The Human Right to Water in Israel: A Case Study of the Unrecognized Bedouin Villages in the Negev
On June 5, 2011, the Israeli Supreme Court ruled, in a case brought by residents of unrecognized Bedouin villages in... more On June 5, 2011, the Israeli Supreme Court ruled, in a case brought by residents of unrecognized Bedouin villages in Israel, that the right to water is a basic right deserving protection under Israel’s Basic Law: Human Dignity and Freedom, under international human rights law, and under the Israeli Water Law (9535/06 Abadallah Abu Massad, et al. v Water Commissioner & Israel Lands Administration, 2011). Section II of this paper begins with the Abu Massad decision, setting forth the key facts and synthesizing the court’s legal analysis. In order to situate the Supreme Court’s decision within the broader political context, Section III of the paper attempts to succinctly summarize over a hundred years of history surrounding the Bedouin’s disputed land claims in the Negev, starting with their land claims under Ottoman rule and moving to modern day. It also describes recent steps taken by the Israeli government to address the land issues of Bedouins living in unrecognized villages in the Negev, including the Goldberg Report and the Prawer Plan. Section IV of the paper then analyzes the legal and policy implications of the Abu Massad case and offers two key recommendations in light of the fact that the Israeli Water Authority’s interim solution for providing water to unrecognized villages will continue indefinitely until the underlying land issues are resolved. First, the Supreme Court’s invocation of the right to water under Israeli Basic Law and under international human rights law is important because it heightens the level of judicial scrutiny that can be applied to the Israeli Water Authority’s policy decisions in the Negev. Second, the Israeli Water Authority should also re-examine, as an empirical matter, whether its water policy in the Negev has been effective. In conclusion, the Israeli Supreme Court’s decision in Abu Massad case is an important window into the challenging water and land issues facing the unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Negev region of Israel. Although there is no question that the underlying land disputes need to be resolved equitably, it is also critical to ensure that the human right to water is realized for the Bedouins, thereby promoting the basic human dignity of all of Israel’s citizens.
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Download (.pdf) Development Dissonance: Israeli Development in the Negev and its Impact on the Bedouin Indigenous People
This paper explores the national development policies of the Southern Negev desert in Israel and its impact on the... more This paper explores the national development policies of the Southern Negev desert in Israel and its impact on the Bedouin indigenous population who inhabited the land before the state came into existence. While Israel is amongst the developing nations of the world and is deeply committed to sustainable development, when comparing and contrasting the definitions of sustainable international development with Israeli perceptions of sustainable development, it becomes clear that development designated for the Negev region is not geographically defined, but rather designed to selectively benefit the Jewish inhabitants of the Negev, thus revealing a development dissonance. This paper examines the Israeli development dissonance, exploring the wide gap between Israel's development achievements and capabilities and its development policies in the Negev that undermine principles of equitable and sustainable development.
Do Journalists Index the Range of Government Frames?
by Itay Gabay
Studies examining the indexing hypothesis have so far paid little attention to the actual opinions of the actors... more
Studies examining the indexing hypothesis have so far paid little attention to the actual opinions of the actors appearing in the media, as well as to the dynamic relationships between distinctive players such as politicians and states, and the international or foreign media. This study aims to combine the indexing hypothesis with frame analysis, and suggest a new concept: the dispersion of frames. The dispersion of frames distributed by an actor is analyzed via the distribution of different framing functions. A comparison between the dispersion of frames promoted by competing governments and the dispersion of frames offered by the media provides us with a better understanding of the complex actor-media interaction.
This study aims to combine the indexing hypothesis with frame analysis, and suggest a new concept: the dispersion of frames. The dispersion of frames distributed by a specific actor during a certain period is analyzed via the distribution of different framing functions. A comparison between the dispersion of frames promoted by competing governments and the dispersion of frames offered by the media provides us with a better understanding of the complex actor-media interaction.
