A 19-year-old student of Turkish origin became the youngest politician in U.S. history after his election to the municipal council in the northeastern city of New Haven, Connecticut. Independent and uncontested candidate Hacıbey Çatalbaşoğlu was elected to the board of alders from New Haven's Ward 1 reserved for the city's renowned Yale University, where Çatalbaşoğlu continues his studies. Çatalbaşoğlu, who also helps out his father at their pizza shop in downtown New Haven, conducted a tight door-to-door election campaign, asking voter support with the promise to bring the city and the university closer.

Chobani, the second-largest yogurt maker in the United States, has picked Idaho, not upstate New York, as the site of its new $21 million research center. The Greek yogurt giant founded by former University at Albany student Hamdi Ulukaya is headquartered in New Berlin, New York, about 100 miles west of Albany. Chobani announced late last week that it is building a 70,000-square-foot expansion in Twin Falls, Idaho, where the company has invested $850 million over the past five years.

A Turkish businessman on Saturday refuted “fabricated” allegations that a former aide to U.S President Donald Trump discussed with Turkish representatives, a quid pro quo plan to kidnap Fetullah Gulen, the U.S based-leader of the Fetullah Terror Organization (FETO). The Wall Street Journal claimed in a report that Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish businessman, organized a meeting between former White House National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and Turkish representatives in 2016. Alptekin told Anadolu Agency: “Turkey and the possible bilateral relations with the U.S. -- and nothing illegal -- were discussed in the meeting."

Just six years after building the world’s largest yogurt factory from scratch in the desert in south Twin Falls, Chobani is plotting its next miracle: an additional $100 million in expansion projects. The goal, says founder Hamdi Ulukaya, is to transform southern Idaho into the Silicon Valley of food innovation. Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter calls the plan epic. Some folks may underestimate southern Idaho. Ulukaya isn’t one of them. In fact, he sees potential here that seems almost limitless.