Relations between Turkey and Israel, regional allies who cooperate particularly in the military and defense arena, became strained after the Israeli military launched a deadly offensive in Gaza last December, leaving more than 1,300 people dead.
The tension has continued to simmer since Turkey barred Israel from a NATO exercise last month, a decision that angered Israel.
Yet, in the last 10 days, an announcement of an official visit to Turkey by Israeli Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer later this month and Israeli President Shimon Peres’ invitation to his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gül, to pay an official visit to Israel as well as statements by Turkish leaders stating the strength of the core of bilateral relations have been interpreted as signs of both sides’ willingness to ease recent tensions between the two countries.
Nonetheless, in last few days, Israel’s Ambassador to Turkey Gabby Levy still heard harsh public criticism of Israel vis-à-vis the ongoing humanitarian tragedy in Gaza.
As of Thursday, after having a decent meeting with Gümüşhane Governor Enver Salihoğlu at the former’s office where the two mutually delivered messages of peace, Levy encountered remarks by a member of the municipal council that he preferred not to respond to.
“Recently, genocide took place in Gaza. Jewish origin [South African jurist Richard] Goldstone has documented that it’s genocide. I wonder if Israel will apologize for this?” Municipal Council member Nasuhi Akıncı was quoted as saying to Levy by the Anatolia news agency. As of Wednesday, in Trabzon some 31 university students pelted Levy with eggs at the entrance of Karadeniz Technical University as the ambassador was leaving the campus. The students who were detained on Wednesday were released on Thursday.
In Trabzon, during his meeting with Governor Recep Kızılcık, Levy was invited to comment on his meeting with Rize Mayor Halil Bakırcı, which took place on Tuesday in Rize on the first leg of his tour in the Black Sea. “We spoke about Israelis’ visit to this region. Of course, I was in a way disappointed because he briefed us that Israeli tourists were not visiting the city but rural areas. I don’t believe that tourism can be encouraged this way,” Levy was quoted as saying by Anatolia.
Bakırcı said on Tuesday he was concerned about Israeli tourists in Turkey, adding that “due to Israel’s policies, we are worried that something undesirable may happen to those tourists, and we do our best so that it does not.” He was referring to the tourists who prefer traveling to the rural areas instead of the city center. News reports on Thursday said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called Bakırcı, who is from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), in order to ask for details of the conversation with Levy.
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