Incoherent Narrator: Israeli Public Diplomacy During the Disengagement and the Elections in the Palestinian Authority
by Itay Gabay
Israeli public diplomacy surrounding the disengagement from Gaza and the general elections in the Palestinian... more Israeli public diplomacy surrounding the disengagement from Gaza and the general elections in the Palestinian Authority (PA) in 2005 reflects a problematic misconstruction of Israel’s messages in English regarding its relations with the Palestinians. Based on content analysis of official documents, such as official announcements, press releases, and speeches by Israeli government officials (the PM and the foreign ministry), we point to the incompleteness of Israeli public messages aimed at non-Hebrew speakers in terms of major framing functions. Incorporating narrative analysis, we further claim that the problem of missing framing functions is part of a larger problem of misconstruction of the state’s foreign policy narrative. At the core of this problem lies a discontinuity between the definition of the problem faced by Israel, the characterization of those who are responsible for the problem, and the proposed solutions to the problem. While the definition of the problem tends to rest quite heavily on internal disputes within Israel, namely the dispute between the government and the settlers, the Palestinians are those who are held responsible for the problem, and the solution is defined as a confrontation with the Palestinians. This incoherence between the definition of the problems and the solutions offered has damaged the internal logic of Israeli public diplomacy. The article discusses these findings against the backdrop of the traditional Israeli approach toward public diplomacy as reflected by the concept of “explanation” (hasbara). It suggests that these incoherencies played a key role in the explanation of why Israel failed to achieve significant improvement in its international image following the disengagement.
The Aggressor as a Witness: The Case of Breaking the Silence
by Itay Gabay
Testimonies collected by the Israeli organization Breaking the Silence from soldiers participating in the Gaza war... more Testimonies collected by the Israeli organization Breaking the Silence from soldiers participating in the Gaza war provide a case study for examining the process and the effects of bearing witness by the aggressors. By analyzing the testimonies and their media coverage the study concludes that although these testimonies were collected from soldiers, there was no change in public discourse. Conversely, members of the organization were attacked by different institutions, describing them as traitors.
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Exporting anti-Zionism: The delegitimization of Israel in the Iranian Press
by Rusi Jaspal
**FOR A PDF OF FULL PAPER, E-MAIL ME**
Jaspal, R. (under review). Exporting anti-Zionism: The delegitimization of Israel in the Iranian Press. Submitted to Israel Studies.
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Anti-Zionism has remained an important ideological building-block of the Islamic... more
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Anti-Zionism has remained an important ideological building-block of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This paper examines the manifestation of anti-Zionism in the English-language Iranian Press in order to elucidate how this ideology is ‘exported’ to an international readership. The paper presents the results of an empirical study of two leading English-language Iranian newspapers: The Tehran Times and Press TV. The study uses critical discourse analysis and draws upon tenets of Social Representations Theory and the notion of Delegitimization from social psychology. The following themes are outlined: (i) “Problematizing Israel’s right to exist”; (ii) “Unveiling the global Zionist conspiracy”; and (iii) “Leading the global anti-Zionism – the declining ‘Zionist regime’”. Both anti-Zionist and anti-Semitic representations are observable in the corpus. The paper identifies three key components of the delegitimization process in textual representations of Israel, and discusses possible implications of outgroup delegitimization for identity, emotion and action.
Keywords: media representations; Iran; Israel; anti-Zionism; prejudice; social representations theory; critical discourse analysis; qualitative; social psychology
"No Person is Illegal"? Configurations and Experiences of" Illegality" Among Undocumented West African and Filipino Migrant Workers In Tel Aviv, Israel
by Sarah Willen
Willen, Sarah S. 2006. "No Person is Illegal"? Configurations and Experiences of "Illegality" among Undocumented West African and Filipino Migrant Workers in Tel Aviv. PhD thesis. Department of Anthropology, Emory University. Atlanta, GA.
“Review of Latino Migrants in a Jewish State by Barak Kalir.”
by Sarah Willen
Willen, Sarah S. Forthcoming 2012. “Review of Latino Migrants in a Jewish State by Barak Kalir.” Review of Middle East Studies. 46(1).
