ISTANBUL
Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
The majority of Friday’s newspapers dedicated their front pages to extreme wet weather in part of Turkey’s Marmara region plus the country’s associate membership of CERN -- the European Organization for Nuclear Research.
HABERTURK headlined: "Scary night," reporting that a storm hit the Trace region as well as Istanbul, causing power cuts and uprooting trees. The daily ran a photo of lighting around Istanbul’s Bosphorus Bridge, saying the flashes lit the sky up like daytime.
The downfall started at around 8.00 p.m. local time on the European side of Istanbul on Thursday, paralyzing traffic in the city. Electricity was cut off in Sisli, Taksim, Kagithane and Besiktas districts while some apartments were flooded.
"Istanbul was hit by lighting," was HURRIYET’s headline. It reported that 14 planes could not land at Ataturk International Airport because of the weather conditions.
Around 20 Turkish Airlines planes were diverted to other airports like Sabiha Gokcen on the Asian side, Adnan Menderes Airport in western Izmir province, Esenboga Airport in capital Ankara and Antalya Airport, according to an airline official.
Similarly, MILLIYET covered the story with the headline: "The storm hit Istanbul and Thrace region." It reported that three university students were wounded in western Edirne province when a tree fell on them.
Turkey's associate membership of CERN was another news item that some newspapers focused on.
HURRIYET ran with the headline: "We, from now on, associate with CERN."
This came after Turkey ratified an agreement last year at a ceremony, which Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz and CERN Director General Professor Rolf-Dieter Heuer attended in Geneva, Switzerland.
Thanks to this membership, Turkey can attend meetings of the CERN Council, Turkish scientists can participate in CERN’s training programs and they can become members of CERN staff.
Similarly, VATAN wrote on its front page: "Turkey becomes associate member of CERN," reporting that the long term-partnership between Turkey and CERN will be strengthened with this membership.
In economic news, DUNYA reported: "Global food prices fall to their lowest in five years," referring to the food price index announced by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.
The UN's food agency said Thursday that its food price index reached 171 points, declining 1.2 percent in April from March, which is its lowest level since June 2010.
