Turkey
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tells OIC that Muslim countries must show Israel that the move “will have consequences.”
The center, reportedly known as the “Khan Abu Khadija,” was renovated by the Turkish government aid organization TIKA, which has been investing heavily in eastern Jerusalem in recent years.
In an Eid al-Fitr message, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says Jerusalem’s Temple Mount is a “red line” for all Muslims.
Turkey’s attempt to drill for gas in waters where Cyprus has exclusive economic rights constitutes a “severe violation of the sovereign rights and jurisdiction of the Republic of Cyprus,” says Cypriot government.
Ankara has denied any charges, which also include fraud and money-laundering.
“Health is a principle for us, but the production and security of society is also a principle for us,” says Iranian president Hassan Rouhani • Iranian diplomats instigated the killing of Iranian dissident in Istanbul, claim Turkish officials.
Turkey requested the United States to send two Patriot batteries to its southern border to deter any future attacks by Syrian troops.
Syria closes airspace over Idlib Province • Turkish Defense Ministry: Warplanes downed in response to the shooting down of a Turkish drone • Turkish strikes in Idlib kill nine Hezbollah fighters, wound 30.
The Trump administration has refused Turkey’s request for the Patriot missiles until Ankara abandons the Russian S-400 missile-defense system it acquired last year from Russia.
Turkish forces will support the Tripoli-based government against the forces led by Gen. Khalifa Haftar in the east.
Turkey’s efforts to restore the glory days of the Ottoman Empire extend far beyond influence peddling in Jerusalem and on the Temple Mount.
“Turkey sees that its old adversaries, Greece and Cyprus, and its new adversaries, Israel and Egypt, are forming a maritime axis that is blocking [it],” Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkish Research Program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told JNS.
