Israel and Turkey declare cease-fire in twitter war
In recent days, foreign ministry spokesmen in Jerusalem and Ankara have exchanged particularly harsh tweets following Erdogan's verbal attack against Israel; as both sides understand the explosive potential of these exchanges, they decide to make peace and erase them.
In recent days, Israel and Turkey have been waging a tit-for-tat twitter war following the verbal attack by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the metal-detector crisis on the Temple Mount, which intensified the diplomatic rift and could have led to the return of ambassadors to their respective countries for consultations.
Following urgent messages between Ankara and Jerusalem, the hostile tweets were suddenly erased from the Twitter accounts of the two foreign ministries.
The ceasefire came after frantic talks between senior officials of the two foreign ministries, who saw how the hard-won reconciliation between the countries collapses before their eyes.
For two days, Israel and Turkey fought on Twitter.
It all began with Erdogan's attack after the removal of the metal detectors in which he called on all Muslims around the world to go to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and defend Jerusalem.
Erdogan rejected Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem and said that the capital city of Israel is Tel Aviv and the capital of the Palestinians is East Jerusalem. He also claimed that Israel has hidden plans on the Temple Mount.
Erdogan said that in light of the steadfastness of the Muslims in removing the metal detectors, Israel would not be able to implement its plans. He also accused Israel of treating Muslim worshipers as terrorists and claiming that Israel was exploiting the Temple Mount incident to maximize its interests.
An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman tweeted a response: "Turkish President Erdogan statements to his party's activists are wacky, unfounded and distorted. It would be better for him to deal with the problems and difficulties of his country. The days of the Ottoman Empire had passed. The days of the Ottoman Empire are long gone. The capital of the Jewish people had been, is and will be Jerusalem. Unlike in past years, it is a city whose government is committed to security, liberty, religious freedom and respect for the rights of all minorities. He who lives in a glass palace shouldn't throw stones."
The next day, the Foreign Ministry spokesman in Ankara responded in a tweet to the Israeli response and described it as arrogant and said Israel should return to common sense by returning to the status quo on the Temple Mount and removing the barriers to freedom of worship. "It is clear that trying to cover up the fact that east Jerusalem is under occupation will not help solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and achieve peace and stability in the region."
He noted that "the Israeli occupation is in its 50th year in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza."
"During the time of the Ottoman Empire, members of different religions lived in peaceful coexistence in Palestine, and the Jews are expected to know this and to appreciate this tolerance more than anyone else," the Turkish spokesman said. He also mentioned that Turkey guarantees freedom of religion and belief of the Jewish community in Turkey.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry responded with an even harsher tweet: "The days of the Ottoman Empire are over. It is ridiculous to hear that the Turkish government, which occupies northern Cyprus, brutally suppresses the Kurdish minority and imprison journalists, preaches morality to Israel, the only true democracy in the region."
The person who truly objected to the escalation in the Israeli reactions was the head of the Turkish Jewish community, Isaac Ibrahimzadeh, who tweeted that perhaps they should allow President Reuven Rivlin to respond. "He knows how to make peace and avoid escalation," he said.
Sources in Jerusalem feared that because of the Foreign Ministry's harsh reaction, the Turks would call for the Turkish ambassador to be summoned for consultations and possibly even expel the Israeli ambassador.
Senior officials in the two foreign ministries who understood the potential of the crisis hastened to calm the situation and agreed to a cease-fire—starting with Twitter. It is not clear whether this cease-fire will last beyond Twitter and whether Erdogan will continue his attacks on Israel in the coming days.
In Istanbul, a large demonstration initiated by the IHH organization, entitled "Free Jerusalem" is scheduled for Sunday. The organizers of the demonstration say that a million participants are expected at the protest.
The tweets from the Israeli Foreign Ministry caused the Turks a fair amount of damage. All the Israeli representatives in the world retweeted them and they have gained great popularity and exposure in Arab nations, most of which are not fond of Erdogan.
