Israel's dupes

After the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain too has now officially taken steps to normalize relations with Israel. What they call normalization is in fact conforming to an order that is itself abnormal: an Israel founded in an abnormal manner, abnormal through its abnormal resistance to complying with UN resolutions, its occupation, its annexation of the territories it occupies, its human rights violations, the siege it imposes on the Palestinians by constantly opening new settlements, and its inhuman practices of turning the whole of Gaza into a concentration camp. In other words, it is precisely joining in the abnormality.

What is at stake is oppression, lawlessness and annexation becoming a norm, and to describe taking part in this as "normalization" is utter degradation. But their presenting as an achievement this degradation, which is truly and only a great gain for Israel, shows that they no longer have any connection with either the Arab world or the Muslim world.

The media under the guidance of the United Arab Emirates does not refrain from constantly bringing up Turkey-Israel relations in order to "normalize" and legitimize this degradation. Because Turkey is the country that has criticized their steps most at the official level, by pointing out that Turkey's relations with Israel have been "normal" since its founding and that Turkey was the first country in the Islamic world to recognize Israel, they both accuse Turkey of being inconsistent and try to justify their own policy in this way.

On many Arab TV programs and at conferences I attended I was directly addressed with these questions. In all of them I tried to explain as best my tongue could, and let us repeat it here too. Turkey's relations with Israel are by no means like the relationship the UAE is trying to lead today. One thing is true: unfortunately, when Israel was founded, those who governed Turkey at the time hurried far too officiously to recognize it. The ground of Turkey's relationship with Israel, which is still current today, was laid then. But that relationship did not run smoothly in later periods, even in the periods before the AK Party.

Yet some Arab countries, while building their official ideologies entirely on enmity toward Israel, were in full cooperation with it under the table.

In the AK Party period, on the other hand, relations with Israel did not increase; they continuously decreased. Moreover, Turkey constantly tried to use even the existing level of relations in favor of the Palestinians. In its relationship with Israel, for the last twenty years Turkey has objected to every violation, every injustice, every annexation without overlooking any, has openly criticized it, and has tried to mobilize the international community against it.

What state the once quite normal relations between Turkey and Israel have come to in the last 11 years is plain as day. The defense cooperation agreement between them, the use of its airspace for the training of Israeli pilots and officers, Turkey's purchase of weapons from Israel and similar matters have been completely halted.

In fact, the revolution-like developments Turkey is experiencing in its own arms industry, even its extraordinary successes in the fight against terrorism, owe to its having ended the relationship with Israel in this area.

The intelligence gathered in reconnaissance by the unmanned aerial vehicles bought from Israel after much pleading in the fight against terror used to be shared with the terrorist organization before Turkey, and thereby Turkey would probably dump onto mountains and rocks the military munitions, some of which it likewise bought from Israel. In any case it was a relationship to Turkey's detriment, and with the speech President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made to the Israeli President at Davos in the language he deserved, and then with the Mavi Marmara outburst, relations were strained severely and reduced to a minimum. The UAE and the countries trying to follow it need to take this level as a reference.

Even in the relationship that exists at today's level, Turkey in no way condones any violation of Israel's, its annexation, its attempt to make Jerusalem its capital, or its unjust settling, in settlements it opens on Palestinian land, of Jews brought from all over the world, and continues to wage the necessary struggle against all of them in favor of Palestine.

Yet this new relationship the UAE has entered with Israel comes at a time when Israel is pursuing its most aggressive, most insolent policies, most reckless toward the Palestinians and the whole Islamic world.

So does this agreement make Israel back down from any of these policies? Does it obtain any gain in favor of the Palestinians? Does it have any demand for such a gain? Not a chance.

It is an abject approach that has trailed after Israel and counts having made such an agreement as pride and success. With this meaningless and shameful enthusiasm they do nothing but become Israel's dupes.

What aspect of this is comparable to Turkey's relationship with Israel?

Even at its worst, Turkey did not fall into such a degradation in its relationship with Israel.

These, however, at their most powerful, though they have the power to dissuade Israel from many of its injustices and its occupation with a little solidarity if their intentions were clean, volunteer for this degradation.