Turkey Bans Israel Military Aircraft

Turkey is a key air route for Israeli civilian and military aircraft to reach Europe and parts of Asia.  Israeli planes cannot safely cross Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, or Iran.  Because of the limited travel routes, Israeli planes almost all cross Turkey to fly north or east.

An Israeli military flight carrying officers to Poland for tours of memorial sites and concentration camps was forced to reroute when it neared Turkish air space.  Turkey’s state run Anatolia newspaper published an article stating that the country has closed its airspace to all Israeli military flights because of the Flotilla incident.

It is sad to see Israel’s relationship with Turkey, a valuable ally, degrade so quickly.  It seems that Turkey’s leadership is much more interested in severing relations with Israel than rebuilding, and the growing power of the Islamist population are happy to see the relationship go by the wayside.

As a Muslim country, Turkey has been an important friend for both Israel and the United States.  Turkey has been moving closer to Iran and further from the West over the last several months.  As an associate member, and hopeful full member, of the European Union, Turkey is in a divided position between the West and the Islamic world.  Friedman’s Lexus and the Olive Tree has never seemed so relevant.