious to drag all of them into a no-win military confrontation? (Everybody has an eye on those 200 Israeli nuclear weapons tucked away in a Negev Desert “research facility”.)

Of course it is necessary to offer deep and sincere vocal support to Palestine, which was deeply wronged some 70 years ago. Who wronged them? Hmm, how about the same perfidious colonialists whose meddling wreaked tragedy in Nigeria, Malaysia, Kenya, India and on and on… Yes, John Bull did it. The Brits “set aside” a land for the persecuted Jews, land that happened to have been occupied for hundreds of years by farmers and herdsmen known as Palestinians. Just like Malaysia or Iraq or Pakistan: they bottled up enemy peoples in the same artificially-demarcated country, grab the resources and piss off. Thanks Olde Blighty.

Israel is a reality. Most countries in the world accept that as a fact. It may have been built on stolen land but so was the United States of America, Canada, Japan (ask the Ainu), People’s Republic of China (poor Tibetans), Australia (aborigines nod sorrowfully) and many others, if you reach far enough back into history. Israel, the reality, is not going away. Hamas, the troublemaking terror gang, may have picked up some neat tricks from the Israelis (BOOM goes the King David Hotel, brought down by future Israeli statesmen).

But times change. Nobody else wants this war. The Arabs are by and large interested in getting by in life, minding their own business and avoiding trouble. Even Iran, fingered as a troublemaker by Uncle Sam, doesn’t want war – especially nuclear war. Nobody wins then.

Hamas? Nuclear war? Bring it on. They are maniacs, as all the neighbors are fully aware. But this seems to be a festive age around the planet for such manias, even among the throngs of “useful idiots” parading through Europe, Australia and North America waving Palestinian flags. Ask those entitled kids whether they support the annihilation of Israel. Then they get coy and the weasel-words flow freely.

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