Secret Turkey-Israel Talks Aimed at Renewing Ties, Report Says

The head of Turkey’s national intelligence service has been holding secret talks with Israeli officials in an attempt to normalize relations, the English-language news website Al-Monitor reported. The talks have taken place in recent weeks, three unnamed sources confirmed to Al-Monitor. They did not say where the talks were held. While such meetings have taken place in the past, to discuss joint security concerns, these meetings have been about restoring ties between the two countries, according to the report. Turkey expelled Israel’s ambassador in 2018 over Israeli attacks in Gaza in response to violent border protests, and over the Trump Administration’s decision to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Critics say that Turkey is using the talks as a way to curry favor with the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden.