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The Mavi Marmara: An Embattled Voyage and Its Consequences

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Contemporary Israeli–Turkish Relations in Comparative Perspective

Abstract

The heyday of Turkish–Israeli relations is over. Turkey, a once-popular tourist destination for many Israelis, has been abandoned in favor of other Eastern Mediterranean resorts.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Israel Military Radio, Galei Tzahal, April 4, 2018.

  2. 2.

    http://www.bilgesam.org/incele/5778/-turkiye-israil-iliskilerinin-sahici-restorasyonu---realist-bir-oneri-seti/#.Wyo8laczY2w; http://plitikaakademisi.org/2016/11/17/turkiye-israil-barisi-dogu-akdenizde-yeni-statuko/.

  3. 3.

    http://ctrs.khas.edu.tr/post/27/turk-dis-politikasi-kamuoyu-algilari-arastirmasi-2018.

  4. 4.

    Özlem Tür, “Turkey and Israel in the 2000s—From Cooperation to Conflict”, Israel Studies, Vol. 17, No. 3, p. 49.

  5. 5.

    Mahmut Bali Aykan, “The Turkey-US-Israel Triangle: Continuity, Change and Implications for Turkey’s Post Cold War Middle East Policy”, Journal of South Eastern and Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 22, No. 4, Summer 1999.

  6. 6.

    Matthew S. Cohen and Charles D. Freilich, op.cit., p. 7.

  7. 7.

    Erdoğan’a cesaret ödülü, Sabah, June 10, 2005.

  8. 8.

    Bulut Gürpınar, “Dış Politika ve Kamuoyu: Mavi Marmara Krizi”, Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, Cilt 10, Sayı 53, p. 243.

  9. 9.

    Mensur Akgün and Others, “Zor Zamanda Siyaset: Israil-Türkiye İlişkileri”, TESEV Dış Politika Programı, 2014, p. 10.

  10. 10.

    Carol Migdalovitz, “Israel’s Blockade of Gaza , the Mavi Marmara Incident, and Its Aftermath”, June 23, 2010, CRS Report for Congress, https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/R41275.pdf.

  11. 11.

    Mohammed Alsaftawi, “Who Needs Whom? Turkey and Israel Agree on Normalization Deal”, IAI Working Papers 16, November 30, 2016, p. 3.

  12. 12.

    Oğuz Çelikkol, op.cit., p. 76.

  13. 13.

    Mohammed Alsaftawi, “Who Needs Whom? Turkey and Israel Agree on Normalization Deal”, IAI Working Papers, November 30, 2016.

  14. 14.

    Rachel Brandenburg Interview with Kemal Kirişçi, December 29, 2004. See Rachel Brandenburg, “No Longer Newlyweds: The Evolution of Turkish Foreign Policy Towards Israel”, Turkish Policy Quarterly, Vol. 4, No. 4, Winter 2005, pp. 11–12.

  15. 15.

    Deepa Prakash and Aslı Ilgıt, op.cit., p. 130.

  16. 16.

    Ofra Bengio, The Daily Star, Lebanon , March 9, 2009.

  17. 17.

    Ibid.

  18. 18.

    “Turkish-Hamas Relations: Between Strategic Calculations and Ideological Affinity”, Gallia Lindenstrauss and Süfyan Kadir Kıvam, Strategic Assessment, | Vol. 17, No. 2, July 2014, http://www.inss.org.il/publication/turkish-hamas-relations-between-strategic-calculations-and-ideological-affinity.

  19. 19.

    Ephraim Inbar, “The Deterioration in Israeli-Turkish Relations and Its International Ramifications”, The Begin–Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Bar-Ilan University, Mideast Security and Policy Studies, No. 89, https://www.peacepalacelibrary.nl/ebooks/files/371654882.pdf.

  20. 20.

    Emre ERDOĞAN and INFAKTO RW, “Dış Politikada Siyasallaşma: Türk Kamuoyunun “Davos Krizi” ve Etkileri Hakkındaki Değerlendirmeleri”, Uluslararası İlişkiler Dergisi, Vol. 10, No. 37, Bahar 2013, p. 44.

  21. 21.

    Matthew S. Cohen and Charles D. Freilich, “Breakdown and Possible Restart: Turkish-Israeli Relations Under the AKP”, Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2014, p. 4; Deepa Prakash and Aslı Ilgıt, op.cit., p. 139.

  22. 22.

    Oğuz Çelikkol, One Minute’ten Mavi Marmara ’ya İsrail-Türkiye Çatışması (Istanbul: Doğan Yayınları, 2014), 36.

  23. 23.

    Haaretz, June 24, 2011, https://www.haaretz.com/1.5023631.

  24. 24.

    The Time of Israel, January 14, 2010, http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1953746,00.html.

  25. 25.

    Ofra Bengio, “Turkey’s Quiet Revolution and Its Impact on Israel”, Journal of Foreign Affairs, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2010, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264856881_Turkey’s_Quiet_Revolution_and_Its_Impact_on_Israel.

  26. 26.

    Ahmet Davutoğlu, “Turkey’s Foreign Policy Vision: An Assesment of 2007”, Insight Turkey, Vol. 10, No. 1, 2008, p. 78.

  27. 27.

    Kemal Kirişçi, “Transformation of Turkish Foreign Policy: Rise of Trading State”, New Perspectives on Turkey, Vol. 40, Spring 2009, pp. 29–57.

  28. 28.

    Philip O. Amour, “Israel, the Arab Sipring, and the Unfolding Regional Order in the Middle East : A Strategic Assessment”, British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 44, No. 3, 2017, p. 2.

  29. 29.

    Gencer Özcan, “Mavi Marmara Bunalımında Sonun Başlangıcına Doğru”, Ortadoğu Analiz, Vol. 2, No. 21, Eylül 2010, p. 30.

  30. 30.

    Yusuf Selman, “Anti-Iran Turkish-Israeli Alliance Plausible Despite Multi-Faceted Regional Issues”, Daily Sabah, March 18, 2017, https://www.dailysabah.com/mideast/2017/03/18/anti-iran-turkish-israeli-alliance-plausible-despite-multi-faceted-regional-issues.

  31. 31.

    Ayşegül Sever and Gonca Oğuz Gök, “The UN Factor in the Regional Power Role and the Turkish Case in the 2000s”, Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 2016, pp. 24–26.

  32. 32.

    Hürriyet (Turkish Daily), June 3, 2010.

  33. 33.

    Around from 38 countries 700 activists took part in the expedition by the Free Gaza Movement to deliver 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Gaza. See Carol Migdalovitz, “Israel’s Blockade of Gaza, the Mavi Marmara Incident, and Its Aftermath”, June 23, 2010, CRS Report for Congress.

  34. 34.

    Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Press Conference with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, May 31, 2010, http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2010/Pages/Gaza_flotilla_Press_conference_DepFM_Ayalon_31-May-2010.aspx.

  35. 35.

    Ibid.

  36. 36.

    Ibid.

  37. 37.

    “Press: No Surprises in Israel Flotilla Report?”, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8814730.stm#sa-link_location=story-body&intlink_from_url; https://www.bbc.com/news/10603486&intlink_ts=1531157751504-sa.

  38. 38.

    Times of Israel, July 15, 2014, http://www.timesofisrael.com/turkish-pm-accuses-israel-of-state-terrorism/?fb_comment_id=680719285330703_680892968646668#f3ed2682d033ec.

  39. 39.

    United Nations, May 31, 2010, https://www.un.org/press/en/2010/sc9940.doc.htm.

  40. 40.

    Ibid.

  41. 41.

    Ibid.

  42. 42.

    Ibid.

  43. 43.

    Ynet, May 31, 2010, https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3896963,00.html.

  44. 44.

    “İsrail’in Saldırısı Bizim 11 Eylül’ümüz”, Milliyet, June 7, 2010.

  45. 45.

    Hasan Köşebalaban “Towards a New Strategic Alliance Between Turkey and Israel”, Al Sharq Forum, August 10, 2016, http://www.sharqforum.org/2016/08/10/towards-a-new-strategic-alliance-between-turkey-and-israel/.

  46. 46.

    UN-Appointed Palmer Commission, Report on the Gaza Flotilla Incident, New York, July 2011 (excerpts). Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 41, No. 2, Winter 2012, pp. 200–204, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/jps.2012.xli.2.200.

  47. 47.

    Ibid.

  48. 48.

    http://www.un.org/News/dh/infocus/middle_east/Gaza_Flotilla_Panel_Report.pdf.

  49. 49.

    Ibid.

  50. 50.

    Ibid.

  51. 51.

    Ibid.

  52. 52.

    Ibid.

  53. 53.

    http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israeli-minister-hits-back-erdogan-is-the-enemy-not-turkey-1.297057S.

  54. 54.

    Ibid.

  55. 55.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/sep/02/turkey-expels-israel-ambassador-gaza, September 2, 2011.

  56. 56.

    http://vasington.be.mfa.gov.tr/Mission/ShowAnnouncement/130298.

  57. 57.

    Gencer Özcan, “Mavi Marmara Bunalımında Sonun Başlangıcına Doğru”, Ortadoğu Analiz, Vol. 2, No. 21, Eylül 2010, p. 33.

  58. 58.

    Deepa Prakash and Aslı Ilgıt, “More Than a Feeling: Emotional Responses to International Criticism in Erdoğan’s Turkey”, Review of International Studies, Vol. 43, Part 1, p. 147.

  59. 59.

    https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/turkey-supports-food-assistance-gaza.

  60. 60.

    Bezen Balamir Coşkun, “Arap Baharı’nın Gölgesinde Israel-Filistin Sorunu ve Türkiye-İsrail İlişkileri”, Orsam, Cilt 4, Sayı 42, Haziran 2012, p. 31.

  61. 61.

    Statement by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, United Nations General Assembly 44th Plenary Meeting, November 29, 2012 (A/67/PV.44).

  62. 62.

    For a wider account on US, Turkey, and Israel relations. See Dan Arbel, The U.S.-Turkey-Israel Triangle, Brooking Institute, No. 34, October 2014, https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/USTurkeyIsrael-TriangleFINAL.pdf.

  63. 63.

    The White House, March 22, 2013, Statement by President Obama on Turkey and Israel | The White House, https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/…/statement-president-obama-turkey-and-israel.

  64. 64.

    Foreign Affairs, March 23, 2013, https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/turkey/2013-03-23/why-israel-and-turkey-got-back-together.

  65. 65.

    Göktuğ Sönmez, “Signalling a New Era in the Region: Turkish-Israeli Reconciliation”, Orsam Review of Regional Affairs, No. 44, July 2016, p. 3.

  66. 66.

    https://www.haaretz.com/1.5148234, December 2, 2010 (a huge brushfire raged across the Carmel Mountains in northern Israel, killing and injuring dozens, among them prison guards and firemen).

  67. 67.

    https://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Israel-offers-Turkey-earthquake-assistance, November 23, 2011.

  68. 68.

    https://www.haaretz.com/1.5203455, October 23, 2011; https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4884637,00.html.

  69. 69.

    Hasan Köşebalaban, “The Crisis in Turkish-Israeli Relations”, Middle East Policy, Vol. 17, No. 3, 2010, p. 41; Matthew S. Cohen, “Breakdown and Possible Restart: Turkish-Israeli Relations Under the AKP”, Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2014, p. 3. Gilad Shalit an Israeli soldier was kidnapped by Hamas on June 25, 2006 and was held captive for five years until his release on October 18, 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange during which Israel freed 1027 prisoners. While in captivity he was denied any contact with his family or Israeli representatives. Haaretz, December 8, 2016. See https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/gilad-shalit-israel-s-most-famous-ex-pow-has-a-new-career-1.5470578.

  70. 70.

    Jerusalem Post, August 20, 2013, https://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Erdogan-Israel-orchestrated-Morsi-overthrow.

  71. 71.

    https://www.timesofisrael.com/erdogan-says-israel-atempting-systematic-genocide-in-gaza, July 17, 2014.

  72. 72.

    Bloomberg, July 20, 2014, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-07-20/turkey-s-erdogan-compares-israel-gaza-offensive-to-hitler.

  73. 73.

    Reuters News Agency, July 15, 2014, https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-israel-turkey-travel-idUKKBN0FO0XD20140719.

  74. 74.

    Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://mfa.gov.il/ConsularService/TravelAdvisory/Pages/Turkey_180714.aspx.12.8.2014.

  75. 75.

    Ibid.

  76. 76.

    Jerusalem Post, July 8, 2014, www.jpost.com/…/Israel-wont-tolerate-Erdogans-tirades-after-Turkey-election-Liberm.

  77. 77.

    Yoel Guzansky, “Israel’s Periphery Doctrine 2.0: The Mediterranean Plus”, Mediterranean Politics, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 104–105.

