Israel Matzav

Breaking: Davutoglu and his cabinet out

BREAKING: #Turkey PM Davutoglu RESIGNS after losing election. Hard to understate importance: Islamist government voted IN, and voted OUT

— RAGreeneCNN (@RAGreeneCNN) June 9, 2015

"Mr President accepted today the resignation of the cabinet that was presented by Mr Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu," Erdogan's office said in a brief statement.

"Mr President, who thanked the cabinet for its services so far, asked the cabinet to remain in charge until a new government is formed."

The resignation of the cabinet was widely expected as a procedural move after the elections.

It was not clear if Davutoglu was authorised by the president to embark on a tour of talks with opposition parties to form a coalition government. 

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Since it came to power in 2002, the AKP has ruled Turkey as a one-party government, with a big majority in the 550-seat parliament. 

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish elections

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 8:08 PM 0 comments

Breaking: Erdogan's AKP loses parliamentary majority

The election results represented a significant setback to Mr. Erdogan, an Islamist who has steadily increased his power as president, a partly but not solely ceremonial post, after more than a decade as prime minister, and indicated that Mr. Erdogan’s efforts to accumulate power had run aground. And it was a significant victory to the cadre of Kurds, liberals and secular Turks who found their voice of opposition to Mr. Erdogan during sweeping antigovernment protests two years ago.

Mr. Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party, or A.K.P., still won by far the most seats in Parliament, but not a majority, according to preliminary results released Sunday night. The outcome suggested contentious days of jockeying ahead as the party moves to form a coalition government. Already, analysts were raising the possibility Sunday of new elections if a government cannot be formed swiftly. Many Turks were happy to see Mr. Erdogan’s powers curtailed, even though the prospect of a coalition government evokes dark memories of political instability and economic malaise during the 1990s.

With 99 percent of the votes counted, the A.K.P. had won 41 percent of the vote, according to TRT, a state-run broadcaster, down from nearly 50 percent during the last national election in 2011. The percentage gave it an estimated 259 seats in Turkey’s Parliament, compared with the 327 seats it has now.

“The outcome is an end to Erdogan’s presidential ambitions,” said Soner Cagaptay, an expert on Turkey and a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Almost immediately, the results raised questions about the political future of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, who moved to that position from that of foreign minister last year and was seen as a loyal subordinate of Mr. Erdogan. Mr. Davutoglu, who during the campaign vowed to resign if the A.K.P. did not win a majority, told reporters on Sunday evening in brief comments, “whatever the people decide is for the best.” Mr. Davutoglu was due to speak later in the evening in Ankara.

Mr. Erdogan, who as president was not on the ballot Sunday, will probably remain Turkey’s dominant political figure even if his powers have been rolled back, given his outsized personality and his still-deep well of support among Turkey’s religious conservatives, who form the backbone of his constituency. But even among those supporters, including ones in Kasimpasa, the Istanbul neighborhood where Mr. Erdogan spent part of his youth, there are signs that his popularity is flagging, partly because of his push for more powers over the judiciary and his crackdown on any form of criticism, including prosecutions of those who insult him on social media.

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The election turned on the historic performance at the ballot box of Turkey’s Kurdish minority, which aligned with liberals and secular Turks opposed to Mr. Erdogan’s leadership to win almost 13 percent of the vote, passing a 10 percent legal threshold and earning representation in Parliament. The People’s Democratic Party, a largely Kurdish bloc known as H.D.P., was able to broaden its base by fielding a slate of candidates that included women, gays and other minorities and appealed to voters whose goal was to curtail Mr. Erdogan’s powers.

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The performance positioned the Kurds as kingmakers in the next Parliament, and highlighted the evolution of the Kurdish movement, from the battlefields of the southeast, where a bloody insurgency raged for nearly 30 years, to the halls of power in Ankara, the capital.

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“Erdogan’s salvos over the past week show how nervous he is about the outcome of this election,” said Ugur Kaplan, 24, a student who voted in Istanbul. “The A.K.P. has lost votes, and it’s because of him. People are tired of having their lives dictated by one nutty man. It’s time for change.”

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Islam, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey, Turkish elections, Turkish Kurds

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:49 PM 0 comments

Video: US servicemen attacked by Turkish mob in Istanbul

QUESTION: Today in Turkey in Istanbul, a few of American sailors had some bags placed over their heads. Do you have any comments on that?

MS. PSAKI: Well, there was a statement put out by the U.S. Navy as well, which I’d point you to, but we’re deeply troubled by today’s assault against sailors of the USS Ross in Istanbul. The USS Ross is visiting Istanbul as a sign of the longstanding cooperation and friendship between the United States and Turkey. While we support the right to peaceful protest, this event clearly crossed the line from peaceful protest to violence and threats. We’re working – U.S. officials, I should say, are working with Turkish authorities to investigate this incident.

