We don't want anything from you. This is what we do when people are in need. Ask the Haitians, or the Japanese or even your own citizens back in 1999. People are hurt and need help, we help just like America does - because it is the right thing to do. We would make the offer to Syria as well even though they are at war with us.

Ah, Anton, join the list. I surprise a great many people. I assure you that Israel has made a sincere offer of help. Lives hang in the balance. Jews are, first and foremost, humanitarians. We are supposed to be a light unto the nations. Please give us the chance to fullfill our destiny, and please respect it for what it truly is -- a genuine offer of help. You should trust us.

Please point out where Israel has praised itself. Turkey will get a lot of lip service from a lot of countries. Israel will provide the real deal, with no fanfare. Prove me wrong, oh unnamed one.

Of course I support help. I have just arrived home from an emergency meeting of the Sisterhood at my shul, and we have just committed $500,000 to immediate emergency relief. That's just today. We will raise more tomorrow and in the forthcoming days. My daughter's school (she's my youngest) is holding a food and clothing drive. I'm about to put together a few boxes. To those who want to help, but don't know what to do, I'll share my daughter's school's list: canned food (please include a can opener), boxed food, blankets, clothes, sheets, blankets, coats. Any Red Cross outlet; many churches, many synagogues. Shouldn't be hard to find on the Internet. Just get the aid out the door as quickly as possible. Human lives are at stake. Is there anything more important? I think not.

I am ALWAYS constructive like this. I am, after all, a human being. Believe it or not!

Why would you wait 2 days to ask us for aid, when the government was offering to you from the beginning. That just most likely costed much more lives that could've been saved.

I agree that when you help you should not brag about but in every nation there are all kinds of people some who would brag and many more who would not. in fact only last week in one talkbacks here in Ynet a Turk was bragging about the Turkish aid sent to Somalia. Additionally let me remind you that i follow teh Turkishmedia (Huriyet, Milliye, Haberturk, zaman, Sabah etc) daily on the Internet. I don;t have to tell you about all the bragging and sometimes excessive attack3es even slurs against foreigners especially Israelis. However i can assure you once the Israeli prefabricated housing will be set and the victims of Van earthquake start living in them they will appreciate it just likr the People of Kocaeli appreciated the Israeli homes that were built very quickly and ready with running water sewer and electricity.

Let me remind you that Israel have helped Turkey against terrorism from PKK. It was Israeli intelligence that helped capture Abdullah Ocalan. Germany and USA (your NATO allies) did not want to modernize the Turkish jets and tanks if they would be used against PKK but Israel did. Israel sold Turkey the Herons and while they were not ready for delivery and Turkey needed them Israel loaned 3 of them providing Israeli soldiers to use them against PKK since Turkish staff were not trained yet. First your post is wrong as i have explained above, second you are being NANKOR. OH: I did not even mention many other help that Israel have provided to Turkey between 1985 and 2008.

Emre, You should be a diplomat. Your solution is so very sensible. People to people is the only way to peace.

The Scorpion and the Frog A scorpion and a frog meet on the bank of a stream and the scorpion asks the frog to carry him across on its back. The frog asks, "How do I know you won't sting me?" The scorpion says, "Because if I do, I will die too." The frog is satisfied, and they set out, but in midstream, the scorpion stings the frog. The frog feels the onset of paralysis and starts to sink, knowing they both will drown, but has just enough time to gasp "Why?" Replies the scorpion: "Its my nature..."

Aid is arriving but the thieving survivors are grabbing it to sell to the needy. Meanwhile, Erdogan is not the least interested otherwise he would have sent in the army to assist with the crisis and ensure some kind of order.

geographi isn't your strong side, the two earth plates r actually formed the Jordan Valley, gaza isn't near the Jordan valley. hahaha

Is that you? Is that really you? If it is, you blow my mind.

Yeah. It really is me. You just might not realize who and what I am.

Really? Are you ever wrong. Israel will help save lives. Does that offend your sensibilities? Too bad. We're going to save them anyway. Deal with it.

Oh, hell, if a massive earthquake were to hit Iran -- not an unknown thing -- Israel would be the first to respond. It's what we do. A number of years back, Algeria was stricken with a massive earthquake. Israel was first on the scene. Like I said: It's WHAT WE DO.

You seem to me to be more at home at Haaretz

Turkey befriends Israel when turkey desparately needs help. Israel, you are a ray of light in the midst of your enemies bent on destroying you.

Israel also offfered it to Iran in 2004. Unfortunately, they turned it down. Who knows how many people may have been saved if they hadn't?

could it possibly be because the victims are kurds? or because accepting help from infidels doesn't fit well with erdogan's posturing as leader of the moslem countries?

