Report: Israeli FM Urges Arming Terrorists to Punish Turkey

Netanyahu Office Issues Statement Distancing Itself From Lieberman

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has long been a foreign minister in title only, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu running a mostly independent foreign policy out of the prime minister’s office, often distancing himself from the foreign ministry’s diktats.

Netanyahu’s really got his work cut out for him today, however, following reports that Lieberman has formed a team in charge of coming up with ways to get revenge on Turkey for demanding an apology over the killing of aid workers in the Israeli attack on the Mavi Marmara.

Incredibly, the reports have Lieberman plotting to arm the the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a terrorist organization which has been launching attacks recently against the Turkish military.

Which once again has Netanyahu scrambling, with his office looking to distance itself from the plot, refusing to either confirm or deny its authenticity, and insisting that they continue to hope to restore relations with the Turkish government.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.