QUESTION: Do you see this incident as an isolated incident or part of trend about anti-Americanism in Turkey?

MS. PSAKI: Well, I’m not sure what other incidents you’re comparing it to, so we believe that Turkey remains an important NATO ally. We work closely with them on a range of issues. Obviously, we’re looking at this specific incident.

QUESTION: Recognizing that you – the Pentagon and the Navy have already spoken to this, as has the Embassy in Turkey, do you consider this case closed now, at least in terms of any conversation that you might have with Turkish authorities? Or is it something that you intend to raise beyond just the local police (inaudible)?

MS. PSAKI: Well, we’re continuing to work with Turkish authorities. I don’t believe there’s a plan to raise it at a different level than that. But this is – we’re continuing to work with them now.

QUESTION: Okay. So that would suggest – and correct me if I’m wrong – that you don’t think that this is symptomatic of some – that you think that this was an isolated incident and it’s not something that --

MS. PSAKI: I think I conveyed we’re speaking to this specific incident, yeah.

QUESTION: Right. But it’s not something that you feel the need to take up with the foreign minister or senior members in the – senior members of --

MS. PSAKI: I’m not aware of plans to raise it at that level, no.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:05 AM 1 comments

Why not Qatar?

But using the good offices of Qatar is a huge mistake. The same goes for Turkey. In exchange for fleeting calm, the United States will have effectively given approval to these allies-cum-frenemies to continue their respective roles as sponsors of Hamas, which is a designated terrorist group in the United States.

Since a visit to Turkey by Qatar's ruler Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and amidst reports that Meshal has been shuttling between the two countries, Doha and Ankara have been floating terms of a joint cease-fire proposal that would reportedly grant Hamas significant benefits. Specifically, the deal would grant Hamas an open border in Gaza that would allow the group to continue to smuggle rockets and other advanced weaponry at an ever alarming pace.

The Israelis see this as a nonstarter. But the White House is nevertheless working the phones with Qatar and Turkey to see if a deal can be struck.

Since the war broke out in early July, Secretary of State John Kerry has reached out at least three times by phone to Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and six times to his Qatari counterpart, Khalid Al Attiyah (Kerry's Mideast chief boasted last month that the secretary of state "is in very constant contact" with FM Al-Attiyah and even "keeps his number on his own cell phone"). Kerry was also expected to visit Qatar before Egypt's aborted cease-fire proposal.

It is by now no secret that Qatar has emerged as Hamas' home away from home and ATM. Shaikh Tamim's father, Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, visited Gaza in 2012 when he was still the ruler of Qatar, pledging $400 million in economic aid. Most recently, Doha tried to transfer millions of dollars via Jordan's Arab Bank to help pay the salaries of Hamas civil servants in Gaza, but the transfer was apparently blocked at Washington's request.

Since 2011, Qatar has been the home of the aforementioned Khaled Meshal, who runs Hamas's leadership. During a recent appearance on Qatar's media network Al Jazeera Arabic, Meshal blessed the individuals who kidnapped and ultimately murdered three Israeli teenagers. He boasted that Hamas was a unified movement and that its military wing reports to him and his associates in the political bureau. American officials have revealed that Qatar also hosts several other Hamas leaders. Israeli authorities reportedly intercepted an individual in April on his way back from meeting a member of Hamas's military wing in Qatar who gave him money and directives intended for Hamas cells in the West Bank.

Israeli and Egyptian officials report that Qatar is so eager for a political win at Cairo's expense that it actually urged Hamas to reject the Egyptian cease-fire initiative last week. Doha is also using its vast petroleum wealth to striking diplomatic effect: one UN official source suggests that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon would not have made it to Doha for cease-fire talks on Sunday if the Qataris hadn't chartered him a plane out of their own pocket.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, cease fire, Egypt, Emir of Qatar, Hamas, John Kerry, Qatar, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:24 AM 1 comments

Erdogan vows Turkish-Israeli relations will never improve so long as he is in power

I get the anger and frustration, and I see it personally from Turkish friends on my Facebook feed and my Twitter stream, who are furious with Israel not because they are Jew-hating anti-Semites but because they deplore the mounting civilian death toll in Gaza, which they see as disproportionate and excessive. And it isn’t just the AKP; anger at Israel is widespread among all segments of the population, as evidenced by the multiple leftist Gaza solidarity rallies taking place in Turkey today and by joint CHP/MHP presidential candidate Ekmeleddin Ihsanoğlu bashing Israel’s actions in Gaza and the CHP generally trying to score points over the last few days by absurdly trying to paint the AKP as in bed with Israel and complicit with its actions. Israel isn’t exactly popular in Turkey, to make the understatement of the decade, and to expect Turkish politicians to hold their tongues completely or to support Israel’s actions in Gaza is unreasonably naive.

