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Turkey summons Israeli ambassador
Turkish foreign ministry summons the Israeli ambassador to protest at an Israeli army general's comments about Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Gen. Avi Mizrahi was earlier quoted by the Israeli media as saying that Erdogan should have "looked in the mirror" before lashing out at Israeli President Shimon Peres at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Press TV correspondent Mehdi Gholizadeh reported. The remarks prompted the ministry to call on Israeli Ambassador Gabby Levy to pass Ankara's formal objection to Tel Aviv. "The relevant statements of Avi Mizrahi are ungrounded and unacceptable and as such we have requested an urgent explanation from Israeli authorities," Turkey's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The Israeli general had also accused Turkey of massacring the Armenians as well as suppressing the Kurdish minority in the country. In January, Erdogan walked off the stage at a Davos summit after he was interrupted for criticizing Tel Aviv and Peres over the mass killing of Palestinians during the 23-day war on Gaza. The incident strained ties between Israel and Turkey, who was acting as a mediator between Tel Aviv and Damascus. However, after Israel launched its military campaign against the Gaza Strip, Ankara suspended the mediation. Posted by: Fred 2009-02-15 |
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