Enquanto o mundo assistia os acontecimentos que ocorriam à bordo da “Flotilha da Liberdade para Gaza” comandada pela Turquia, [o mundo] também presenciava o deterioramento das relações políticas entre os governos da turquia e de Israel. A raiva contra o governo israelense é palpável na Turquia, e os ativistas que regressam recebem saudações dos funcionários em meio à comemorações e saudações de heróis. Como podemos avaliar a repercussão desses eventos na Turquia, a pergunta deve ser feita: é possível reconstruir as relações turco-israelense?

Uma Extensão da Política Externa Turca

Israeli flags were burned in Istanbul, tens of thousands of Israeli tourists cancelled Turkish holiday reservations and a lawyer attempted to punch an Israeli cyclist off his bike today, as relations between the erstwhile allies plunged to depths not seen in decades.

escreve James in Turkey [James na Turquia]. O sentimento público turco e o apóio ao povo de Gaza se intensifica, como se note neste tuíte do jornalista freelance Fredericke Geerdink:

flag seller #üsküdar used to sell only turkish flags, with or without portrait of atatürk. now he sells palestinian flags too. #turkey

O vendedor de bandeiras #üsküdar vendía somente bandeiras turcas, com ou sem o retrato de Atatürk. Agora vende bandeiras palestinas também. #turquia

É importante notar que a Flotilha da Liberdade para Gaza não era patrocinada pelo governo turco, mas o ataque à flotilha se converteu agora em um tema de importãncia nacional. Istanbul Calling explica a relação entre a flotilha conduzida por cidadãos e seus efeitos na política exterior turca:

Clearly, this rupture between Turkey and Israel has been long coming. As I've written before, Turkey has, for the last few years, pegged its relations with Israel to what happens on the Palestinian front (or, more specifically, on the Gaza front). Although technically not a bilateral issue between the two countries, the situation in Gaza has, in many ways, become the issue that defines the current relations between Israel and Turkey. In that sense, although the Gaza aid flotilla was organized by a Turkish NGO (the Islamist IHH) and was not sponsored by the Turkish government, it acted as a proxy for Turkish policy.

De fato, uma variedade de blogueiros e twitteiros turcos pediram ao governo turco que intervenha fisicamente e que envie a marinha turca para proteger a flotilha, como [se vê] neste tuíte de  Talk Turkey:

Why not Turkey send the Turkish Navy to protect the remaining ships traveling toward Gaza right now…

Questionamento de Intenções

Houveram significativas reações à percebida falta de justificativa para a agressão istaelense sobre a flotilha. De acordo com o Istanbullian:

There was no justification for the use of firearms against them. Especially on international waters… Facing knives and slingshots don't justify shooting on civilians, killing even sleeping people. Israeli forces should have waited until those ships are in Gaza waters. Then they should have forced the ships to reroute without boarding them. What Israel has done is definitely against international law and Turkey can easily win a case in international courts.

Idilx nota o seguinte no Twitter:

Well then I guess #Israel set a precedent here. We are now allowed to shoot onto anything that we believe is smuggling arms. #flotilla

She acrescenta:

Oooo an icecream van.. BANG BANG. Oooo a 4 year old with a bulge in his pants.. HE MUST HAVE A GUN.. bang! Idjits. #Gaza #Flotilla #Israil

Alguns tuiteiros questionaram as reações (e possíveis reações futuras) do governo turco frente ao incidente da flotilha, de Talk Turkey:

Turkey to declare war against Israel? … Not far fetched … All of this is part of a bigger ‘script’

E este é de fgeerdink:

turkish friend: ‘erdogan just orchestred this whole #flotilla thing to increase his popularity again’ he's serious #conspiracytheory #turkey

Seja como for, a deterioração das relações também trazem questões de segurança, de Idilx:

Is #Turkey becoming a dangerous place for Jewish Turks? It seems that racists are everywhere and their idiocy is endless. So easily fueled.

Somente o tempo dirá o que acontecerá com as relações entre Turquia e Israel. A última palavra neste post vai para o blogueiro e colunista The White Path [O Caminho Branco] que descreve as diferenças entre a filosofia turca e a filosofia israelense:

When I asked that question to an Israeli hawk some years ago, I received a very revealing response: “Might,” he said, “makes right.” Well, that might be a popular belief in Tel Aviv and Occupied Jerusalem, but not here in Istanbul. In fact our creed tells us that the exact opposite is true: Right, sooner or later, makes might.
The hundreds of heroes who sailed to Gaza last weekend had this faith in their hearts. Here in Turkey, 70 million more stand by them. We mourn for our fallen, but also know that they did not die in vain. Their sacrifice unveiled to the world not just the suffering of the innocents in the Gaza ghetto, but also the brutality of the rogue state that imposes it.
Read my lips: This spirit is really not going to die. We Turks will continue to stand for what is right, regardless of Israel's might. None of her lobbying, bullying or killing is going to change that.