But there is a world of difference between criticizing Israel out of a deeply held difference of opinion versus comparing Israelis to Hitler, equating Israel with Nazi Germany, throwing around the term genocide, openly advocating violence against Israeli nationals and property, and threatening Jews over Israel’s behavior. It is completely beyond the pale, and anyone who cares a lick about liberal values should be denouncing it loud and clear without qualification.

Erdoğan is appealing to the darkest forces imaginable in order to win a presidential election and bolster his laughably pathetic standing in the Arab world, and let’s not forget that he said straight out today that he will never normalize or even improve relations with Israel while he is in office. He has dropped the charade that this has anything to do with the Mavi Marmara or even a set of fulfillable demands that Israel is not meeting, so let’s all remember that the next time someone blames Israel for the impasse in the bilateral relationship. Erdoğan is anti-Israel because he does not like Israel, full stop.

If Israel withdrew its forces from Gaza, stopped responding to Hamas rockets with missiles, ended the blockade, and awarded Khaled Meshaal the Israel Prize, Erdoğan and Davutoğlu would just find some other reason not to normalize relations. Yes, the situation in Gaza undoubtedly plays a big role in all of this – just look at Israeli-Turkish relations under the Erdoğan government between 2002 and 2008, which were cordial and cooperative – but it’s about more than that at this point. Erdoğan and the AKP have gone too far down the garden path of anti-Israel rhetoric at this point to ever turn back.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Gaza, Hamas, IHH, Mavi Marmara, Operation Protective Edge, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:49 PM 0 comments

Erdogan nixes rapprochement between Turkey and Israel

"The compensation talks on behalf of the victims of the Mavi Marmara, which are taking place between Ankara and Jerusalem, have not concluded," Erdogan said. "In the final stages, there will be a need to include a clause in the protocol that calls for the lifting of the siege on Gaza."

The premier's statements were all the more surprising given that just two days ago his foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, was quoted as saying that Turkey and Israel are as close as they have been yet to ending the long-running saga over the Mavi Marmara incident.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Gaza blockade, Gaza plenty, Mavi Marmara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:29 PM 1 comments

Turkey's little Nazi: 'We hate Syria but we hate Israel even more'

“There is an attempt to give the impression that Turkey has coordinated with Israel. We have issues with Syria, an issue based on a principle. But let me say it clearly: The Turkish government has never cooperated with Israel against any Muslim country, and it never will,” Davutoğlu told reporters during a joint press conference in Istanbul Nov. 1 with his visiting Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Several reports said, citing unnamed U.S. officials, that Israel targeted a missile storage center with Russian-made SA-125 missiles, likely to be supplied to Hezbollah, the Shiite Lebanese militant group.

Reports relayed by Israeli media claimed that Turkey was behind the attack in Latakia by disclosing critical information to Israel.

Davutoğlu slammed the reports, describing them as “black propaganda.” “Those [reports] are attempts to cast a shadow on the Syrian people’s rightful struggle and Turkey’s attitude with principles. It is out of the question for us to participate in any common operation,” he said.

Davutoğlu also added that Turkey would stand against such Israeli operation, but emphasized that the information on the strikes was not confirmed yet.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Hezbullah weapons, Syria, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel, weapons acquisition

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:20 PM 0 comments

Turkey's war with Israel escalates

The recent media reports against Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT) chief Hakan Fidan may stem from Tel Aviv's unease about Fidan's intention to cancel secret agreements between Israel and Turkey that allow Mossad agents to conduct operations in Turkish airports without any visa requirements or customs controls, Yeni Şafak daily columnist Abdülkadir Selvi has claimed. 

In his column published on Tuesday, Selvi stated that in the periods when democratically elected governments in Turkey did not have full control over the ruling of the country, through secret agreements, Israeli intelligence service Mossad has been given authorization to conduct operations in Turkish airports without facing any restrictions and MİT chief Fidan is preparing to stop this. Israel's unease about Fidan's intention, Selvi claimed, may lie behind the accusations against Fidan in the international media.

