Israel Matzav

The best defense is a good offense

Dani Magner argues that it's time that Israel acknowledge that its 'special relations' with Turkey are a thing of the past, and instead start aggressively campaigning against Erdogan's blood libels.

Some argue that an Israeli apology to Turkey would bring an end to the conflict, yet this speculation is rendered baseless by examining Turkey’s recent conduct and its open rapprochement with Iran. Israel can only conclude that the Turkish conduct is a result of a strategic decision taken by Erdogan, meant to reinforce his status as a modern Muslim ruler at Israel’s expense.

In fact, an Israeli apology to Turkey would portray Erdogan as one who “humiliated” Israel and brought it down to its knees, when in practice the real victim would be apologizing to the aggressor. It is easy to understand that by doing so Israel will merely invite further attacks, as Erdogan will have plenty of excuses for provoking new crises and promoting anti-Israel incitement.

In the face of Turkey’s aggression, the Israeli reaction of habitual restraint and laconic responses is surprising. The impression formed is that Israel is scared to ruin the “special ties” with Turkey, when in practice these relations have only existed in our memory rather than in reality for quite a few years now.

...

Just like the well-known dictum suggests, the best way to defend against Turkey’s abuse is through offense, and the circumstances that enable such offensive have now emerged. Israel indeed lost the immediate PR battle over the flotilla incident and devoted many months to curbing the damage, yet the time has now come to take advantage of the “Turkel momentum” and initiate a counter attack on the PR and diplomatic front.

If only the Israeli government would listen....

Read the whole thing.

Labels: Mavi Marmara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkel Commission, Turkey, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:21 PM