Israel will return the Turkish aid ships on which its troops killed nine activists trying to reach blockaded Gaza, officials said today, in what appeared to be a new bid to repair bilateral ties.
Turkey, once a rare Muslim friend of Israel, withdrew its ambassador and suspended joint military exercises after the May 31st raid on the Mavi Marmara cruise ship and five other vessels. Ankara also demanded an apology, but Israel has ruled that out.
While the Jewish state lost a powerful ally in the region, Turkey rallied outraged Arab and Muslim nations and in doing so staked its claim to a leading role in the Middle East under its AK Party government, which has roots in political Islam.
Talks to return the Mavi Marmara and two other Turkish-owned ships from the flotilla had been held up by Israel's demand the owners undertake not to sail against the blockade, which it says prevents arms smuggling to Gaza's Islamist Hamas rulers.
"A decision was made yesterday to allow the ships to leave without further conditions. Turkey has been informed. They will leave soon," an Israeli official said.
The Turkish embassy was handling discussions on how to retrieve the ships from Haifa and Ashdod ports, another Israeli official said, but the embassy had no immediate comment.
The return of the ships was one of steps the UN Security Council had asked Israel to take a day after the raid.
"This was something Israel had to do anyway. There were certain steps Israel needed to take, and this was one of them," Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu was quoted as saying in Vietnam by state-run Anatolian news agency.
"We hope the other necessary steps will be taken," he said.
Reuters