  78. 78.

    For further details on Greek–Israeli relationship. See Aristotle Tziampiris, The Emergence of Israeli-Greek Cooperation (New York: Springer, 2014).

  79. 79.

    Arye Mekel, “A New Geopolitical Bloc Is Born in the Eastern Mediterranean : Israel, Greece and Cyprus ”, The Begin–Sadat Center, February 16, 2016, https://besacenter.org/perspectives-papers/israel-greece-and-cyprus.

  80. 80.

    Ibid.

  81. 81.

    Orna Almog and Ayşegül Sever, “Hide and Seek-Israeli Turkish Relations and the Baghdad Pact”, Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 53, No. 3, January 2017, pp. 609–623.

  82. 82.

    Ibid.

  83. 83.

    Ibid.

  84. 84.

    Mohammed Alsaftawi, “Turkish Foreign Policy Towards Israel and Palestine ”, Ghent University, 2017, https://mafiadoc.com/queue/turkish-policy-towards-israel-and-palestine-ghent-university-_5a00cd7b1723dd21f40d2cd2.html.

  85. 85.

    Soon after the jet crisis, relations between Ankara and Moscow were restored; and this was particularly reflected in their respective policies in Syria .

  86. 86.

    Hasan Köşebalaban, “Towards a New Strategic Alliance Between Turkey and Israel”, Al Sharq Forum, August 10, 2016, http://www.sharqforum.org/2016/08/10/towards-a-new-strategic-alliance-between-turkey-and-israel/.

  87. 87.

    Mustafa Akyol, “What Comes After the Istanbul Air Attack”, Opinion, New York Times, June 29, 2016.

  88. 88.

    Mesut Özcan, “Turkish Foreign Policy Under AKP”, Insight Turkey, Vol. 19, No. 2, Spring 2017, p. 12.

  89. 89.

    Hasan Köşebalaban, “Towards a New Strategic Alliance Between Turkey and Israel”, Al Sharq Forum, August 10, 2016, http://www.sharqforum.org/2016/08/10/towards-a-new-strategic-alliance-between-turkey-and-israel/.

  90. 90.

    Yossi Alper, Israel: Alternative Regional Options in a Changing Middle East , June 2013, https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/166559/b151938c198b0872c368a0eacebe96f0.pdf.

  91. 91.

    The Times of Israel, January 2, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/turkey-needs-israel-says-erdogan-as-he-pushes-reconciliation.

  92. 92.

    The Washington Institute, http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/israel-and-turkey-approaching-reconciliation-amid-policy-challenges.

  93. 93.

    The Times of Israel, June 26, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/turkey-president-commits-to-help-free-israelis-from-gaza-as-deal-nears.

  94. 94.

    Haaretz, co.il, June 27, 2016, http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.727369.

  95. 95.

    Ibid.

  96. 96.

    Ibid.

  97. 97.

    The Times of Israel, June 27, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-turkey-agreement-immense-for-israeli-economy.

  98. 98.

    Hamodia, June 27, 2016, https://hamodia.com/2016/06/27/liberman-opposed-turkey-deal.

  99. 99.

    Times of Israel, June 28, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-home-ministers-to-vote-against-turkey-reconciliation-2/.

  100. 100.

    Hamodia, op.cit.

  101. 101.

    Ibid.

  102. 102.

    Israeli soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul were killed in the Gaza war in 2014, but Hamas refused to return their remains to Israel. It was hoped that the deal with Turkey would include the return of bodies to Israel as Erdogan had pledged to help secure the release of the bodies. The failure of the Israeli government to release their bodies caused angered among many in Israel. See The Times of Israel, June 27, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/families-blast-turkey-deal-for-failing-to-bring-soldiers-bodies-home/.

  103. 103.

    http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/27/israels-reconciliation-with-turkey-could-lead-to-new-energy-deals.

  104. 104.

    Belal Aldabbour, “Gazza’s Palestinians Divided Over Israel-Turkey Deal”, June 29, 2016, Al Jazira News, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/06/gaza-palestinians-divided-israel-turkey-deal-160629070137136.html.

  105. 105.

    Yeni Şafak (Turkish Daily), July 2, 2016.

  106. 106.

    Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2016/Pages/President-Rivlin-receives-diplomatic-credentials-of-new-Ambassador-of-Turkey-to-Israel-12-December-2016.aspx.