Selvi also stressed that in the forthcoming days MİT is expected to apply to the Prime Ministry for the cancelation of the agreements concerning Mossad's operations in Turkish airports.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Hakan Fidan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:03 PM 0 comments

Davutoglu says Turkish intelligence agency 'doing its job' by exposing Israeli agents in Iran

“When you read these articles, [Turkish intelligence chief] Hakan Fidan is accused of establishing an independent intelligence structure and not letting other intelligence agencies operate in Turkey. Therefore, he is being blamed for doing his job,” Davutoğlu said in a live interview on private broadcaster Kanal 7 aired on the night of Oct. 18.

Davutoğlu’s remarks came a day after veteran Washington Post columnist David Ignatius claimed that Turkey blew the cover on a group of Israeli spies, disclosing their names to Iranian intelligence, while noting that Fidan was considered “suspect” by Israeli authorities due to his “close” ties to Tehran.

Another article published in the Wall Street Journal last week claimed that Fidan championed the idea of sending weapons to the Syrian opposition without any discrimination.

Referring in particular to Ignatius’ article, Davutoğlu said the accusations against Fidan were contradictory. “These [claims] are so inconsistent that on the one hand it is said Fidan is close to Iran, but in the same article, he is accused of supporting groups who fight against Iran’s influence. This is a very serious accusation. None of our officials act on behalf of any other country,” Davutoğlu said, adding that intelligence represented the state’s “privacy.”

“If this privacy is not used by the state’s units to serve only that people, your strategy can’t succeed … Turkey is not a country where other intelligence units can comfortably perform operations. This is a requirement of independence,” Davutoğlu said.

“I am not saying that the claims are true, but after all, every intelligence agency works for the interest of its own country,” he said.

Davutoğlu also said Fidan had become the head of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) after gaining “everyone’s credit” after taking part in negotiations with Israel and authorities in Gaza.

He also said there were “open threats” targeting Fidan. “This is the day to stand for Fidan, who has been the target of these accusations. Fidan is not doing this work for his personal interests but for Turkey,” Davutoğlu said.

“We see this media campaign as an attack and there might be an Israeli effort behind it,” a Turkish intelligence source said on the phone yesterday. “Especially after the Washington Post story on Oct. 17 and the follow-ups with Jerusalem bylines.”

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Sources in Ankara believe that besides trying to defame Turkey in U.S. eyes as a country tolerating terrorists like Iran – and because of its “independent tack” on Syria, amid an effort to try and corner it in a possible move in the U.S. Congress – Israel might have had another motivation. That might be, according to those sources who asked not to be named, an attempt to avoid paying compensation for the nine Turks killed by Israeli commandoes on May 31, 2010, on board the Mavi Marmara on its way to carry humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

After the official apology from Netanyahu (which was brokered by Obama) on March 24, talks started for compensation to the families of the victims, albeit with no result, as Israel does not want to make the payments in the form of “compensation,” according to Israeli diplomatic sources talking to HDN.

Also, Erdoğan’s close relations with Hamas are another source of disturbance between the two. By coincidence, Khaled Mashaal, the leader of Hamas, was received by Erdoğan in his office in Ankara on Oct. 9, the same day that the WSJ story published.

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It is unclear whether an Israeli “plot” is behind the obvious campaign against Turkey’s intelligence chief and whether it is aimed at Erdoğan’s foreign policy choices, especially regarding the greater Middle East. Turkey is criticized at home and abroad for being distanced from the European Union and getting too involved with the uncertainties of the Middle East. Both the recent EU Progress Report, which calls for Turkey to foster higher standards of democracy to keep up with its European venture, and the Geneva Conference on Syria might be chances to fine-tune Turkish foreign policy. 

“My opposition to apologizing to Turkey is not new, and I expressed it clearly before and after it happened,” Liberman wrote on his Facebook page, referring to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s March 22 apology for the Israeli takeover of Gaza protest ship Mavi Marmara in 2010.

“I reasoned and explained that it will not improve relations between the countries but will only harm Israel’s standing in the region and play into the hands of extremists in the Middle East, with Turkey under Islamist extremist [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan among them,” Liberman continued.

“I am therefore not surprised by Turkey’s accusation that Israel is behind the report in The Washington Post about ‘revealing spies to Iran,’ and I don’t even know if there was such a spy ring.”

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“I hope we will all stop deluding ourselves and understand the situation in which we live, and the difference between what we want and what exists,” Liberman wrote.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, intelligence, Iran, Iranian nuclear threat, Mavi Marmara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, spying, Turkey, Turkish anti-Semitism, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 4:49 AM 1 comments

Turkey whines that Israel hasn't done enough yet

Speaking on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's 68th meeting in New York, where he travelled with President Abdullah Gül and a high-level delegation, Davutoğlu noted that out of the three important conditions Turkey set, only one of them has been met by Israel.

