The attempt before the war to rehabilitate relations between Israel and Turkey stemmed from a clear Turkish interest. Erdogan wants to pave the way to American hearts under Democratic rule – especially since President Biden won the presidency – and is mainly interested in trade and military trade relations with the United States. The way there as Erdogan saw it: putting some warmth back into Turkey’s relations with Israel.
In the face of isolationism and extremism, we can’t follow the ebbs and flows of trend or opinion. We cannot stay on the fence.
As as the campaign progressed towards the ground maneuver, the pendulum of coverage returned to its usual settings, built on varying blends of identifying with the weak and seeing the Palestinians as victims, spiced with post-colonial narratives, as well as equal reliance – in the name of “objectivity,” of course – on figures from both the Israeli Ministry of Health and the Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
Some 8 hours before a legal hearing in an international court on the matter, the Olympic Committee and the Ice Hockey Federation of Israel received an official letter that there was no longer fear that Israelis would be subject to discrimination and exclusion and therefore they were invited to the contest. The legal pressure and international outrage following the initial decision, it appears, ultimately swayed the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Although there are still four years left until the end of the current MOU with the US on military aid, Israel will try to promote a future agreement now, and perhaps even increase its scope in view of the Biden administration's friendly posture during the war. Plan includes fighter jets as well as helicopters.
