JERUSALEM (WJC)–Israel on Monday summoned the Turkish ambassador in Tel Aviv to protest against a television series that depicts Mossad agents as baby-snatchers. Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon told the Turkish envoy that the popular Turkish soap opera ‘Valley of the Wolves: Ambush’ was offensive and “an intolerable situation which endangers the Jewish community, the Israeli envoys and tourists coming to Turkey.”
The show depicts the Israeli intelligence agents as kidnapping Turkish babies as well as attacking the Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv and taking the ambassador and his family hostage. In a written statement, the program’s producer Pana Film said the show would “continue to tell the truth and expose the wrongs.”
Also on Monday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan lambasted Israel for air strikes against targets in the Gaza Strip. “Why is [Israel] doing this? Because it says ‘I possess the power in this region,'” a news agency quoted Erdogan as saying, adding: “It possesses disproportionate power and it is using it. It is not acting in accordance with UN resolutions, it is uncomfortable. It says ‘I will do whatever I please.'”
During the joint news conference, held with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, Erdogan also called on the international community “to warn Israel about its nuclear arsenal just like it did with Iran.” It was the latest public outburst of the Turkish prime minister against the Jewish state.
In a written statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry condemned Erdogan’s criticism. “Erdogan’s remarks join the anti-Israel program broadcast on Turkish television and the harsh statements against Israel that have been said consistently and systematically for over a year. The State of Israel reserves the full right to protect its citizens from missile attacks and from the terror of the Hamas and Hezbollah. Turkey is the last that can preach morality to Israel and the IDF.”
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since the war in Gaza early last year.
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Preceding provided by World Jewish Congress