“The Wilderness and Jewish Revolutionary Fervour in First-Century Palestine: A Response to D.P. Schwartz and J. Marcus,” Journal for the Study of Judaism 29 (1998): 322-36.
According to Schwartz and Marcus, Isa 40:3 had instructive, programmatic force in leading Jewish revolutionaries out... more According to Schwartz and Marcus, Isa 40:3 had instructive, programmatic force in leading Jewish revolutionaries out into the wilderness where they prepared themselves for the invading procession of Israel's God against Israel's enemies. But examination of relevant passages from Josephus' writings and the Dead Sea scrolls indicates that the evidence for the revolutionary interpretation of Isa 40:3 is relatively sparse and unimpressive. Instead, the narrative of the Hebrews' wilderness trek and conquest of the land under Moses and Joshua has far more to commend itself as the narrative precursor to the revolutionaries' retreat into the wilderness.--D.J.H. Abstract Number: NTA43-1999-1-634
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Archaeological Training in Mandate Palestine: The BSAJ Minute Books at the PEF
A feature for the Palestine Exploration Fund website.
Archaeological Training in Mandate Palestine: The BSAJ Minute Books at the PEF
A feature for the Palestine Exploration Fund website.
Eco-Arsonists, Bomb-Wielding Neighbors & Queer Vegans: Reflecting on Labeling As Reflective Practice [2012]
The following discussion will attempt to draw out aspects of reflective practice a bit more, focusing on the three... more The following discussion will attempt to draw out aspects of reflective practice a bit more, focusing on the three venues touched upon namely: researching the animal and environmental liberation movement, organizing and reporting on the Palestinian intifada, and finally, advocating for a politic of holistic anti-oppression situated in problematizing the animal-human binary and advancing a vegan framework within academic fields of analysis.
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Representing the 'Zionist Regime': Mass Communication of anti-Zionism in the English-language Iranian Press
by Rusi Jaspal
**FOR A PDF OF FULL PAPER, E-MAIL ME**
Jaspal, R. (under review). Representing the 'Zionist Regime': Mass Communication of anti-Zionism in the English-language Iranian Press. Submitted to Mass Communication and Society.
Anti-Zionism constitutes an important ideological building-block of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). This paper... more
Anti-Zionism constitutes an important ideological building-block of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). This paper provides insight into the mass communication of anti-Zionism in the English-language Iranian Press in order to examine how this ideology is ‘exported’ to an international readership. The paper presents the results of an empirical study of two leading English-language Iranian newspapers: The Tehran Times and Press TV. The study uses critical discourse analysis and draws upon tenets of Social Representations Theory from social psychology. The following discourses are discussed: (i) Resisting social representations of Israeli statehood; (ii) Constructing threat: The Zionist regime as a terrorist entity; and (iii) Responding to threat: Anti-Zionism as a religious duty for the Muslim Ummah. As a ‘mouth-piece’ of the IRI, these outlets adopt and encourage a fervently anti-Zionist stance by refusing to recognise the statehood and civilian population of Israel and by constructing the ‘Zionist regime’ as a terrorist threat which should be mitigated collectively by the Islamic Ummah. Implications are discussed.
Keywords: media representations; Iran; Israel; anti-Zionism; prejudice; social representations theory; critical discourse analysis; qualitative; social psychology
Mounting Israeli soccer violence reflects fading hope in Palestinian peace
By James M. Dorsey
A stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process, a dwindling number of Palestinians... more
By James M. Dorsey
A stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process, a dwindling number of Palestinians participating in non-governmental reconciliation efforts and increased racism in Israeli soccer constitute two sides of the same coin: fading hope and interest in peace, hardening battle lines and a resurgence of racism on both sides of the divide.
