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Turkey, Israel use media to raise stakes in dispute
“Relations between the two countries will never be normalized [unless Turkish demands for an apology, compensation and removal of Gaza blockade are met by Israel],” Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in an interview with Time magazine published on Monday. The words from the Turkish leader marked the reiteration of a debate that has dominated Turkish foreign policy with Israel since Israel raided a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid flotilla in May 2010, killing nine Turkish peace activists on board on the high seas.
In a CNN International interview aired on Sunday, Erdoğan, known to be highly critical of Israel’s policies on Palestine, said Israel has killed hundreds and thousands of Palestinians, while Palestinian rockets and bombs have killed only a few Israelis. He also accused Israel of using the Holocaust to perpetuate the idea that “they are the victims all the time.”
In response to Erdoğan’s remarks during the CNN interview, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman accused Erdoğan’s government of “supporting and nurturing terror.”
“Anyone who saw CNN yesterday saw Turkish Prime Minister Erdoğan once again verbally attack the state of Israel,” said Lieberman. “We certainly respect the Turkish nation and Turkey as a state, our problem is first and foremost with the current Turkish leadership -- the radical and extremist Islamist leadership that supports and nurtures terror,” he was quoted as saying by Israel’s Ynet website on Tuesday.
Lieberman also argued that Erdoğan’s appearance on CNN Sunday was “excellent” for Israel. “If you ask what we can do PR wise, I’d buy each and every media outlet and let Erdoğan speak all day and all night. Every time he speaks on TV he brings more support for the state of Israel,” he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was also highly critical of Erdoğan’s CNN remarks, saying his claims are “outrageous and false.” “These are outrageous charges against Israel that have nothing to do with the facts,” Netanyahu told The Jerusalem Post.
Netanyahu argued that “Israel has lost thousands of its citizens to Palestinian terrorism, and certainly has not taken the lives of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.” The Israeli leader also added, “We don’t use the Holocaust; the Holocaust was the worst crime in history perpetuated against our people.”
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