© Sputnik/Sergey Guneev"Have I got a deal for you!"
On Saturday, Turkey's parliament, the Grand National Assembly, ratified the bill, which stipulates that Israel transfers $20 million to Turkey within 25 days for a 2010 raid on a Turkish flag-bearing vessel that killed 10 Turkish activists.
Comment: Israel will pay compensation worth $20M to the families and relatives of those killed on the relief ship Mavi Marmara during the May 31, 2010 Gaza flotilla raid. Individual Israeli troops will not be criminalized, nor deemed liable for their actions.
"Israel welcomes the Turkish Parliament's decision to approve the deal recently concluded by the two governments and looks forward to the next steps of its implementation, including the return of our respective ambassadors," the statement published Saturday reads.
In May 2010, a so-called Freedom Flotilla of six ships, including one sailing under a Turkish flag, tried to approach the Gaza Strip with humanitarian aid and activists on board. The flotilla was blocked and stormed by Israeli forces.
Comment: The mischief makers are playing with each other again...what does it mean? Turkey is on the fence jockeying for allies to assuage Western isolation in order to remain a player in the game. Fence-keeper Israel, looking for leverage wherever it can find it, sees useful potential in "monkey-in-the-middle" Turkey. Hence, after six years, the sudden offering of concessions and the treaty. A match made in ____ (fill in the blank). We shall see which side most wants either of these two in their camp.
Turkish parliament ratifies reconciliation treaty with Israel