Yet, the measures being discussed to curb mounting violence on and off the pitch threaten to reduce political and social issues to a problem of law enforcement as the heads of Israel’s 16 premier league club meet to debate how to cope with a situation that is spiralling out of control. The solution to Israel’s soccer violence no doubt involves law enforcement, but a crackdown and harsher penalties are unlikely to restore faith in future Israeli-Palestinian coexistence or mitigate the brutalizing effect on Israeli society of 45 years of occupation of Palestinian land.
Granted, the heads of Israel’s top soccer clubs lack the power to address the larger political and social issues. Their inability to influence political and security decisions has become evident over the past year in what Palestinian soccer officials say is the inability of Israeli sports officials to even ease the restrictions on travel imposed on Palestinian athletes in the West Bank and Gaza. A hotline established last year between the Israeli and Palestinian Olympic committees to tackle such issues has so far produced little results.
"The problem is the Israeli committee is not the relevant authority for the movement of people and equipment. We are trying, but I don't want to embarrass anyone," said Jibril Rajoub, who heads both the Palestinian Football Association and Olympic Committee, in an interview last year.
Nonetheless, there are things the Israeli soccer federation can do to counter an environment of increased polarisation and racially motivated violence in the absence of political will among both Israeli and Palestinian political elites to definitively tackle big ticket issues involved in peace such as settlements, refugees, borders and the future of Jerusalem.
The Israeli Football Association (IFA) and the heads of soccer clubs need to come to grips with two types of albeit inter-related violence: racially-motivated aggression against Palestinians and those that empathise with their cause and violence involving only Jewish players and fans. Their response to inter-Jewish violence is clear.
"The first thing to do is significantly increase the punishments. I have been talking about this for more than 20 years, and that was a time football was much more violent," the Associated Press quoted Maccabi Haifa Chairman Jacob Shahar as saying.
Less clear is their response to mounting Israeli-Palestinian soccer tension. "The field has become a battleground, involving not only fans but also players, coaches, officials ... it is impossible to stay silent," Israeli Culture and Sports Minister Limor Livnat told a recent press conference after being instructed by Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu to put an end to the violence.
Messrs. Livnat and Shahar were speaking after a series of incidents in which players and fans clashed on the pitch and notoriously racist supporters of Beitar Jerusalem, a club historically linked to Israel’s right-wing attacked Palestinian shoppers and workers in a mall as well as later a Jewish woman who protest against their racist attitudes. Beitar Jerusalem is the only Israeli club that has never hired a Palestinian player, who are among Israel’s highest scorers. In response to Beitar Jerusalem chants of ‘Death to the Arabs,’ Palestinian supporters of Israeli Palestinian clubs like Bnei Sakhnin have begun singing ‘Death to the Jews.’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ8y7Zios3c
Writing in Soccer & Society, Israeli sports scholar Amir Ben-Porat warned already four years ago that “the football stadium has become an arena for protest: political, ethnic, nationalism, etc… ‘Death to the Arabs’ has thus become common chant in football stadiums… Many Israelis consider the Israeli Arabs (Palestinians) to be ‘Conditional Strangers,’ that is temporary citizens… Contrary to conventional expectations, these fans are not unsophisticated rowdies, but middle-class political-ideological right-wingers, whose rejection of Arab football players on their team is based on a definite conception of Israel as a Jewish (Zionist) state,” Mr. Ben-Porat wrote.
The IFA, despite being the only soccer body in the Middle East to have launched a campaign against racism, has allowed what Mr. Ben-Porat describes as ‘permissive territory’ that in which “some deviant behaviours are tolerated (such as using profanities) as long as definite rules are followed (that is, no racist chants)” to get out of hand.
The IFA has signalled a lack of sincerity by failing to impose its anti-racism rule by cracking down as hard on racism as it intends to do on what amounts to hooliganism. Forcing Beitar Jerusalem to drop its ban on Palestinian players, a violation of Israeli equal opportunity laws, and severely penalizing it for its fan behaviour rather than simply giving the club a slap on its knuckles while also taking Bnei Sakhnin to task for the behaviour of its fans would go a long way to tackling the issue of mounting racism on the pitch.
