Israel’s once-strong ties to Turkey soured in 2010 when Israeli commandos killed 10 activists, including one Turkish-American, when storming the Mavi Marmara, a ship in a convoy seeking to break an Israeli naval blockade of the Palestinian territory of Gaza.
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The deal was reached during a recent meeting in Switzerland between the incoming head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, Yossi Cohen, Israeli envoy Joseph Ciechanover and Turkish foreign ministry under-secretary Feridun Sinirlioglu, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The talks were continuing with the aim of reaching a result for the normalization of ties in the shortest possible time, the sources added.
“Erdogan is on record as predicating the normalization of relations with Israel on a total lifting of the blockade on Gaza”, the official said according to Haaretz.
Turkey and Israel have been two pro-Western political, economic and military linchpins in the Middle East, and their falling out has hurt initiatives to tackle problems in the region, such as the Syrian civil war and tensions relating to Iran’s nuclear aspirations.
“We, Israel, the Palestinians and the region have a lot to win from a normalization process”, he said. In addition, the two sides would launch talks over a natural gas pipeline between the two countries and resume normal diplomatic relations by sending ambassadors back to their respective capitals. At least 116 Palestinians have died by Israeli fire, including 79 Israel says were attackers.
A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined comment.
With President Vladimir Putin in no mood for forgiveness, the dispute with Moscow is of major concern for Ankara, which relies on Russian Federation for over half its natural gas imports.
The reconciliation is not yet a done deal. Turkish officials said a final deal had yet to be sealed, but given the progress on key topics, it would not be too long. Trade doubled in the period from 2009 to 2014, while Israeli tourists are again returning to Turkey.
In the West Bank city of Ramallah, medical officials said a Palestinian was shot and killed by Israeli troops during a violent protest.
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Pierini said that in 2016 Turkey could also be seeking “good news” on ending the four-decades division of Cyprus and the dispute with Armenia over whether Ottoman-era killings constituted genocide.
