Turkish Forum

Tag: Israelis

  • Rapidly Islamizing Turkey detains Israelis at Istanbul airport

    Rapidly Islamizing Turkey detains Israelis at Istanbul airport

    “Obviously this was done intentionally in order to create an unpleasant feeling.” Now that the generals are out of the way, it is only a matter of time before Turkey throws off the last vestiges of Kemalist secularism and abandons all remaining pretense of friendliness toward Israel.

    “Israelis held in Istanbul airport,” by Attila Somfalvi for Ynet News, September 5 (thanks to Joshua):

    About 40 Israeli passengers on board a Turkish Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Istanbul were held for several hours by local police on Monday after their passports had been taken away from them. The passengers said that the Turkish police officers were disrespectful, claiming that such an incident was unprecedented.

    “I think that the police officers didn’t even know what they were looking for,” one of the passengers told Ynet. “They apparently got an order to detain us, one by one. Everyone was in shock; we didn’t know what they were going to do to us. Obviously this was done intentionally in order to create an unpleasant feeling.”

    “They asked us why we came here, opened our bags, checked how much money we have and what we have on our laptops,” he added.

    Authorities in Jerusalem estimate that the detention of the Israeli passengers came in response to a recent incident during which Turkish citizens were detained for questioning by border police at Ben Gurion Airport.

    Foreign Ministry officials said that no directive was issued regarding a change in the policy that concerns the reception of Israelis, and that there was no intention to single out Israelis that arrive in Turkey. “It was a mid-rank initiative that apparently came in response to the incident at Ben Gurion Airport,” they said….

    via Rapidly Islamizing Turkey detains Israelis at Istanbul airport – Jihad Watch.

  • Veteran White House Correspondent Helen Thomas Retires After Anti-Jewish Remarks

    Veteran White House Correspondent Helen Thomas Retires After Anti-Jewish Remarks

    WASHINGTON – Longtime Washington journalist Helen Thomas abruptly retired Monday as a columnist for Hearst News Service following remarks she made about Israel that were denounced by the White House and her press corps colleagues.

    The 89-year-old Thomas, dean of the White House press corps, has long been a fixture in Washington and has been lauded as a pioneering journalist who has covered presidents since 1960.

    Known for her confrontational questioning, Thomas apologized for comments that were captured on video and have spread widely on the Internet. On the May 27 video, Thomas says Israelis should “get the hell out of Palestine,” suggesting they go to Germany, Poland or the U.S.

    Hearst announced her retirement, effective immediately, shortly after White House press secretary Robert Gibbs called her remarks “offensive and reprehensible.”

    The White House Correspondents Association also issued a rare statement, calling her comments “indefensible.”

    “Many in our profession who have known Helen for years were saddened by the comments, which were especially unfortunate in light of her role as a trail blazer on the White House beat,” said the statement, signed by journalists who are officers of the association.

    Thomas had been scheduled to speak at the June 14 graduation of Walt Whitman High School in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, Md., but Principal Alan Goodwin wrote in a Sunday e-mail to students and parents that she was being replaced.

    “Graduation celebrations are not the venue for divisiveness,” Goodwin wrote.

    Thomas wrote on her website that “I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians.”

    She added: “They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon.”

    The national director of the Anti-Defamation League, Abraham H. Foxman, said Sunday that Thomas’ apology didn’t go far enough.

    “Her suggestion that Israelis should go back to Poland and Germany is bigoted and shows a profound ignorance of history,” Foxman said in a statement. “We believe Thomas needs to make a more forceful and sincere apology for the pain her remarks have caused.”

    Thomas began her long career with the wire service United Press International in 1943, and started covering the White House in 1960, according to a biography posted on her website. She became a columnist for Hearst in 2000.

    http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/helen-thomas-retires-jews/2010/06/07/id/361258, 07 Jun 2010