| Oh, those clever, wily, byzantine Turks! |
The recent reconciliation deal between Israel and
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire....
hit a bump on Wednesday, when a Turkish court refused to dismiss a case against members of the Israeli military, a key condition of the agreement.
Dismissing the legal charges against IDF officers connected to a 2010 naval raid on a Turkish flotilla trying to breach Israel’s blockade of the Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,-controlled Gazoo Strip was a key Israeli demand in the talks.
But, Channel 2 television reported, a court in Istanbul on Wednesday refused to dismiss the case and, instead postponed the hearing until December.
The raid, in which IDF commandos were attacked by activists on board the Mavi Marmara vessel, left 10 Turks dead and several Israeli soldiers maimed. Israel several weeks ago paid Turkey $20 million in compensation for the deadly raid, another central pillar of the deal.
The compensation was a key Turkish demand in the reconciliation deal, along with an apology by Israel and an easing of the blockade on the Gazoo Strip.
Israel made the apology three years ago, and while the blockade remains in place -- due to Israeli concerns that Hamas would import weapons and other materiel -- Ankara has been able to resume delivery of humanitarian aid
to the Paleostinians through Israeli ports.The two countries were expected to announce new ambassadors later this month. The exchange of diplomats, who were pulled out of both countries even though formal relations were never fully severed, is the last central element of the agreement signed in June to restore ties.
| And then there are all those delicious trade deals and the oil pipeline President Erdogan wants so badly. Interesting times. |