"Israel defends its interests and its government will not apologise," said Israel Katz, Israel`s transport minister and a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu`s Likud party.
Katz, who spoke on Israeli public radio, made the comments a day after Ankara reiterated it was suspending military deals with the Jewish state and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeated that he would seek to visit the Gaza Strip.
Ties between Turkey and Israel, once close allies, have been in crisis in recent days over Israel`s 2010 raid on Gaza-bound aid flotilla, which left nine Turkish citizens dead.
Relations had already frayed over the incident but tensions reached new highs last week after the UN published a report on the raid, accusing Israel of using excessive force during the operation, but endorsing the Jewish state`s naval blockade on Gaza.
Turkey responded angrily to the report, announcing the expulsion of Israel`s ambassador and suspending military agreements with the Jewish state.(*)
AFP/H-RN/
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
