Why Israel humiliated Turkey in response to a TV show
When Israeli officials summoned the Turkish ambassador over an anti-Israel TV show, they seated him in a lower chair and conspicuously failed to place Turkey’s flag on the table. But at issue was much more than TV.
This latest crisis included a showdown at Israels Foreign Ministry, where Turkeys ambassador was summoned to explain Mr. Erdogans recent harsh criticism, as well as a TV show that portrayed Israeli intelligence agents holding a woman and her baby hostage.
Breaking with diplomatic protocol, Israeli officials failed to include the customary Turkish flag on the table between them and the Turkish ambassador, whom they seated on a low couch. To rub it in, they instructed the press members in attendance to note that they were sitting in higher chairs and the usual diplomatic niceties were conspicuously absent.