Israel, Turkey on verge of strategic deal

Turkish diplomats said this week that a deal on the restoration of diplomatic relations with Israel will most likely be signed on July 2.

A meeting between the two countries' senior representatives is to take place on Sunday, where the final details of the agreement are to be worked out.

According to senior sources in both governments, President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have agreed in principle to the deal. The likely agreement will end eight years of estrangement between the once-strategic allies.

Of the three main issues that have to be addressed, the financial compensation to be given to the families of the ten Turkish activists who were killed by Israeli commandos on the Gaza flotilla in 2010 was agreed upon years ago.

The two remaining areas of contention - the Hamas activity in Turkey and Turkish access to Gaza, are likely to be the subjects of compromise.

Israel will be content with Turkey's assurances that while a Hamas office will remain in Istanbul, the Palestinian movement will not be able to use Turkish soil for planning terror attacks.

The Turkish government will not be allowed free access to Gaza but will accept special permission to export to the beleaguered strip through Israel's Ashdod Port.

While the reports from Ankara and Jerusalem have indicated that the agreement has almost been finalised, some Israeli officials are skeptical that relations between the countries will return to their previous levels of warmth and cooperation any time soon.

"Erdogan has a problem with Israel, that is clear, and it's not just something we can solve with a deal on paper. His hostility is in-built, though it doesn't necessarily reflect the feeling among many others in the Turkish leadership," one Israeli official said.