It would also send a signal to Israelis and Palestinians at a time that Palestinians are increasingly less inclined to engage with Israelis in the belief that reconciliation efforts are senseless as long as the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is stalemated. An IFA crackdown on racism would to some degree counter Palestinian claims that there is no partner in Israel amidst the violence employed by Israeli security forces against protesters on the West Bank and anti-Palestinian statements by Israel’s ultra-nationalist Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.
Israeli peace activists warn that waning Palestinian interest in people-to-people encounters with Israelis threaten to undermine what is left of Israel’s already weakened peace movement. While peace may be beyond the IFA’s purview, a serious crackdown on racism would not only serve to counter what is an increasingly ugly trend in Israeli society but like the hotline signal that there are Israeli institutions that are willing to play their part.
James M. Dorsey is a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and the author of the blog, The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer.
Turkey-Israel Relations in the Shadow of the Arab Spring: The Need For A New Paradigm by Emrah Usta*
by Emrah Usta
Turkey-Israel Relations in the Shadow of the Arap Spring:
The Need For A New Paradigm
By Emrah... more
Turkey-Israel Relations in the Shadow of the Arap Spring:
The Need For A New Paradigm
By Emrah Usta*
Abstract
Unemployment, corruption, political degeneration, freedom of speech and appalling living conditions has led to a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world, particularly North Africa and the Middle East. Commencing with a Tunasian street vendor, Mohammed Bouzazi, setting himself on fire and causing a domino effect in the Arab Spring, preparing the ground for the destruction of the old order of the Camp David. The Arab Spring, which has contributed the countries to review their security and democratic paradigms, gives the oppurtunity to be included in the inward intervention with the power of the social media network against the dictators, while increasing the solidarity and self-confidence between the people. The Davos Summit, and the positively changing image of Turkey in the Arab world after the attack on the Mavi Marmara makes it indispensable for a new paradigm in Turkish – Israeli relations.
Key Words: Turkey-Israel, Mavi Marmara, Arab Spring’s Effects on Turkish-Israeli Relations
Search for a New Paradigm after the Palmer Report
The state of Israel, on which numerous commentaries have been made, began creating an earthquake effect on the conscience of nations with its implemented policies. The frozen relations after the raid on the Mavi Marmara and the Palmer Report being leaked in the following period stretched the relations with Turkey and left deep wounds in the conscience of the international community. The basis of these deteriorated relations advancing poorly is Turkey’s demands, including compensation, official apology and breaking the siege on Gaza. Israeli state coalition, on the other hand, remains as the main cause. The attitude of different viewpoints in the coalition has been influential in the developing process. Nevertheless, the attitude of Knesset, consisting of 120 people, 12 party and the 6-party coalition inside indicate Israel’s need for a new paradigm about Turkey. The news concerning a meeting held in New York has left the Israeli government in an arduous situation thereafter the unsuccessful negotiations in Haifa common diplomacy followed by the Geneva meeting. Particularly during the last summer months, Channel 2 television commentator Amnon Abramovich, referring to the Mavi Marmara Operation dedicated to the meeting held in collaboration with The Israeli Armed Forces, the Israeli Ministry of Defence law departments and the Israeli Ministry of Justice, in this regard, public institutions have reached a joint consensus on the request for an 'apology' and declared to provide a report to the Israeli government concerning the issue. Despite these statements were widely discussed in the Israeli press, the government’s attitude on not giving a clear response had left question marks in minds. During the mid July, the Israeli Foreign Affairs spokesman Yigal Palmor stated that 'He may be inconvenient to the lawsuits filed to the army and the officers, but this is not going to be the official opinion of the army and defense ministry'. This statement eventuated in focusing on the attitude of army-military in Israel. Turkey could have taken more serious steps about the raid, seeing the discomfort of the officers subsequent to the Mavi Marmara event. Turkey, taking a different attitude towards the Israeli army, beware of lawsuits that can be filed to the