Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence
The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.
ANKARA — The latest exchange of barbs between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu laid bare a rivalry between regional powers whose competing security agendas now collide across Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.
Tensions between Turkey and Israel flared again earlier this week after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday accused Israel of threatening Turkey through its military operations in Syria and Lebanon and its expanding partnerships in the eastern Mediterranean.
“Syria and Lebanon are two states that are within Turkey’s geography of love and brotherhood. Damascus and Beirut are two brotherly cities of Istanbul. Turkey’s security starts not in Hatay province but in Aleppo, Damascus [and] Beirut,” he said.
Israel has been striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon and separately hit military sites in southern Syria in March, saying it was responding to attacks on Druze civilians, many of whom have kin in northern Israel.
