The Turkish Republic, founded from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire by the national independence hero Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, turns 100 on Sunday, October 29. Ataturk established a Western-facing secular republic modeled on the great powers of the time, ushering in radical reforms that abolished the caliphate, replaced the Arabic script with the Roman alphabet, gave women the vote and adopted European laws and codes. Turkey has, however, taken on a more conservative character under the two-decade-old rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose party has roots in the country's Islamic movement and who has become Turkey's most influential leader since Ataturk. The centennial offers Erdogan, re-elected for a third term in May, a chance to redefine the country and propel it into a new era he has dubbed “Turkey’s Century.” Here is a look at some of the republic’s greatest accomplishments, and controversial realignments as it embarks on its second century. Religious identity The secular vs. conservative debate remains one of the most contentious cultural divides in Turkey. Ataturk, the nation’s founding father, envisioned a secular country as a prerequisite to modernity. Over the decades, the separation of religion and state became a deeply ingrained ideology. The country went on to impose bans on headscarves in schools and public institutions, brought restrictions on religious education, adopted liberal policies on alcohol, and even converted the main Ottoman imperial mosque, the Hagia Sofia, into a museum. All these policies have been reversed under Erdogan, who has shifted the country toward conservatism. Now official functions open with prayers, the Directorate of Religious Affairs has been given a budget which dwarfs most ministries, the number of religious schools have increased and even Erdogan’s unorthodox economic policy of reducing interest rates - abandoned recently - was justified on religious grounds. “Ataturk was a ... top-down politician who believed in social engineering and he wanted to refashion Turkey as a secular, West-facing, European society," said Soner Cagaptay, an expert on Turkey at the Washington Institute and author of several books on Erdogan. "Erdogan, too, believes in top-down social engineering. While his method is similar to that of Ataturk, his values are almost the exact opposite.” Diplomacy The Western-oriented country joined NATO in 1952 and is officially a candidate to join the European Union - although the membership negotiations have now come to a standstill. Turkey’s interests generally aligned with those of Western countries for much of the 20th century. In recent years, however, Turkey has adopted a much more assertive foreign policy which aims to extend Ankara’s reach both regionally and worldwide. This new independent diplomacy is just as likely to pit Turkey against Western interests as it is to align with them. One recent point of tension between Turkey and the West has been in Syria, with Turkey frequently launching attacks against local Kurdish forces which Europe and the United States consider allies and Turkey considers as off-shoots of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Turkey now controls large swaths of territory in Syria and speaks of creating a buffer zone along its borders with Syria and Iraq against Kurdish fighters. Following Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine, both Sweden and Finland decided to abandon their long-standing neutrality and join NATO. Yet Turkey became the main holdout against Swedish membership, accusing Sweden of being too soft toward the PKK and other groups outlawed by Turkey. Turkey’s new, pragmatic foreign policy also extends to its relations with Russia, a major trading partner. While most NATO countries took a strong stance against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, Ankara has maintained close ties even as it opposes the war. While impeding NATO’s cohesion, Turkey’s non-alignment does put it in a unique position where it can act as mediator in global conflicts, including the war in Ukraine. Cagaptay sees similarities in Ataturk's and Erdogan's goals of wanting to turn Turkey into a great power. But whereas Ataturk decided to embrace and copy policies of European powers of the time, Erdogan “has no interest in folding Turkey under Europe and believes he can achieve this on his own,” Cagaptay said. Defence industry Turkey faced arms embargos after its 1974 invasion of Cyprus following a coup by supporters of union with Greece, and over its military offensive against Kurdish groups. More recently the country was kicked out of a U.S.