Turkey’s rapid re-Islamization and abandonment of secularism has been accompanied by a sharp rise in hostility for Israel and Islamic antisemitism. “Hitler Honored in Upscale Instanbul Mall,” by Lori Lowenthal Marcus in the Jewish Press, January 15:
People who have been paying attention know that relations between
Israel and Turkey have been eroding, but not many realize that Turkey is
now not only openly hostile to the Jewish State, but also to the Jewish
people.On Friday, January 11, a Turkish citizen took a picture to show
exactly how belligerent Turkey has become. The picture is of a huge
poster with the words, “Who Would You Like to Meet if You Could?” and
the last name, and only photograph, is of Adolf Hitler. The other
choices include Suleiman I, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Napolean Bonaparte,
the Beatles, Elvis Presley, Vladimir Lenin, Boris Yeltsin, Leonardo Da
Vinci, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Michael Jackson. But only Hitler
warranted a picture, a huge one at that.According to Ege Berk Korkut, an active Turkish writer and blogger,
the sign was placed in the Sapphire Mall by the owners, a group of
Turkish businessmen who are devoted to Erdogan. Korkut explained to The Jewish Press
that the Sapphire is an ultra-upscale mall in Levent, the wealthiest
neighborhood in Istanbul. The Sapphire building is one of the tallest
buildings in Europe.Korkut said that while a few people have complained about the banner —
and the management has refused to remove it — most shoppers just glance
at it and continue shopping. Ho-hum, nothing startling or even mildly
interesting about a huge photograph of Adolf Hitler hanging in the
Turkish equivalent of Via Bellagio in Las Vegas or The Shops at Columbus
Circle in New York City.And it is not only Israel and the Jews towards which Turkey has turned its back.
The Iranian Ambassador to Turkey, Bahman Hussein Pour, discussed the
close and ever-increasing Iranian-Turkish relations in an article in the
January 14 MehrNews.com, an Iranian news agency.Hussein Pour pointed out that while Western countries, “especially
the U.S.,” have been pressuring Turkey to reduce economic relations with
Iran, “Iran-Turkey trade volume exceeds $21b this year for the first
time.” The Iranian Ambassador concluded that Turkish-Iranian relations
are irreversible.In addition to the trade relations between the two countries which
has more than quadrupled since 2008, Hussein Pour also explained that
“more than 15 Turkish provinces have become sister provinces with
Iranian ones.”