Concerns that Syria's stockpile of chemical weapons could reach militant groups bordering Israel and Turkey was the motivating factor in restoring relations with Ankara after a three year rift, Israel's prime minister said. Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on his Facebook page Saturday that Israel and Turkey, which border Syria, need to communicate with each other over the Syrian crisis. "The fact that the crisis in Syria intensifies from moment to moment was the main consideration in my view," Netanyahu wrote, as AP recorded. Netanyahu phoned his Turkish counterpart Friday and apologized for a botched raid on a Gaza bound flotilla in 2010 that left eight Turks and one Turkish-American dead. Turkey demanded an apology as a condition for restoring ties. Netanyahu had until now refused to apologize, saying Israeli soldiers acted in self-defense after being attacked by activists. Turkey and Israel were once strong allies but relations began decline after Erdogan, whose party has roots in Turkey's Islamist movement, became prime minister in 2003.
