Turkish-Israeli gap widens with bitter exchanges

Semih Idiz

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on April 1, 2018 shows a file photo taken on November 19, 2017 of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) attending the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem and a file photo taken on December 15, 2017 of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the inauguration ceremony of Turkey's first automated urban metro line on the Asian side of Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Benjamin Netanyahu on April 1, 2018 of being "a terrorist" a — This combination of pictures created on April 1, 2018, shows a file photo taken on November 19, 2017, of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) attending the weekly Cabinet meeting in Jerusalem and a file photo taken on December 15, 2017, of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the inauguration ceremony of Turkey's first automated urban metro line on the Asian side of Istanbul. — RONEN ZVULUN,OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images

The political turmoil and bloodshed caused by President Donald Trump’s decision to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem may result in the final and definitive breakup of the already loveless relationship between Turkey and Israel. The situation also appears set to deepen the crisis in Turkish-American ties, already beset by a host of problems that remain unsolved.

Turkey asked Israel’s ambassador in Ankara and consul general in Istanbul to leave following this week’s mass killing of Palestinian demonstrators by Israeli soldiers. It also recalled its ambassador in Washington for consultations over the Jerusalem crisis.

Israel reciprocated, asking Turkey’s ambassador in Tel Aviv and consul general in Jerusalem, whose job was essentially to look after Palestinian affairs, to leave.

The humiliating manner in which Israel’s envoy Eitan Naeh was dispatched from Turkey, including a body search by airport security under the gaze of the Turkish media brought in to mark the occasion, elicited a reciprocal response from Israel.

Turkish-Israeli gap widens with bitter exchanges

Turkey’s ties with Israel could be heading for a historic breakdown as tensions with the United States groan under ever greater weight.

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