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In order to end a major crisis in ties between the two former allies, as part of a US-brokered rapprochement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March offered an apology to Turkey for the [Mavi Marmara] incident.

An apology was one of three demands Ankara made of Tel Aviv. The other two were compensation for the families of the passengers killed on the ship and the lifting of the blockade on Gaza. 

Davutoğlu said Turkey's demand for an Israeli apology had been fulfilled, that there had been progress on the second condition of compensation and that the negotiations were still going on over the issue. 

"We hope this will be concluded," said Davutoğlu. 

Referring to the third condition of the ending of the Israeli blockade of Gaza, Davutoğlu said that Turkey is very concerned about the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories, especially in Gaza, following recent developments in Egypt.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Gaza, IHH, Mavi Marmara, outrageous apologies, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:54 PM 2 comments

Bipartisan group of US Reps slam Erdogan's anti-Semitism

The letter requested Gül to publically condemn “the anti-semitic rhetoric” of government officials.

The signatories noted that another letter had been written a few months ago asking Erdoğan to retract his statements that compared Zionism to a “crime against humanity,” without success.

They also argued that Erdoğan’s accusations of an “interest rate lobby” engineering the Gezi protests were implicitly targeting Jews, recalling that Deputy Prime Minister Beşir Atalay had openly stated that a “Jewish diaspora” was behind the recent unrest in Turkey.

The letter was prepared on the initiative of Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Illinois), Rep. Randy Weber (R-Texas), Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Florida) and Mark Meadows (R-North Carolina) and signed by congressmen from both the Democrat and Republican parties, the report said.

Labels: Abdullah Gul, Ahmet Davutoglu, Nazis, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish anti-Semitism, US House of Representatives

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:06 PM 0 comments

Davutoglu denies Turkey helped Israel take out Syria's missiles

Sick pleasure hearing Davutoglu, who really dislikes Israel, need to deny Russian reports Turkey involved w/ Israel in Latakia attack #Jpost
— Herb Keinon (@HerbKeinon) July 15, 2013

Unconfirmed reports that Israel was behind a July 5 attack on a Syrian arms depot in the port city of Latakia continued to emerge Monday, with Russia Today quoting a source as saying that the IAF launched the attack from a Turkish military base.

"Israeli planes left a military base inside Turkey and approached Latakia from the sea to make sure that they stayed out of Syrian airspace so that they cannot become a legitimate target for the Syrian air force," RT quoted "a reliable source" as saying.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu denied the report, saying it was "absolutely wrong," and accusing those spreading the story of an "act of betrayal."

The Turkish foreign minister said that "Turkey will neither be a part nor a partner of such ‘attacks.’ The ones who claim this want to damage Turkey’s power and reputation.”

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Bashar al-Assad, IAF, Russia, Syria, Syrian uprising, Turkey, Turkish obsession with Israel, Yakhont land to sea missile

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:38 PM 0 comments

Kerry poses for photo-op with father of Mavi Marmara terrorist

This is the photo Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu tweeted showing Secretary of State John Kerry, himself and according to Hurriyet Daily News, Ahmet Doğan in the center (Photo via Twitter, May 17, 2013)

Last week, TheBlaze reported that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan invited the father of one of the radical Islamist activists killed on the 2010 Gaza flotilla to join the official entourage on his visit to the U.S. last week. And while sources familiar with lat week’s visit told TheBlaze that the father did not enter the White House or meet President Obama to deliver a personal letter about his son, according to the Turkish foreign minister’s Twitter account Secretary of State John Kerry did meet with the father and even posed for a photo with him.

The Turkish news site Hurriyet Daily News reports that Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu arranged the breakfast meeting Friday where he, the father (Ahmet Doğan) and Kerry were present. Doğan reportedly updated Kerry on the “pending trial of Israeli soldiers involved in the” flotilla incident.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, IHH, Islamic terrorism, John Kerry, Mavi Marmara, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 7:50 PM 1 comments

Israel seeking use of Turkish airbase to train for Iran?

Yaakov Amidror, the head of the National Security Council, was due in Ankara on Monday to discuss the full restoration of diplomatic ties with Turkey, following Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's apology to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the 2010 Mavi Marmara incident.

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Additionally, Amidror has been assigned to try to resuscitate the 1996 agreement between Jerusalem and Ankara which allowed the IAF to train in Turkish airspace and use the Akinci airbase. In return, Israel will offer to sell Turkey advanced missile and surveillance technology, the Times reported.

According to the Times, among the advanced systems Amidror will offer the Turks are the Arrow anti-ballistic missiles defense system, a visual intelligence system developed by Israeli defense company Elop that can create a precise image at a range of 60 miles during day or night and under any weather condition, and an advanced electronic warfare system made by Elta.

