Following 10 days of airstrikes, Israel launched a ground operation in the Gaza Strip on July 17. Subsequently, not only did Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s initial measured reaction turn sharper, but all four political parties represented in Turkey's parliament uncharacteristically agreed — on a document condemning Israel’s Gaza operation. Protests also took place in front of the Israeli missions in Ankara and Istanbul, which led Israel to reduce to a minimum its diplomatic staff in Turkey.
Erdogan claimed on July 18 that this latest round of escalation did not start with the abduction of the three Israeli teenagers on June 12. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who arrived in Istanbul on July 18 for a previously scheduled meeting with both his counterpart Abdullah Gul and Erdogan, echoed the same view. Abbas said in a joint news conference with Gul, “This latest round of conflict started with the Palestinian boy being burned to death [July 2].”