Israeli soldiers, especially in the international arena, could have taken a different channel of communication regarding the apology issue. The hesitation of the players to arrive to Istanbul for the Besiktas – Tel Aviv match is a concrete example of the attitude in the Israeli Ministry of Defence and the Army. Being undesirous of taking the players, soldiers at the same time, to the football game can be considered as a substantiation of the case. The Israeli authorities, at first considering a scenario of a possible arrest, subsequently changed their attitudes and brough the players to Turkey. Considering the precise attitude of Turkey, the Israeli Defence Ministry did not permit any cracking sounds in the army, suggesting different hesitations to the soldiers, who are players at the same time, which shows the significance attached to the seriousness of the issue. After the attack on the Mavi Marmara, Turkey took action on all of the relevant UN tables in earlier than 24 hours, the UN Security Council accepting the event with a presidential statement (S/PRST/2010/9) ,which ended up condemning Israel for its actions to the death of 9 people. The UN Secretary-General decided to create a commission in accordance with this call. Joseph Ciechanover from the Israeli side and Ozden Sanberk, a former ambassador, from the Turkish side were elected by president of this commision, Palmer, and vice chairman Uribe. Another disadvantage of the Commision was not referring to the statement of the victims of the attack. While the Turkish side presenting the concrete data they have in hands, the efforts of the Israeli side, concerning to stop the functioning of the Commision, can be said to be effective until January. While there are claims about the Israeli helicopters making a ground firing during the attack, and Turkey, claming most of its deceased citizens unfortunately had been killed from the back and from a close distance, shows there are mutually unhealty information in the preparation of the report, concerning the allegations.
On the other hand, Palmer and Uribe suggested in the report that the Israeli blockade of Gaza is a legitimate. From its nature, the acceptance of this issue is not possible. There are published reports and adopted resolutions by the UN Human Rights Council, concerning the unlawful blockade of Gaza. These decisions are approved by the UN General Assembly and has become a part of international customary law. The UN Security Council clearly criticizes the blockade. The international community converge in the illegal blockade of Gaza. Common sense and conscience tells us that this blockade is illegal. In so doing, Palmer and Uribe emerging with such a controversial thesis, of course, brings to mind that they are approaching the issue with political considerations rather than legal considerations. Turkey did not become a part of this picture. Since the end of April, when Palmer and Uribe gave a draft of the report, it was recorded that Turkey would not participate in such a qualitative study any more. The report was given to the Secretary –General, only reflecting the personal opinions of Palmer and Uribe, and were only signed by the two. The representative of Israel did not sign the report, as in consequence of the clearly identified crimes committed by the Israeli soldiers. From this context, it is clear to reveal that the report does not have any binding side. To the public opinion, the common view to be provided with fleets of freedom is that there is no doubt on the crimes committed by Israel and the attack carried out could not be accepted. In this axis, the implementation of pre-conditions strictly expressed by Turkey, could prevent the isolation of Israel in public revolutions churning with Arab Spring and could lead the relations with Turkey to a better level. The policies put into practice by Turkey, churning with impact and military tutelage over years, did not make an effect on Israel and the international public opinion. On the other hand, it is inevitable to say a different image of Turkey is created in the Middle East, in face of the public movements. In the Middle East, after the Palmer Report, an alternative public diplomacy is essential to the roadmap by the UN, makes it indispensable of the applicable policies for Turkey's insistence for the actualization on the pre-conditions.
Effect of the Arab Spring in Turkey-Israel Relations
With no doubt, we can say that the Israeli-Turkish relations are having its hardest period of the history. It would not be wrong to say that the Camp David period has come to an end with the shaping of the Middle East by the Arab Spring. After the Davos Summit, the Mavi Marmara raid left a wound in the relations that has never happened in history and led Turkey, in all conscience, to be the voice of Arabs in the international community.
