Israel and Turkey ties face deeper chill
(Read article summary)Turkey and Israel's once-close relations have been hurt by the Gaza war. Turkey canceled military exercises this week, while Israel protested a Turkey state-TV series that shows Israelis killing Palestinians in cold blood.
Istanbul
Israel and Turkey’s once-close ties have entered a frosty period in recent years, particularly since Israel’s invasion of Gaza this past January.
But ties between the two countries took a further dive this week after Turkey indefinitely postponed annual military exercises because of Israel’s planned involvement.
Israeli officials this week also expressed outrage over a new drama series being shown on Turkish state television that shows Israeli soldiers mercilessly killing Palestinians, including one scene of a soldier shooting a young girl at point blank range.
Observers say the new tension between the two countries may be another indication that Turkey’s changing domestic and foreign policy considerations are leading to a redefinition of the country’s relationship with Israel.
"In Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's ideological framework, Israel doesn’t play a central role. Things have changed," says Ofra Bengio, an expert on Turkey at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University.
