IHH, a Turkish organization linked to al-Qaeda (see: http://jgcaesarea.blogspot.com/2010/06/gaza-flotilla-little-picture-big.html), has pulled out of the Gaza flotilla planned for later this month. According to IHH, their ship, the Mavi Marmara, which participated in the prior flotilla, did not get the necessary approval from Turkish port authorities to depart. Yeah, right.
Make no mistake about it: IHH receives marching orders from Turkey's ruling, Islamic, AKP Party, and the IHH cancellation follows Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's "suggestion" to IHH that they reconsider their participation in the flotilla (see: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/turkey-foreign-minister-urges-organizers-to-reconsider-gaza-flotilla-1.366327).
The chaos and rioting in Syria, which have brought thousands of Syrian refugees to the Turkish border, have sparked tension between Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan and his heretofore "dear friend" Assad. Erdogan is now accusing Assad of "barbarism" (see: http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=224433&R=R3).
It could prove extremely embarrassing for Erdogan if IHH were to sail to Gaza, given the emerging humanitarian crisis on Turkey's border with Syria. It was already embarrassing enough that longevity, live births and literacy are higher in Gaza than in all of Turkey without even drawing comparisons with Turkey's disadvantaged Kurdish population.
Erdogan is carefully watching the response of Syria's oppressed Kurdish minority to the rioting. Erdogan is concerned that a Kurdish insurrection in Syria could spread to the significant Kurdish minority in Turkey, who were already outraged by the ban on their candidates' participation in national elections earlier this month (see: http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/04/19/turkey-explosion-kurds.html). Erdogan does not need to be bothered by the distraction of another flotilla, given the real crisis on the Syrian border.
Also, the U.S. is now scrutinizing the conduct of Turkey, which did not provide NATO with assistance to contend with Libya's Qaddafi. Parallels will necessarily be drawn between the AKP's interaction with the IHH and the Pakistani government's "arrangements" with the Taliban and al-Qaeda (see: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/7910687/Wikileaks-Pakistan-accused-of-helping-Taliban-in-Afghanistan-attacks.html). It would appear that both Pakistan and Turkey are adept at playing both sides of the fence.
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