ISRAEL and Turkey, two non-Arab regional powers in the Middle East, have long been considered natural allies; and for decades worked together to counter the influence of their shared enemies in Syria and Iran. The relationship began to deteriorate under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who as prime minister, pursued a policy of engaging with the Arab world, often at the expense of Turkey’s other allies. Ties were frayed in early 2009, following Israel’s armed incursion into Gaza, and were cut off in May 2010, when Israeli naval commandos intercepted a flotilla of boats that was attempting to sail to Gaza, resulting in the deaths of ten Turkish activists.
Israel agreed to apologise formally for the deaths and pay compensation to the families three years ago. But the agreement was held up by Turkey’s demand that Israel open access to the Gaza Strip, blockaded since 2006; and Israel’s demand that the Turkish government close the offices in Turkey of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist party-cum militant group that runs Gaza. (There are close links between Hamas and Mr Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party.) Previous drafts of an agreement were...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/298RZEh
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