Turkey and Israel share concern over Iran's nuclear program, that Tehran claims is being developed solely for peaceful purposes. The two countries are also interested in military cooperation over the concern of spill-over from the Syrian civil war, the Times quotes an Israeli defense source as saying.

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said Turkey categorically denies discussing the future of Syria with Israel, dismissing suggestions that the recent Israeli apology was linked to developments in war-torn Syria. 

“This will be Turkey's stance both today and tomorrow. Turkey will never discuss Syria's future with Israel,” said Davutoğlu during a televised interview on Thursday, adding that this was the case for all of Turkey's neighbors.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Iranian nuclear threat, Mavi Marmara, outrageous apologies, Syrian uprising, Turkish obsession with Israel, Yaakov Amidror

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:39 PM 0 comments

The apology wasn't much of an apology

Nasrallah boasted victory over Israel in the Second Lebanon War, but still does not venture out of his bunker. Nor, for that matter, has his organization fired on Israeli cities in the North for the past seven years.

Haniyeh claimed victory in November’s Operation Pillar of Defense, but the Gaza border, following Hamas’s “stunning victory,” has for years not been as quiet as it is now.

And Erdogan and Davutoglu’s words, claiming that Israel came almost on a bended knee with an apology, fall into the same category. A look at what was actually said in the apology – and what Erdogan initially demanded – paints a significantly different picture.

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A careful look at Friday’s statement agreed upon by Turkey and Israel of the Netanyahu-Erdogan conversation that put the relationship on the road to repair, however, shows it is far from the fulfillment of Erdogan’s “requirements.”

First of all the apology.

Erdogan, according to Israeli diplomatic officials familiar with the months-long negotiations over the formula, said Erdogan wanted a public apology to him for the raid on the ship and the killing of nine Turks.

What he got was a bit different.

Netanyahu regretted the loss of life, and issued an apology to the Turkish people, not to Erdogan, for operational mistakes – if they happened – that led to the loss of life. That is not exactly a full-throated, public apology. Furthermore, Netanyahu did not apologize for commandeering the ship, something the Turks wanted.

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On the issue of compensation, Israel always said it would pay compensation and that was never a major sticking point. [I think the issue was whether Israel would pay directly to the families or to the Turkish government. It's not clear to me how that has shaken out. CiJ].

And, finally, there is the issue of lifting the blockade of Gaza.

Erdogan has ridden the wave of appearing as the champion of Gaza to a position of leadership in the Sunni world, something he covets. The more he bashes Israel, the higher his stature rises; the more he champions Gaza, the more he is cheered in the Arab world.

But Israel did not accede to his demand to lift the blockade of Gaza, something it could never do because that would essentially turn over to a third country the determination of what it needs for its own security.

What did it do? The statement issued by the PMO and carefully crafted by both sides read: “Prime Minister Netanyahu also noted that Israel had substantially lifted the restrictions on the entry of civilian goods into the Palestinian territories, including Gaza, and that this would continue as long as calm prevailed. The two leaders agreed to continue to work to improve the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories.”

That in no way can be interpreted as “lifting the siege of Gaza.” But never mind, Erdogan declares his demands were met, and Haniyeh hails him as a hero.

Now, a compromise has been reached, apparently with some help from President Barack Obama. The agreement, which includes restoring normal bilateral relations, has been portrayed as some sort of Israeli surrender.

That is simply not true. The agreement is much closer to Israel’s position. There is no change on Israel’s strategic policy toward the Gaza Strip at all. While the word “apology” appears in Netanyahu’s statement, it is notably directed at the Turkish people, not the government and is of the sorry-if-your feelings-were-hurt variety.

Moreover, Israel denied that it killed the Turkish citizens intentionally, a situation quite different from what Erdogan wanted, and offered to pay only humanitarian assistance to families.

Should Israel have expressed regret when it should instead receive an apology from the Turkish government for helping to send terrorists to create a confrontation? On purely moral grounds, no. Yet as I pointed out Israel did not abandon its long-standing position on the issue. It does not want an antagonism with the Turkish people nor one that will continue long after Erdogan and his regime are long out of office. Perhaps this was undertaken to make Obama happy and in exchange for U.S. benefits. But what has happened is far more complex than onlookers seem to be realizing.

Perhaps these seeming word games and niceties are beyond the interest or comprehension of many people, but everyone involved directly on this issue knows exactly what is happening. Erdogan knows very well that this was not a Turkish victory—except in public relations– though Israel won’t object to letting it be claimed as such.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Mavi Marmara, outrageous apologies, Recep Tayyip Erdogan

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:30 AM 0 comments

Davutoğlu refused to shake hands with Barak

Davutoğlu did not shake hands with Barak, thus rejecting an attempt by US and German officials to break the ice between Turkey and Israel during a dinner hosted by Bavarian Premier Horst Seehofer on the sidelines of the conference last month.

According to the seating plan prepared by US and German officials, Davutoğlu sat next to Seehofer and US Vice President Joe Biden, while Barak sat opposite the Turkish minister. When officials sitting in Davutoğlu's row started to shake hands with the figures sitting opposite them, the Turkish minister immediately stood up and greeted the Macedonian and Croatian presidents. Seeing Davutoğlu not responding to his attempt to shake his hand, Barak said, “As the distance between the two sides of the table is wide, we could not reach each other's hand.” Davutoğlu replied: “No, the problem is not the size of the table. There will always be a distance between us unless you meet our demands.”

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Ehud Barak, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:12 PM 0 comments

Kerry slams Erdogan at Turkish press conference for anti-Zionist conference

"We not only disagree with it, we found it objectionable," Kerry told a news conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, saying he raised the issue "very directly" with Davutoglu and would do so with Erdogan.

Erdogan told the UN Alliance of Civilizations meeting in Vienna on Wednesday: "Just as with Zionism, anti-Semitism and fascism, it has become necessary to view Islamophobia as a crime against humanity."

The Turkish prime minister's caustic rhetoric on Israel has in the past won applause from conservative supporters at home but raised increasing concern among Western allies.

Kerry said Turkey and Israel were both key US allies and urged them to restore closer ties.
"Given the many challenges that the neighborhood faces, it is essential that both Turkey and Israel find a way to take steps ... to rekindle their historic cooperation," Kerry said.

"I think that's possible but obviously we have to get beyond the kind of rhetoric that we've just seen recently."

"If we must talk about hostile acts, then Israel's attitude and its brutal killing of nine of our civilian citizens in international waters may be called hostile," Davutoglu said, adding Turkey had always stood against anti-Semitism.

"No single statement carries a price higher than the blood of a person ... If Israel wants to hear positive statements from Turkey it needs to reconsider its attitude both towards us and towards the West Bank," he told the news conference.

Turkey has demanded a formal apology for the 2010 incident, compensation for victims and their families and for the Gaza blockade to be lifted. Israel has voiced "regret" and has offered to pay into what it called a "humanitarian fund" through which casualties and relatives could be compensated.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, John Kerry, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:28 PM 0 comments

Israel strikes sites in Syria, Turkey complains about lack of reaction

A Western intelligence official indicated to TIME that at least one to two additional targets were hit the same night, without offering details. Officials also said that Israel had a “green light” from Washington to launch yet more such strikes.

Hizballah is not Israel’s only concern – or perhaps even the most worrying. Details of the Israeli strikes make clear the risk posed by fundamentalist militants sprinkled among the variegated rebel forces fighting to depose Assad.   The jihadists are overwhelmingly home-grown Sunni militants but also include foreigners drawn to the fight from across the Muslim world. Loosely organized into several fighting groups, some fighters embrace the almost nihilist ideology associated with al-Qaeda. But jihadist groups are less vulnerable to the same levers that have proved effective against Syria and other states –  such as threats to its territory — or even the frank interests of an organization like Hizballah, which as a political party plays a major role in Lebanon’s government.

“If we succeeded all these years to deter the Syrians and all the other surrounding countries that possess weapons of mass destruction [from making] use of it, it’s because we knew how to deliver the message, that the price would be very high,” Amnon Sofrin, a retired brigadier and former senior Mossad official, told reporters this week. “What kind of threat can you put in the face of a terror organization?”

In other words, it may be easier to attack the problem from the other side — simply destroy the weapons you’re afraid they’ll get their hands on.   Among the buildings leveled at the military complex at Jamarya, outside Damascus, were warehouses stocked with equipment necessary for the deployment of chemical and biological weapons, relatively complicated systems typically manned by specially trained forces. The lab facilities dedicated to biological warfare were of special concern, given both the damage that can be done by even small amounts of biological agents, and the interest expressed in such weapons by Osama bin Laden’s successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri. No specific armed force was identified as threatening the compound. Intelligence officials said the concern was unconventional weapons “dripping” into control of extremists in the relative chaos of the rebel side.

One Western intelligence official told TIME the U.S. military was poised to carry out similar airstrikes around Aleppo if rebels threaten to take sites associated with weapons of mass destruction in that region.

