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| Danny Ayalon humilating the Turkish Ambassador |
[ 11/12/2010 - 10:45 AM ]
NAZARETH, (PIC)-- Israel's deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon is advising his government not to apologize to Turkey over the May 31 attack on the Freedom Flotilla that left nine Turkish passengers dead and many others injured, saying the move would result in international lawsuits.
“We must not apologize to Ankara, because there are ethical, diplomatic and legal implications that could be presented against our soldiers for lawsuits and compensation,” Ayalon told Israeli Radio.The Turkish government is demanding that Israel apologize and pay monetary compensation to the families of the victims of the lethal attack before restoring the once sturdy diplomatic relations between the two regional powers.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmed Davutoglu recently stated that the state's position has never changed.
12/12/2010 Negotiations between Israel and Turkey to resolve the Gaza flotilla crisis stalled late last week. Israel has refused to apologize for the killings of Turkish activists aboard the Mavi Marmara and Turkey has refused to promise to abstain from legal action against Israeli soldiers and declare that the soldiers acted in “self-defense”.
An Israeli official told Haaretz that the talks are "stuck" and that "differences are still great." Nonetheless, he said it is still early to declare the talks dead and expects further discussions very soon. A Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman also stated on Friday that the talks will resume soon.
During telephone conversations between the sides on Thursday it became clear that Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan had rejected two key Israeli demands. Erdogan refused to absolve the Israeli soldiers of malice by recognizing that they acted in “self-defense”.
The Turkish Daily News reported Saturday that representatives of Turkey and Israel met in Geneva to discuss an Israeli request for a formal agreement with Turkey and the families of the Turkish citizens killed on the Mavi Marmara, which would prevent future suits against Israel or Israeli soldiers.
A senior Turkish source told Haaretz that the disagreement now revolves over the wording of the Israeli apology and not the issue of compensation. The Turkish source said that Israel wanted Ankara to accept a draft which says that it is "sorry" for the killing of Turkish citizens but that Erdogan rejected this proposal.
Zaman, a Turkish daily which supports Erdogan's party, Saturday quoted official sources saying that the talks in Geneva were disrupted "because of the stance of the Israeli army which is similar to that of [Avigdor] Lieberman." These sources also said that Defense Minister Ehud Barak is opposed to an Israeli apology, even though he attaches great strategic importance to relations between Israel and Turkey.
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
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