UN Report on Gaza Flotilla

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

I know you're laughing coz you know Turks aren't Arabs , but most of them are Sunnis, and that old Sunni-Shia split does play into their desire to contain Iran. It's also worth noting that Iran has demonstrable aspirations to be what the Turks recently were - empire builders. That Shia 15% or so of the Muslim population has some big dreams to compensate for their small numbers.

The Persians have been there, done that, just not as Muslims. The Shia remind me more of the Jehovah Witnesses, and Baptists, etc., that are constantly looking to reshape the world in their Orthodox version of Christianity.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Report: Turkey seeking strategic alliance with Egypt

Erdogan to visit Egypt on September 12 to discuss strengthening military and diplomatic ties; move comes as Israel-Turkey diplomatic crisis deepens.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyep Erdogan is set to visit Egypt next week in order to discuss a strategic cooperation agreement between the two countries, the Egyptian daily Al-Shorouq reported on Sunday.

Erdogan is scheduled to meet with the Egyptian prime minister and the head of the Egyptian military council on September 12 to discuss increased diplomatic and military cooperation, and overall improvement of ties between Turkey and Egypt.

The two are due to sign a strategic cooperation agreement concerning military, diplomatic, and economic issues.

...

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/report-turkey-seeking-strategic-alliance-with-egypt-1.382504

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Dozens of Israelis questioned at length upon landing in Turkey

Israeli passengers authorities at Istanbul airport humiliated them and made them undress to their underwear; Officials in Ankara say Turkish tourists subjected to same treatment evening before at Israel airport.

Some 40 Israelis on board a Turkish Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Istanbul were separated from the rest of the passengers upon arrival in Turkey on Monday and were questioned at length by Turkish police, marking a highly unusual event against the backdrop of a deepening diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Israel.

Turkish police took the Israelis' passports upon arrival and questioned each person individually in an investigations room. Only after prolonged questioning did the Israelis receive their passports back and were freed to go.

Several passengers on a different flight that passed through Turkey on its way to Israel from Thailand told Army Radio that they were also treated in a humiliating manner at the Istanbul airport.

"They made me undress to only my underwear. A woman officer did it, but she wasn't particularly gentle. It reminded me of stories my grandma told me of her past," Alina, one of the passengers recounted.

"After the examination, she threw my clothes to the side and told me to get dressed. I was escorted out of the room and then we were told we cannot sit down – they made us stand in the corner without allowing us to use the restroom. We did not have our passports and we had no idea what is happening.

Foreign Ministry officials said in response that the event is highly unusual and serious, and said that many of the Israeli passengers called the Foreign Ministry and said they felt fear during the questioning. The Foreign Ministry turned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry and demanded an explanation, however the Turks said they were not familiar with the incident.

"At this time it looks like a local initiative of police in Istanbul, but we are still looking in to the event and mostly trying to understand what was the character of the investigation," said a Foreign Ministry official.

Officials in Ankara said in response that Turkish tourists were harassed in Israel's Ben-Gurion International Airport on Sunday evening, hours before the incident at Istanbul's airport the next morning.

A group of Turkish tourists, who arrived in Israel for the holiday of Ramadan and visited Jerusalem, said that when they arrived at the airport, Israeli security personnel delayed them for several hours and ask them for personal details, including their phone numbers, email addresses, and marital status.

"They checked our luggage numerous times and later conducted a full body search. They made us undress to our underwear and also patted down all the women in separate rooms – only the Turkish passengers underwent such an examination," said one of the tourists.

According to the passengers, their flight was delayed due to the prolonged examination of the Turkish tourists' luggage, and the group's guide said that Turkish tourists were treated differently by Israeli security officials than the other tourists.

The Israel Airports Authority said in response that they are unaware of any out of the ordinary security checks that were carried out on the Turkish passengers.

The recent crisis in Israel-Turkey relations deepened after the UN-commissioned report on the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid was leaked to the New York Times, foiling a last-ditch effort to patch up relations between the two countries. Turkey then announced a series of measures against Israel, beginning with the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and the downgrading of bilateral relations to the level of second secretary.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/dozens-of-israelis-questioned-at-length-upon-landing-in-turkey-1.382629

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Reciprocity isn't exactly the mature approach

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Reciprocity isn't exactly the mature approach

Israel reserves the right to conduct its airport security procedures any way it wants. The Turks may do the same.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Foreign Ministry officials admit: Turkey citizens routinely humiliated at Israel's airport

...

Foreign Ministry officials told Haaretz on Monday that over the past year, there were dozens of complaints on the part of Turkish citizens who claimed they were humiliated by Israeli security personnel at Ben-Gurion airport.

The officials also said that almost every Turkish citizen who arrives at Ben-Gurion airport undergoes a routine procedure of extensive, humiliating examinations that also include undressing to one's underwear.

"Turkish citizens are always separated from the rest of the passengers at the airport," said a Foreign Ministry official.

"When their luggage is thoroughly examined and they undergo extensive questioning they understand it comes from security needs, but when they get to the strip search part it breaks them and they are humiliated. Many Turkish businesspeople and tourists have complained about this in the past. This humiliation ceremony of Turkish citizens is a routine matter."

...

"The Ben-Gurion issue is known and as much as we try to fix it, it does not help," said a Foreign Ministry official. "One time the Turks decide to treat us the same way and everyone gets all worked up."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/foreign-ministry-officials-admit-turkey-citizens-routinely-humiliated-at-israel-s-airport-1.382663

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Israel reserves the right to conduct its airport security procedures any way it wants. The Turks may do the same.

Sure. It's just not a very mature approach to do something just because someone else did it to you first. That's how children behave.

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Sure. It's just not a very mature approach to do something just because someone else did it to you first. That's how children behave.

Are you saying that Turkey does not have the right to the same security that Israel has ?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I'm saying that reciprocity over airport security is immature and childish. Reciprocity is practiced by countries other than Israel and Turkey, including the USA.

Does your question have a point?

Edited September 5, 2011 by fishdude

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

I'm saying that reciprocity over airport security is immature and childish. Reciprocity is practiced by countries other than Israel and Turkey, including the USA.

Does your question have a point?

You are not considering the possibility that Turkey has reason to tighten its security procedures.

My question is: Does Israel have the right to conduct its airport security in whatever way it deems necessary, and does Turkey have that same right ?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I understand your question, I don't understand why you are asking it.

I have said that reciprocity is childish. Reciprocity is doing something to citizens of other nationalities out of retaliation for something done to your own. That would not be a "security concern".

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

I understand your question, I don't understand why you are asking it.

I have said that reciprocity is childish. Reciprocity is doing something to citizens of other nationalities out of retaliation for something done to your own. That would not be a "security concern".

Again: you are not even considering the possibility that Turkey has reason to increase its security.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Perhaps they do, perhaps they do not.

However that region of the world is full of childish attitudes and small mindedness, as indeed are the endless discussions on various topics about them on internet message boards.

Edited September 5, 2011 by fishdude

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Perhaps they are, perhaps they are not.

Yet you were willing to rush to a conclusion.

Usually, governments do not release to the public the specific details about the reasons for heightened security alerts.

However, deep down in this article, you may find one of the several possible reasons that Turkey might want to carefully screen arrivals from Israel:

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/israel-must-offer-compensation-to-turkey-1.382423

However that region of the world is full of childish attitudes and small mindedness

Racist comment....

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

You are reading a lot into what I wrote that isn't there. It simply underscores what I said in the previous post.

Why are you so defensive and militant?