Turkey 'will not remain silent' if Israel attacks Lebanon

26/11/2010

BEIRUT (AFP) -- Turkey will not remain silent if Israel attacks Lebanon or Gaza, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in Beirut on Thursday, as ties between the longtime allies remained at an all-time low.

"Does (Israel) think it can enter Lebanon with the most modern aircraft and tanks to kill women and children, and destroy schools and hospitals, and then expect us to remain silent?" Erdogan said at a conference organised by the Union of Arab Banks.

"Does it think it can use the most modern weapons, phosphorus munitions and cluster bombs to kill children in Gaza and then expect us to remain silent?

"We will not be silent and we will support justice by all means available to us."

Turkey was once Israel's closest military and diplomatic ally in the Middle East but ties began to deteriorate when Ankara criticised Israel's December 2008 to January 2009 offensive against Gaza.

Relations then nosedived on May 31, 2010 when Israeli naval commandos stormed a Turkish-registered protest ship, the Mavi Marmara, part of a flotilla attempting to break the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory.

Nine Turkish activists were killed in the operation.

Erdogan has said his country will not begin to restore relations with Israel until it apologises for its "savage attack" on the vessel.

Thursday was the final day of the Turkish premier's two-day visit to Lebanon, during which he inaugurated a burns treatment centre in Sidon, a major southern coastal city.

South Lebanon was badly hit during the Hezbollah militia's deadly 2006 war with Israel.
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Russia slams Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:44:29 GMT

Russia has expressed concern over Israel's repeated violations of the Lebanese airspace and sovereignty in violation of the UN Security Council resolutions.

In a statement on Thursday, Deputy Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Yakovenko said that Israel's non-abidance by the UN Resolution 1701 is manifested in its continued violation of the Lebanese airspace and the refusal to withdraw from al-Ghajar town.

He added that the Security Council will be looking into a report prepared by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon about the implementation of Resolution 1701 and the conflict in the Middle East.

Yakovenko also noted that Israel's settlement activities in Palestine are a serious obstacle to the Mideast peace process.

Israeli fighter jets invade Lebanese airspace almost on a daily basis and break sound barriers over several villages in southern parts of the country. The violations come amid heightened concern in Lebanon over recent Israeli threats and provocations against the country.

The UN considers the Israeli violation of Lebanese airspace to be against Security Council Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the Israeli offensive against Lebanon in 2006.