Nankor is a title which seems to fit more to you. If you want to compete Israel and Turkey in terms of giving aid, Turks beat it undoubtedly, just look at the history of Turks' aid to Jews for centuries. You and the rest of the Sefarad Jews owe their existence to Turks. But Turks are more humane and decent than people like you, so I will stop listing Turks' aid to Jews here. As for PKK, I live in Israel and I know how compassionate and supportive Israelies to PKK Kurds. Israelies have always been pro-PKK, even in the 1990s. Read Seymour Hersch, he details Israeli aid to PKK clearly.

I would agree with you if a rescue need was the case. But Israeli or any other rescue team is not needed. Israel is sending 7 temporary housing structures, that's it. Turkey doesn't need more. This seems more like gesture help offer and gesture help acceptance. Oh by the way, there were times Greece was holding pro-PKK rallies and even Greek primary schools were collecting money for PKK terror against Turks. It seems that Greece is paying what it sow now, perhaps Greece should ask for bailout from PKK, eh?! How does it feel to support terror against your neighbour?!!!

So, where was Turkey when the Neve Shalom and Beth Israel synagogues in Istanbul were blown up in November 2003? Spare me. Turkey cannot hold a candle to the Jewish people when it comes to charity and philanthropic work.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Turkey is getting considerably more aid from Israel than seven temporary housing structures. Moreover, when it comes to supporting terror against your neighbor, exactly how would you characterize the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey in 1974 and the ongoing illegal occupation by Turkey? For that matter, how would you characterize the ill-fated voyage of the MAVI MARMARA, that was supposedly on a "humanitarian" mission despite the fact that it carried nothing in the way of "humanitarian" aid except for a couple of boxes of expired over the counter medications and some mouldy blankets?

In this day of tragedy I did not want to go into these but since you asked for it I will have to explain reluctantly: Indeed Ottoman Empire accepted the Iberic Sephardi but it was not for pure compassion. At the time Ottomans had conquered Istanbul, Izmir, Manisa regions which was all Greek population unfriendly to Turks. Sultan Beyazit saw an opportunity to settle the Sephardi Jews who would become grateful and provide a balance to the hostile Greek population. Under the Ottoman Empire Jews were left as the poorest millet until the 16th century when wealthy French Jews extended their helping hand in educating (Alliance Israelite Universelles schools) the Turkish Jews and changing their dark destiny. In the early years of the new Turkish republic there has been organized pogroms against Turkish Jews such as the 1936 Kirklareli incidents when the Turkish military closed eyes when the Kirkpinar Wrestlers attacked the Jewish community (Among them a relative of mine was stabbed in his face). Similar incidents happened around Kirklareli such as Edirne, Babaeski etc. In 1941 varlik Vergisi tax was established to confiscate all property wealth and even household furniture etc from Jews and Armenians. My family lost a lot at that time including a business building at Bankalar caddesi Istanbul. One old relative was sent to Ashkale labor camp. Same year Another law was passed the 21 draft military service which was in fact another labor camp for younger Jews. My father who had already served his military service was drafted once again and sent to Afyon labor camp while others to Yozgat. In 1955 (I am old enough to remember that day) September 6-7 in reaction to a fake news fabricated by the Turkish government that Ataturk's birth home in Salonika was burned mobs attacked not only Greeks but also Jews and Armenians. You may think that after all these things Jews would have turned their back to Turks but in fact the opposite happened. In 1974 Turkish Invasion of Cyprus brought a crippling embargo to Turkey and over decades Turkish economy was so bad that 1USD which was below 100 TL by 1985 jumped to 1.5 million TL. At that time PM Turgut Ozal asked the Turkish Jews to help. (I in the USA did my part in helping also) With this help0 Israel and Israeli lobby was mobilized, USA government was influenced to lift that embargo. That Israeli influence in USA and EU helped foreign capital flow into Turkey which is the driving force of the current Turkish economy. And as for Kurds; You know very well that Abdullah Ocalan was caught with the help of Israeli intelligence. When no other western country provided arm modernization to Turkey Israel did. israel provided intelligence against PKK for many years which made the fight against PKK effective. Since Ergdoan has cooled relations with Israel and now considers hamas not only a friend but also denies that Hamas is a terror group you should not be surprised that many Israelis start to sympathize with PKK. Unfortunately it is a reaction to Erdogan and AKP policies which creates a vicious circle of hostility. Enough of hostilities. There is a human tragedy in Van. It is time to forget the past and be friends again. It is also time for Turks to face their demons and make peace with their citizens of Kurdish ethnicity.

This PKK TERROR is more than 30 years old because the wrong policy of TURKISH GOVERNMENTS decision to suppress the KURDISH CULTURAL IDENTITY such as PROHIBITION to speak their MOTHER TONGUE ! PROHIBITION TO LISTEN TO their SONGS etc. !This TERROR is the reaction of Kurdish People for their RIGHTS !!

Thank you so much for your extraordinarily informative post.

I really hope Israel is not going to help Turkey. Turkey also wants nothing more than to destroy Israel. Let their allies help them instead of bending over for them as their enemy and giving them what they want.