Wants stability? Erdogan
Photo: Reuters
NYTimes: Turkey's gone too far
Paper's editorial says Turkish officials 'let their anger and rhetoric go way too far'; calls on Israel to agree to international probe of 'flotilla disaster'
Turkey criticized: In a Friday New York Times editorial titled Turkey's Fury, the paper wrote "Turkey is understandably furious about Israel’s disastrous attack on the Turkish-flagged aid ship," but slammed Ankara for "going too far."
"Turkish officials have let their anger and rhetoric go way too far," the editorial said.
The article made note of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's call to punish Israel, which he dubbed a "terror state," and Turkish President Abdullah Gul's statement, saying "Turkey will never forgive this attack."
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The article also mentioned the World Economic Forum in Davos, where Erdogan stormed off stage during a joint panel with Israeli President Shimon Peres. "His new even fiercer denunciations are playing well at home and in the wider Muslim world. But Mr. Erdogan may find it hard to walk things back when he needs to — and he will."
In the article, the newspaper lauds Turkish mediation efforts during indirect negotiations between Israel and Syria, but is not as pleased with its mediation efforts with Iran.
"If Turkey is truly committed to the rights of the Palestinians, it should be pressing other Muslim countries to seriously encourage an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal — the best way to up the pressure on Israel," it claimed.
The paper also called on Israel to agree to an international probe, for the sake of its own interests and ties with Turkey, but said "Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still doesn’t get this. Washington needs to help him understand all that is at stake."
