The old Turks are back

The surprising conclusion of a secret meeting between senior Turkish and Israeli officials in Switzerland leaves the Hebrew language media imagining a new and improved future for both countries after years of friction.

“On the road to reconciliation,” reads the main headline in Israel Hayom. Beneath the article appears a complimentary photo of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who up until several days ago was all but a persona non grata in the eyes of many Israelis.

Relations between Jerusalem and Ankara broke down after the Israeli Navy intercepted a flotilla led by the Mavi Marmara, which was seeking to breach Israel’s security blockade on Hamas-run Gaza, in May 2010. The Israeli raid ended with nine dead Turkish activists and dozens wounded, after the Naval commandos were attacked with clubs and poles as they boarded the vessel.

But even the most poignant of disagreements, it seems, can dissolve if there are enough mutual interests, and perhaps enough money, involved. The Likud-friendly daily makes it a point to tie in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s signing of a controversial deal on Israel’s gas fields in the Mediterranean to the renormalization of diplomatic relations with Turkey, hinting that the two major developments may have influenced one another.

“Gas as a strategic asset,” Israel Hayom explains. “The prime minister signed the deal, and Turkey is now a potential customer.” The paper further elaborates that under the terms of the initial agreement between the two Middle Eastern nations, Turkey will allow Israel to lay down a gas pipeline on its soil, and negotiations on the sale of natural gas from Israel to Turkey will soon begin.

Haaretz, as usual, is more reserved in its take on the latest entry of the ongoing Israeli-Turkish saga, sticking to the known facts made public yesterday rather than to assertions regarding the timing of the new agreement.

The approach by Yedioth Ahronoth to the ordeal is a bit peculiar, with the subject of reconciliation between Turkey and Israel being pushed off to the 15th page. Instead of focusing on Erdogan and his stances toward Israel, the paper chooses to dedicate numerous articles and photographs to Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli, who, to no one’s surprise, was finally named as the celebrity who is being investigated for possible tax evasion charges.

The daily does not attempt too hard to mask the real reason for its interest in the affair — Refaeli’s near-flawless, white-toothed smile and her wavy golden-blonde hair, which, along with the rest of the model’s face, appear in no fewer than eight pictures throughout the pages of the newspaper.

The sexual harassment allegations against Interior Minister Silvan Shalom are also a main focus of the leading Hebrew language press, following reports that a total of seven women have voiced claims against the senior Likud MK. All papers add, however, that none of the women has yet filed complaints with police over the alleged acts of the interior minister. Yedioth states several times throughout its reports on Shalom that representatives of the Ministry of Justice believe that an investigation into the claims will be ordered within the coming days.

(Update: The allegations against Shalom were not substantiated and a police investigation was subsequently closed.)

On the last page of Yedioth, reporter Raz Schenck provides readers with an article about nothing, or, to be more exact, an article about comedian Jerry Seinfeld’s trip to the holy land, which starts today. Schenck lists several details regarding Seinfeld’s four scheduled shows in the country, and goes through a bunch of the sitcom star’s requests of the hotels where he plans to stay (refrain from adding butter to meals, and no carbs!). Being a major celebrity and all, Seinfeld was naturally asked by many a politician to join in for a selfie picture (really, dozens of politicians made the request, according to the report), but alas, the comedian turned them all down.