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NETANYAHU: NO APOLOGY FOR GAZA FLOTILLA
PanARMENIAN.Net
August 18, 2011 - 13:04 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan said
Turkish-Israeli relations can't return to normal unless Israel
apologizes to Turkey for the killing of nine Turks aboard the Mavi
Marmara, a Gaza-bound aid ship, and lifts the embargo on Gaza.
"Turkey will not take a step back. From now on we will act with the
families who lost their relatives in the flotilla attack," Erdogan
said, Hurriyet Daily News reported.
An Israeli official said on Wednesday, August 17 that Israel would
stick to its refusal to apologize to Turkey, dampening any prospects
for reconciliation between the former allies. The decision, which
the official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conveyed to U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a telephone call, was made
days before the publication of the findings of a UN inquiry into the
seizure of the Mavi Marmara last year.
The so-called Palmer Report was repeatedly delayed to allow for
Israeli-Turkish rapprochement talks amid concern in Washington over
the rift between two countries that had been strategic partners in
an increasingly stormy Middle East. Israeli officials, citing advance
copies of the report, have said it would vindicate Israel's blockade on
the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Turkey, which like Israel had a delegate
on the UN panel headed by former New Zealand Prime Minister Geoffrey
Palmer, has said it would not accept such a finding.
Netanyahu voiced regret over the killings. But Turkey insisted on a
formal apology and compensation for those bereaved and injured.
Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot said Wednesday Israeli diplomats in
Washington handed the government a message from U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton saying the Israel-Turkey crisis was interfering with
U.S. attempts to deal with the bloodshed in Syria. A similar message
was given to Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak when he visited
Washington in late July, when Clinton asked him to do everything in
his power to resolve the crisis - "including apologize," the paper
said. "We're firm on not apologizing," the Israeli official said. Asked
if Israel might change tack after the Palmer Report's publication,
the official said: "Why would we do that? We know the report supports
our position."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
PanARMENIAN.Net
August 18, 2011 - 13:04 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan said
Turkish-Israeli relations can't return to normal unless Israel
apologizes to Turkey for the killing of nine Turks aboard the Mavi
Marmara, a Gaza-bound aid ship, and lifts the embargo on Gaza.
"Turkey will not take a step back. From now on we will act with the
families who lost their relatives in the flotilla attack," Erdogan
said, Hurriyet Daily News reported.
An Israeli official said on Wednesday, August 17 that Israel would
stick to its refusal to apologize to Turkey, dampening any prospects
for reconciliation between the former allies. The decision, which
the official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conveyed to U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a telephone call, was made
days before the publication of the findings of a UN inquiry into the
seizure of the Mavi Marmara last year.
The so-called Palmer Report was repeatedly delayed to allow for
Israeli-Turkish rapprochement talks amid concern in Washington over
the rift between two countries that had been strategic partners in
an increasingly stormy Middle East. Israeli officials, citing advance
copies of the report, have said it would vindicate Israel's blockade on
the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Turkey, which like Israel had a delegate
on the UN panel headed by former New Zealand Prime Minister Geoffrey
Palmer, has said it would not accept such a finding.
Netanyahu voiced regret over the killings. But Turkey insisted on a
formal apology and compensation for those bereaved and injured.
Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot said Wednesday Israeli diplomats in
Washington handed the government a message from U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton saying the Israel-Turkey crisis was interfering with
U.S. attempts to deal with the bloodshed in Syria. A similar message
was given to Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak when he visited
Washington in late July, when Clinton asked him to do everything in
his power to resolve the crisis - "including apologize," the paper
said. "We're firm on not apologizing," the Israeli official said. Asked
if Israel might change tack after the Palmer Report's publication,
the official said: "Why would we do that? We know the report supports
our position."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress