Kerry to Israel, Turkey in bid to boost peace process, solidify ties
By: Elise Labott / CNN Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to Israel and Turkey this weekend to try to jumpstart the long-stalled Mideast peace process and build on the two nations’ efforts to repair ties, U.S. and Turkish officials said Wednesday. Kerry moved up his Monday departure for London and then South Korea, China and Japan in order to capitalize on the reconciliation President Barack Obama brokered between Turkey and Israel during his visit to the region last month, according to the officials,…
In last bit of diplomacy, Obama brokers an Israeli apology to Turkey
By: Mark Landler and Jodi Rudoren / The New York Times President Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel apologized in a personal phone call to Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for a deadly raid on a Turkish ship by Israeli commandos in 2010 that killed nine people, a senior American official traveling with President Obama told reporters on Friday. Mr. Erdogan accepted the apology, according to Turkish officials, in a sudden and major step toward healing the rift that opened between two countries after the raid.…