Türkiye's IYI Party Signals Withdrawal from Opposition Alliance

Meral Akşener, chairwoman of the IYI Party, speaks during an election rally in Istanbul, Türkiye, June 22, 2018. (Reuters)
Meral Akşener, chairwoman of the IYI Party, speaks during an election rally in Istanbul, Türkiye, June 22, 2018. (Reuters)
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Türkiye's IYI Party Signals Withdrawal from Opposition Alliance

Meral Akşener, chairwoman of the IYI Party, speaks during an election rally in Istanbul, Türkiye, June 22, 2018. (Reuters)
Meral Akşener, chairwoman of the IYI Party, speaks during an election rally in Istanbul, Türkiye, June 22, 2018. (Reuters)

Türkiye's nationalist IYI Party leader Meral Aksener said on Friday the six-party opposition alliance of which her party was a member no longer reflected the national will, signaling her party's withdrawal from the grouping ahead of May elections.

Aksener told a news conference that the IYI Party's proposed presidential candidates, the mayors of Istanbul and Ankara, were not accepted by the other five parties and she called on the mayors to do their duty, in an apparent invitation for them to stand as candidates.

The other five parties in the alliance had agreed on Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), as their joint candidate to challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the May 14 elections.



Three Killed in Thai Police Helicopter Crash

This aerial view shows vehicles driving on a highway between Khlong Toei slum (L) and high-rise buildings (R) in Bangkok on May 20, 2025. (AFP)
This aerial view shows vehicles driving on a highway between Khlong Toei slum (L) and high-rise buildings (R) in Bangkok on May 20, 2025. (AFP)
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Three Killed in Thai Police Helicopter Crash

This aerial view shows vehicles driving on a highway between Khlong Toei slum (L) and high-rise buildings (R) in Bangkok on May 20, 2025. (AFP)
This aerial view shows vehicles driving on a highway between Khlong Toei slum (L) and high-rise buildings (R) in Bangkok on May 20, 2025. (AFP)

Three people died when a police helicopter crashed and burst into flames in south central Thailand on Saturday, according to officials.

The Bell 212 aircraft belonging to the Kanchanaburi Police Aviation Unit came down near a village in Prachuap Khiri Khan province.

Two pilots and a mechanic on board died, according to a statement by the Royal Thai Police.

Rescue workers told AFP that firefighters had extinguished the fire, but the cause of the crash is unknown.

In the statement the police expressed condolences and said police chief Kitrat Panphet had ordered an immediate investigation and compensation to the families.