After the Arab-Israeli wars, the fear of Israeli taboos injected to the people by the dictators for years, were broken with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Arabs in all of the conflict areas, primarily in Palestine, approached with sympathy towards Turkey. The Arab people, waiting for the upright posture against Israel for years, seeked to determine a more stable political stance in their own internal policies, in the face of the attitude of Turkey. Beginning with public movements and elections held wtihin the period, discussions were headed towards Turkey as a model country, and falling regimes conducted anaylis on the subject. The Turkish Model discussions, 'The Turkish Perception in the Middle East 2010' sub-titled report of Mensur Akgun within TESEV, conducted a survey between 2,267 people, including Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Iran, where 66% of the people provided a postive feedback to the Turkish Model and 18% of the voters did not believe it would be possible. Israel, not being able to prevent the increasingly powerful image of Turkey in the face of this perception, having its hands tied in the Apology and Compensation issue, does not make any improvement in the relations and nor creates a zone of influence that could provide mobility. The disappearance of Egypt, after the normalization of elite-based relations brought by order of the Camp David, is particularly dangerous for Israel in the Sinai. Radical Islamic groups, in particular, make possible accedings with elections in those countries, which would mean danger for Israel in its presence in the region. In this context, Turkey freezing all ties and relations with Israel is one of the essential issues that has to be considered for the terms of the legitimacy of the Arab-Israeli relations in the region. However, in this view, this does not mean Israel-Turkey relations among Arab perspective are going to be broken off altogether. Especially the blockade on Gaza and Israel's attitude of apology are going to be effective on the Turkish-Israeli relations in the following months. To be realistic, Turkey's relations with Israel does not seem possible to be completely removed to rack. This is due to both the delicate balance on which Turkey is located and the mediating role that may arise from possible crisis centers in the Middle East, providing opportunities for Turkey to intervene in. It is possible for Turkey to maintain its relations with Israel at a certain level but, in the long term, it does not seem convenient to do it at the lowest level. Turkey, coming down to the Middle East alone is not among the possible contingencies as Islamic countries have such a stableness in the Palestenian state. Having poor relations with Israel at the lower levels, one of Turkey's ally in the Middle East seems to be Egypt. However, the perception of Egypt on Turkey, and the collapse in the guardianship system concerning democratization in the military does not make it possible. On the other hand, Turkey’s common sense that may be posed in defiance to the perception in the region and Islamic world might turn this heroic adventure into a tragedy. Although the policies and the processes pursued by Turkey, with the forming of the new order, seem to be parallel with the U.S., the road often intersects with Israel.
During this period, where the U.S. was caught unprepared for the Arab spring, Turkey’s (except for the first quarter NATO intervention in Libya) attitude turned into an appropriate standing and a direct susceptive on the people. In this context, Turkey, clarified its not going to be a guarantor nor a model to the democracies, and is crisscrossed paths with Israel once again. Turkey wants to maintain its relations with Israel at a certain distance, but also sees it appropriate to keep the equation for its own political interests. Turkey, benefiting from the lack of common stand in in the coalition of the Israeli state and determining its own position in the Arab Spring, forces Israel to a new paradigm, who wishes to evaluate its security once again with Camp David. This paradigm will be conductive to further expansion of commercial viability of economic integration between Turkish-Arab people.
