Turkey threatens to ban all civilian flights as Israel refuses to apologise for massacre

The Turkish government still has not received an apology from Israel for the killing of its civilians at the hands of the IDF. Turkey's foreign minister has demanded, at minimum, an apology. In this morning's Hurriyet newspaper, Israel has made it known that there will be no apology.

Turkey's ban on military flights by Israeli aircraft over its airspace may be extended to civilian ones also:

The threat prompted a blunt response from Israeli Transport Minister Yisrael Katz.

"If that happens we will take appropriate action and obviously ban Turkish airlines," Katz told public radio, warning that a ban on civilian flights would have wider ramifications for Turkey.

"It would be a violation of European aviation regulations; it would harm all the companies that fly to Israel, not just Israeli companies," he said. more

A ban on Israeli civilian flights would have severe economic consequences as it would restrict trans-shipment options into Europe, the country's largest trading partner. Israel has threatened to retaliate if the move goes ahead. Erdogan's anti-Israeli bluster has to be balanced against the longstanding warmth between the military on both sides.

Turkey is also threatening to break all diplomatic relations with the settler state. Israeli president Netanyahu is due in Washington tomorrow.

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