Israel seeks to mend strained relations with Turkey

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday met with Israeli Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer in Brussels. During the unexpected closed-door meeting, which lasted for more than two hours, the two reportedly discussed ways to mend ties between their countries, which came close to collapse following Israel's May 31 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, which left nine Turkish peace activists dead. On the sidelines of last weekend's G-20 summit in Toronto, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Israel to meet Turkey's three demands to overcome the crisis in bilateral relations: An official apology for the bloody attack, accepting an international investigation into the incident, and completely lifting its blockade of Gaza.