  107. 107.

    “Yedi l Yıl Sonra İlk Ziyaret: Nabi Avcı İsrail’de”, Cumhuriyet (Turkish Daily), February 7, 2017.

  108. 108.

    Times of Israel, July 18, 2016, https://www.timesofisrael.com/netanyahu-failed-turkey-coup-wont-affect-reconciliation.

  109. 109.

    Ibid.

  110. 110.

    Times of Israel, February 13, 2018, https://www.timesofisrael.com/turkey-denies-israeli-accusation-it-provides-military-aid-to-hamas.

  111. 111.

    Brooking Institute, https://www.brookings.edu/blog/markaz/2017/07/31/tensions-over-jerusalem-expose-vulnerability-of-turkey-israel-relations-one-year-after-normalizing-ties.

  112. 112.

    Times of Israel, July 26, 2017, https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-turkey-invoke-ottoman-empire-in-spat-over-jerusalem.

  113. 113.

    Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, July 25, 2017, http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2017/Pages/MFA-response-to-remarks-by-the-president-of-Turkey-25-July-2017.aspx.

  114. 114.

    Times of Israel, September 30, 2017, https://www.timesofisrael.com/erdogan-claims-mossad-played-a-role-in-iraqi-kurdistans-independence-vote.

  115. 115.

    https://www.gazeteduvar.com.tr/politika/2017/09/26/erdogan-yaptirimlar-baslarsa-yiyecek-dahi-bulamayacaklar/.

  116. 116.

    The White House, December 6, 2017, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/statement-president-trump-jerusalem.

  117. 117.

    Jerusalem Post, December 6, 2017, https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Erdogan-Ill-cut-ties-with-Israel-517120, December 6, 2017.

  118. 118.

    The Express Tribute, December 10, 2017, https://tribune.com.pk/story/1580821/3-netanyahu-accuses-erdogan-helping-terrorists.

  119. 119.

    https://www.ntv.com.tr/dunya/cumhurbaskani-erdoganabdnin-elciligi-kuduse-tasimasini-tanimiyoruz,z4VbPAm8s0a4TkNDs_lKsA.

  120. 120.

    http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/yazarlar/oguz-celikkol/filistin-sorunu-ve-turkiye-israil-iliskileri-40846459.

  121. 121.

    Çelikkol, op.cit., p. 14.

  122. 122.

    Turkish-Israel Civil Soviety Forum (TICSF). See http://jerusalem.fnst.org/content/third-meeting-turkish-israeli-civil-society-forum-coordination-workshop.

  123. 123.

    Barçın Yınanç, ‘Turkish-Israeli Normalization on Hold’, Hürriyet Daily News, April 10, 2018, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/opinion/barcin-yinanc/turkish-israeli-normalization-on-hold-130039.

  124. 124.

    Tarık Oğuzlu, “The Changing Dynamics of Turkey-Israeli Relations: A Structural Realist Account”, Mediterranean Politics, Vol. 15, No. 2, 2010, p. 276.

  125. 125.

    Barçın Yınanç, “Turkish-Israeli Normalization on Hold”, Hürriyet Daily News, April 10, 2018, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/opinion/barcin-yinanc/turkish-israeli-normalization-on-hold-130039.

  126. 126.

    Mynet News, May 17, 2018, https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5263190,00.html.

  127. 127.

    Ofra Bengio, “Altercating Interests and Orientations Between Israel and Turkey: A View from Israel”, Insight Turkey, Vol. 11, No. 2, June 2009, p. 54.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Independent Researcher, Politics and International Relations, Kingston University, London, UK

    Orna Almog

  2. Political Science and International Relations at Marmara University, Anadoluhisarı, Istanbul, Turkey

    Ayşegül Sever

  3. Visiting Scholar, London School of Economics LSE Ideas, London, UK

    Ayşegül Sever

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  1. Orna Almog
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  1. Political Science and International Relations, Marmara University, Anadoluhisarı, Istanbul, Turkey

    Ayşegül Sever

  2. London School of Economics LSE Ideas, London, UK

    Orna Almog

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Almog, O., Sever, A. (2019). The Mavi Marmara: An Embattled Voyage and Its Consequences. In: Sever, A., Almog, O. (eds) Contemporary Israeli–Turkish Relations in Comparative Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05786-2_4

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