A breakthrough Israel-Turkey deal following six years of acrimony will see Israel pay $20 million (18 million euros) in compensation for a deadly 2010 commando raid, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Monday.
Advertisement
Both sides have been pushing to complete the reconciliation deal in recent months, with Israel in search of a potential customer for its offshore gas exports and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member Turkey wanting to restore its regional clout, analysts say.
The first ship carrying over 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid from Turkey to Gaza will set out for Ashdod Port next Friday, Yıldırım said.
The deal, announced Monday and signed by the foreign ministries of Israel and Turkey on Tuesday, restores full diplomatic relations between Jerusalem and Ankara in return for Turkey committing to tackle terrorism and to end its opposition to Israel in global forums.
Bennett said the compensation deal for Turkish victims of the 2010 Israeli military raid on the Gaza-bound flotilla set a risky precedent that would hurt Israel down the line.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on an official visit to Rome, is expected to announce details on Monday, and the two sides plan to sign the agreement on Tuesday.
“We were already delivering the same amount of humanitarian aid to Gaza, but without making an appearance”, said Erdogan. News of the attack quickly overshadowed the week’s other major development in the country: a deal to normalize relations between Turkey and Israel after a six-year falling out.
“And that the (Cyprus-Israel) relationship is to continue getting stronger in various sectors covering bilateral cooperation for the benefit of both countries and not only”, it added.
Under the deal secured after months of talks, Israel met Turkey’s demand to compensate the families of Turkish casualties by contributing $US20 million ($A27 million) to a victims’ fund.
Although the two governments will appoint ambassadors immediately following the agreement’s ratification, it is premature to hope that Israel and Turkey will once again be the close allies they were for decades. “Were you interested in sending humanitarian aid to Gaza?”
Under the reported terms of the deal, Israel will allow the completion of a much-needed hospital in Gaza, as well as the construction of a new power station and a desalination plant for drinking water by Turkey.
Advertisement
He also called on Turkey to do everything it can to make sure that the bodies of two dead soldiers, killed during Israel’s 2014 military campaign in the Gaza Strip, will be returned home. Israel boarded a ship and violence ensued; it seeks to prevent Hamas, the Islamist terror group, from importing weaponry.