Sofrin called that logical. “The world should be worried about the possibility that organizations would possess chemical weapons, because we are not the only target in the Middle East,” he told foreign reporters in Jerusalem on Wednesday. “Let’s go back to 1983, the attack in Beirut on the barracks of the U.S. marines. 241 people killed on Lebanese soil, because they were Americans, strangers.”

“I’m not going to give any condemnation of Israel or rush into any criticism,”  British foreign secretary William Hauge told the BBC on Thursday. “There may be many things about it that we don’t know, or the Arab League or Russia don’t know.”

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu criticized the Israeli raid in Syria this week, severely questioning Damascus' inaction on the aggression. "Why didn't [Bashar] al-Assad even throw a pebble when Israeli jets were flying over his palace and playing with the dignity of his country?" Davutoğlu told reporters on his way to Serbian capital Belgrade for a bilateral visit.

"Why didn't the Syrian Army, which has been attacking its own innocent people for 22 months now from the air with jets and by land with tanks and artillery fire, respond to Israel's operation? Why can't al-Assad, who gave order to fire SCUD missiles at Aleppo, do anything against Israel?" Davutoğlu said. 

Davutoğlu said they did not know the precise circumstances of the raid but added that Turkey would not stay unresponsive to an Israeli attack against any Muslim country.

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Bashar al-Assad, chemical weapons, Syrian uprising, weapons of mass destruction

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:59 PM 0 comments

Syrian rebels rejected Israeli assistance; Lieberman talks turkey to Turkish reporters

"We offered humanitarian assistance but they rejected it," he told the Turkish journalists in Jerusalem Sunday. "Everybody has told us that it is much better to keep the distance.”

The foreign minister added: “We don’t want to impose ourselves on the Syrian opposition. It is impossible to impose ourselves on somebody. We can only suggest but cannot impose," Turkish daily Hurriyet quoted him as saying.

Describing the Mavi Marmara attack as “an accident,” Lieberman said the dispute with Turkey had not started with the current Israeli government but with the “dovish” ex-prime minister, Ehud Olmert.

The row, which brought Turkey’s ties with Israel to their historic low level, stemmed from “a strategic decision” by Erdoğan and Davutoğlu, Lieberman said. “[Erdoğan] thinks the best way to be the leader of the Islamic world is to confront Israel. It is the same regarding the issue of the Gaza blockade,” he said.

Turkey vociferously criticized Israel under Olmert after Tel Aviv launched an operation against Gaza in late 2007.

In the past two years, Erdoğan’s speeches on Israel have gone beyond criticism to the point of insult, he said. “[Still] we are really trying to keep silent despite every verbal attack against Israel from Mr. Erdoğan and Mr. Davutoğlu, and we are still trying not to create unnecessary tensions.”

Asked how the deadlock would end, he pointed to the healing power of time. “Sometimes, it will take more years, sometimes less. Even if we have disputes, we can resolve disputes in different ways but not [in a way] like cutting diplomatic relations, or calling ambassadors back to the capitals, or provoking each other.”

For Turkey and Israel, there are more reasons for returning to normal relations, Lieberman said. “The demand of an apology is only an excuse.”

Labels: Ahmet Davutoglu, Avigdor Lieberman, Bashar al-Assad, Mavi Marmara, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Syrian uprising, Turkish obsession with Israel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:37 PM 2 comments

Turkey calls NATO over Syria shooting down its F-4; Turkey claims plane had left Syrian airspace

"Turkey has requested consultations under Article 4 of Nato's founding Washington Treaty," she told Reuters.

"Under article 4, any ally can request consultations whenever, in the opinion of any of them, their territorial integrity, political independence or security is threatened."

Turkey wants to be sure of the strongest backing once it decides its official response, reports the BBC's Jonathan Head in Istanbul.

The government has promised that it will be strong, decisive and legitimate, and that it will share all the information it has with the public.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu became the first senior Turkish official to challenge Syria's account of the downing of the jet.

After lengthy meetings with military chiefs, he told TRT state television that the unarmed jet had "momentarily" entered Syrian airspace by mistake on Friday but had left when it was shot down 15 minutes later.

"According to our conclusions, our plane was shot down in international airspace, 13 nautical miles (24km) from Syria," he said.

According to international law, a country's airspace extends 12 nautical miles (22.2km) from its coastline, corresponding with its territorial waters.

Mr Davutoglu also insisted that the jet had not been on a "covert mission related to Syria" but had instead been carrying out a training flight to test Turkey's radar capabilities.

He said the plane had not "shown any hostility", been clearly marked as Turkish, and that he did not agree with the Syrian military's statement that it had not known to whom it belonged.

Labels: Abdullah Gul, Ahmet Davutoglu, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Syria, Turkey

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:41 PM 0 comments