Obama to discuss Israel with Turkey's Erdogan

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(Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama will meet Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan at the U.N. General Assembly in New York next week and urge him to repair relations with Israel to mend a damaging split between two key U.S. allies in the region.

White House National Security Council spokesman Ben Rhodes told reporters that Obama also anticipated a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the president's three-day U.N. visit which starts late Monday.

"We have encouraged Israel and Turkey, two close friends of the United States, to work to bridge their differences, so we'll have an opportunity to discuss those issues," Rhodes told a news briefing.

Washington has watched with concern as Turkey's relations with Israel began to unravel in late 2008, after Erdogan voiced outrage at an Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip, ruled by the Palestinian Islamist Hamas group.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/16/us-un-obama-erodgan-idUSTRE78F49920110916

[Jefferson23]

1. What fun for Obama, having to explain your crazy friend..again. n/t

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2. Erdogan: Those in Syria who inflict repression will not survive

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan stepped up his rhetoric against Syrian President Bashar Assad on Friday, saying those in Syria who inflict repression on the people will not survive.

Erdogan, who is visiting Libya, told a cheering crowd in Tripoli's Martyrs' Square, formerly Green Square, that by ousting Muammar Gadhafi the Libyan people had set an example to others seeking to throw off oppression.

"You are the ones who showed the whole world that no administration can stand in the way of the might and will of the people," Erdogan said, as people chanted "Turkey, Turkey."

The Turkish prime minister added, "do not forget this: those in Syria who inflict repression on the people will not be able to stand on their feet because oppression and prosperity cannot exist together."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/erdogan-those-in-syria-who-inflict-repression-will-not-survive-1.384947