(VOVworld) – A high-level Turkish official said Turkish-Israeli relations will normalize soon after more than 5 years of tension. They have engaged in negotiations in goodwill to obtain an agreement to normalize relations.


Turkey and Israel had been close allies before an incident where Israeli commandos attacked the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara on its way to Gaza in 2010, killing several people. Turkey has insisted that Israel lifts its siege of Gaza, compensate the victims on the Mavi Marmara, and apologize for the incident.
In December, 2015, Isreal made an official apology and pledged to compensate the victims. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his hope that the two countries will soon resume close relations.