The impact on 'Double-Sided Trade' between the AKP-Israeli Relations
Israel and Turkey, being potential markets for each other, are two important feet of the international trade. Justice and Development Party government, acceding two years after the 2001 financial crisis, made various reforms in the economy, freed the burden of serious debt to IMF and declared no stand-by agreements would be done. Subsequently, the change in monetary policy rates and the rapid increase in exports, gave oppurtunity to open out with Turkey's economy, thereby, both inside and outside Turkey was enriched. The foreign trade capacity with Israel in 2009 was realized as 2.5 billion dollars, by 2010 this number exceeded $ 3 billion in the first 11-month period. Another data described by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics shows there is according to a 26% growth for the year 2010. Israeli exports to Turkey increased by 22% to $ 1,309 billion, while imports increased by 29% in Turkey, which amounted to U.S. $ 1,799 billion. Iron and steel products, motor vehicles, mineral fuels and mineral oils and copper generate the most important export items of our exports, while in imports, mineral fuels, organic and inorganic chemical products and electrical machinery are the most imported items. On the other hand, certain food, construction, and human labor force work in Israel. Turkey-Israel free trade agreement, Commercial Economic Industrial Technical and Scientific Cooperation Treaty, the Treaty of Reciprocal Promotion and Protection of Investments and the Avoidance of Double Taxation Treaty, the Turkish-Israeli trade form the basis of a number of treaties. There are Turkish firms and corporations that invest in specific areas in Israel. Some of them, especially in construction of skyscrapers, power plants, water treatment plants, modern and formal housing, infrastructure facilities done by Yilmazlar Construction Group. Yilmazlar Construction Group is a Turkish company that has a serious reputation in Israel. Since 1993, especially in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Yılmazlar Construction Group, showing intensive activities in the fields of construction and infrastructure, is one of the companies that was recently awarded the Turkish-Israeli Businessmen's Council Award. Delivering investments on time, in both public sector and private sector, gained them a great confidence in Israel. Yilmazlar Construction Group Chairman Ahmet Yilmaz Reyiz was awarded Businessman of the Year in 2005 from among 400 Israeli businessmen. Other than in Israel, the company has investments in eastern Europe, and spread over a large region in Israel with 31 construction sites. Around 1000 Turkish employees are working on these construction sites, and around 700 Israeli workers are also employed. Yilmazlar Group is among the top 10 firms in Israel. In addition to the construction sector, comes Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and Hamidiye Water Company., curing one of the most important wounds of Isael. There is no any direct investment made by Hamidiye Water Co. in Israel. However, meets the water needs in the region with dealerships by different investors. On the other hand, another major Turkish company in the region is Sabanci Holding. Sabanci Holding, in Israel, works in educational, social and cultural life, support, and in construction sector. Despite all these investments, the Mavi Marmara crisis, in a commercial sense, caused Turkey to break its relation unilaterally. After the bloody raid on Gaza aid ship, the crisis between the two countries effected the large-scale companies and the medium-sized grocery products in the region also suffered. Blue Square announced they are not going to import flour and pasta from Turkey anymore. On the other hand, Israel's Channel 10 television claimed that in last August, Turkey's loss in only chain of supermarkets is approximately 94 million dollars. Rafi Scheffer, CEO of Brand For You with the big supermarket chain Super Sol, expressed the view that the loss of Turkish goods in Israel is bad for economic relations and declared they are not going to break off relations with Turkey. On the other hand, the agricultural activities of MASHAV, constituting the foundation of Kibbutzim, is an important source of income for Israel's economy compared to other companies. The commercial ventures with Israel during the Justice and Development Party period, is of course not limited with these. The following are among the companies that invest in Israel; Carmel Carpets, who owns a 51% of Atlas Carpet that created a special carpet for Masjid al-Aqsa, Calik Group, who helped the port of Haifa, Solad Energy which aids power lines and the Zorlu Group, who signed an agreement to work in the occupied Palestenian territority with a great devotion. The Turkish pharmaceutical companies faced various challenges during the shipments of the medicine to the region, provided by TIKA after the attack on Gaza. Before the AKP era, particularly during the Erbakan period, claims of investment in the area remains up to date. The main point of delusion is due to the coalition of the Refah Yol (Welfare Road) power during that period. Tansu Ciller is thought to have a big impact in relations with Israel during the period. There has been a tension in the meeting held on 8/04/1997 between Erbakan and Danit Levy, Israel’s foreign minister, concerning Palestine and Al-Aqsa Mosque, which did not make these relationships possible for the Refah Yol. For this reason, relations with Israel in this period, have continued with high-level visits by Ciller-TSK (Turkish Armed Forces).
*Emrah Usta is a fellow at the Center for Strategic Research at Suleyman Sah University in Istanbul.