-led fighter jet program over its purchase of a Russian missile defense system that angered NATO allies. Restrictions on arms sales, however, are becoming less and less of a burden, because of Turkey’s burgeoning domestic arms industry. Turkish officials maintain that Turkey’s defense industry has grown from 20 percent domestic production to 80 percent. This “local and indigenous” production ranges from rifles and tanks to assault ships and a new fighter jet, Kaan, which is planned to fly in 2028. Turkey has also become a major exporter of arms, most notably its domestically manufactured combat drones. Turkish-manufactured drones have made it into the arsenals of many countries, including Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, Poland and Azerbaijan. Bayraktar drones, owned and designed by the family of Erdogan’s son-in-law Selcuk Bayraktar, have proven particularly effective in the Ukraine war. Modernisation Ataturk’s reforms and drive to modernize helped pull Turkey out of the deep poverty it suffered when the Ottoman Empire collapsed. Today, the country is a member of the Group of 20 most developed nations. The Erdogan era has become synonymous with a far-reaching construction boom. Highways, bridges, tunnels, pipelines, airports, hospitals and countless residences have all sprung up around the country. This new infrastructure is such a source of pride and legitimacy for Erdogan's government that it is frequently brought up on the campaign trail. With Turkey actively encourages the construction boom, critics say the government has adopted a careless attitude toward its regulation. After a devastating earthquake in February, lax enforcement of building codes was blamed for the widespread destruction. Some of Erdogan’s more ambitious projects have also been points of political contention, from the giant palace built for the president in Ankara to smaller luxury palaces built around the country. His most ambitious proposal yet, a grand canal through Istanbul, has raised fears of harm to the environment and local ecosystem. Challenges Turkey's previous hundred years witnessed military coups, economic crises and a succession of often unstable governments. Today, it faces a host of unresolved issues, including the fight against Kurdish rebels, which has been going on for four decades and doesn’t look any closer to resolution despite daily military operations in Turkey, Syria and Iraq. Turkey's assertive foreign policy means its relations with neighbors swing violently between friend and foe. The recent shift from a parliamentary system to a presidential one further eroded checks and balances, consolidating authority in the president’s hands. Its democratic backsliding, especially since a failed coup in 2016, frequently grabs international attention and seriously endangers its bid to join the EU. Transparency International ranks Turkey 101 out of 180 countries in corruption. Reporters Without Borders ranks Turkey 165 out of 180 countries in press freedoms, down from 149 the previous year. Last year, the Economist Intelligence Unit ranked Turkey 103 out of 167 in its democracy index, classifying it a hybrid regime between an authoritarian state and a flawed democracy. In addition to all this, its economy has been facing a serious downturn in recent years, with inflation in the high double digits. Most experts forecast that inflation will be further exacerbated by the high costs of reconstruction following the earthquake that killed 50,000 people. Read More Pope Francis prays for a world in 'a dark hour' and danger from 'folly' of war Turkey’s president submits protocol for Sweden’s admission into NATO Separatist lined up to be Putin’s puppet leader in Ukraine ‘is shot in Crimea home’ Separatist lined up to be Putin’s puppet leader in Ukraine ‘is shot in Crimea home’ EU summit turns its eyes away from Ukraine despite a commitment to stay the course with Zelenskyy Russia-Ukraine war: Putin’s troops ‘executed for retreating’

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Heartwrenching videos show students hiding under desks and jumping from classroom windows during an active shooter situation the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The campus was placed on lockdown for several hours on Monday afternoon after an alert went out about an “armed person”. Police later confirmed one member of the faculty was killed and a suspect, identified as graduate student Tailei Qi, was taken into custody. The motive for the shooting, which took place at the centre of the campus in one of the science buildings, remains unclear. Throughout much of the active situation, those under the “shelter in place” order did not have any idea what was going on. Videos posted to social media captured sirens wailing as students and faculty barricaded themselves in dorms, bathrooms, classrooms, and gyms across the sprawling grounds. The shelter in place alert was posted just after 1pm, with sirens emitted within two minutes. Officers found the faculty member, who has not been identified, fatally shot in the lab building, UNC Police Chief Brian James told a press conference. The suspect was apprehended about 90 minutes after the initial report of gunfire but the lockdown persisted as authorities searched for the weapon, officials told a press at a briefing. The arrest took place in a residential area close to the campus, according to local TV station WRAL. The lockdown was lifted at about 4.15pm. It is unclear if the suspect and victim knew each other. Chief James said: “To actually have the suspect in custody gives us an opportunity to figure out the why and even the how, and also helps us to uncover a motive and really just why this happened today. Why today, why at all?” “And we want to learn from this incident and we will certainly work to do our best to ensure that this never happens again on the UNC campus,” he added. Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz said: “This loss is devastating, and the shooting damages the trust and safety that we so often take for granted in our campus community.” Graduate student Clayton Ulm, 23, said he was in a class with about 50 to 70 others when the lockdown went into action. The alarm went off and screens in the room also announced the order to shelter in place. “Then there was quite a bit of panic as students were trying to figure out what to do,” Mr Ulm wrote on LinkedIn after three hours of the lockdown, according to the AP. “Then we all started hiding beneath our chairs and under desks. Some students went and locked the doors.” Mr Ulm added that students began listening to police scanners to find out where the shooter was located with the sense of panic eventually subsiding and students could use the restrooms near them. It was “surreal seeing the mass panic,” Mr Ulm said. “We are looking for a firearm. It is too early to determine if the firearm was legally obtained,” Chief James said. The shooting came just a week after the start of classes at the first public university in the US. Tuesday’s classes were cancelled for the school’s 20,000 undergraduates and 12,000 graduate students. Northern Virginia freshman Rushil Umaretiya held a candle outside the lab building on Monday night with two of his friends, just two weeks after he moved to Chapel Hill. “In my family, whenever someone passes, we light a candle, so I thought I’d come out and pay some respect to the community I’m trying to join,” he told the AP. “It’s a scary time for a lot of people, like I have a lot of history with loss, so I think it’s just fear and a lot of mixed emotions.” Mr Ulm moved from Oklahoma to Chapel Hill a couple of months ago. He told the news agency that his mother called him as the students were sheltering in place. She was “crying profusely,” he said. “I knew I should’ve texted you yesterday, I was so worried... this was my greatest fear,” she told him. Read More UNC Chapel Hill graduate student Tailei Qi charged with murder in shooting of faculty member UNC shooting – latest: Graduate student charged with murder of faculty member on Chapel Hill campus

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Comedian Daniel Sloss is being praised by viewers after he spoke out against Russell Brand in a joint investigation from Channel 4 and The Times. Brand, 48, has been accused of rape, sexual assault, and abuse by four women. In a video uploaded to the comedian's social media platforms on Friday night (September 15) before the allegations were made public, Brand said he "absolutely refute[s]" the claims made towards him. He told viewers that all relationships he had were "absolutely always consensual". During the Channel 4 Dispatches, it was revealed that comedians who worked in the industry at the same time as Brand were contacted, but only one was willing to speak on camera. That comedian was Daniel Sloss. As Sloss, 33, sits down to talk to an off-screen interviewer, he says, "this is scary, this is intimidating, and if I'm scared of this, and there's almost no consequences to me, what do people who have suffered, and been subject to, his alleged behaviours, how must they feel?" "I couldn't not say something," the Scottish comedian goes on to say. "There were many stories, it wasn't just coming from one person or one group of people, it was different incidents [...] and of varying degrees of severity. "I'm stood in artist bars, with agents, promoters, channel commissioners, and I'm hearing these allegations, and these rumours, about Russell in the same room as these people are in. And then later on, he would be in a movie, he would be on a television show, he would be hosting something. He was still being employed." Sloss went on to say that he knew of female comedians setting up WhatsApp groups to warn one another of comedians and others in the industry to avoid. "I know for many, many years, women have been warning each other about Russell," he shares. Sloss' appearance on the documentary brought in a lot of praise from viewers, many also took the opportunity to repost a clip from his Netflix special 'X' which tackles sexual assault. In the clip, Sloss says, "There are monsters amongst us, and they look like us. If you are sick of the narrative that's currently going on about men, feel free to change it, but you have to get involved. "Don't make the same mistake I did for years, which was just sitting back and being like, 'well, I'm not a part of the problem, therefore I must be part of the solution,'" Sloss tells his audience. Going on to say that he knows "most men are good", but if men don't do anything about the minority that are dangerous "they might as well not f***ing be there." Sloss tells men to "prevent" rape, rather than having a "hero complex of being like, 'I'm going to beat up a rapist.'" After the documentary aired, many took the time to share the clip on social media and commend Sloss for continuing to speak up against predatory behaviour. As the Dispatches program aired Saturday night, Brand was performing a sold out show, telling audience members they would "appreciate" that there were certain things he could not talk about. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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