Istanbul has been dropped from a list of nine cities set to hold "Live Earth" concerts for climate change awareness because of a lack of interest and security concerns, organisers said on Tuesday. Former US presidential candidate and environmental campaigner Al Gore came to Istanbul this month to announce Istanbul would join London, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and other cities for a round-the-world series of concerts on July 7.

But organisers said on Tuesday that the government bodies and sponsors it had approached were not interested because of security concerns ahead of general elections on July 22. "Unfortunately Live Earth Istanbul could not be a priority for several people and institutions because our country is in an election marathon and because of terror and security (problems)," the Turkish organisers said in a statement.

Violence between Kurdish separatist guerrillas and security forces has escalated in recent months while last month a suicide bomber carried out a deadly attack on an Ankara shopping centre. Istanbul is booked to host a series of high-profile conference and concerts in coming weeks.
(Planet Ark, 27/06/2007)