Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is returning an award given to him by a Jewish American group in 2004
Turkey's ambassador to the US, Serdar Kilic, wrote to Jack Rosen, president of the American Jewish Congress, on Erdogan's behalf. Kilic said Erdogan would be glad to return the award because of Israel's actions in Gaza and an effort to cover up the historical wrongdoings of the Israeli government
In his letter, Kilic stressed that Erdogan's "strong determination in fighting against terrorism, preventing all forms of extremism, bringing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through peaceful means as well as ensuring the safety and well-being of the Jewish community in Turkey still remains as strong as ever."
However, he said, the Turkish leader "should not be expected to turn a blind eye to the policies of occupation, blockade and destruction that the Israeli government has been implementing against the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza," and said the killing of civilians and the bombing of hospitals and UN schools in Gaza "constitute a grave violation of not only the international law, but also the most fundamental human values."
Mr Erdogan is campaigning to be elected president next month and has sharply criticised Israel's military offensive against Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza, where more than 1,100 people have died, most of them civilians.
