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\t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the terms<\/a><\/p>\n Erdogan, who has long been a vociferous critic of Israel, stated days later that Israeli \u201caggression\u201d posed a threat to the whole world and must be stopped, as he claimed Israeli strikes in Lebanon and Syria were a threat to Turkey.<\/p>\n While Israel\u2019s relations with Turkey, which were once the Jewish state\u2019s strongest with any country in the region, have drastically deteriorated following Erdogan\u2019s rise to power, they have been particularly strained since the start of the Gaza war sparked by the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack.<\/p>\n \t Trump was also asked Wednesday whether he was preparing a major \u201cgift bag\u201d of weapons sales for Turkey ahead of an upcoming NATO summit there, including F-35 stealth fighters and dozens of jet engines.<\/p>\n \u201cI think so, look\u2026 I\u2019m going to probably do something that\u2019s going to make him very happy,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n Pressed on what specifically needs to happen for the F-35 sale to go through, Trump punted the question to Vice President JD Vance.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are certain things that we have to certify that have happened in order to comply with American law. The president has asked us to do that\u2026 so they can get the F-35s\u2026 This is really a congressional thing,\u201d Vance said before Trump chimes in, insisting that the issue would be sorted out.<\/p>\n \t The F-35 fighter jet, a top-of-the-line stealth plane, was originally developed by the United States in partnership with other NATO countries under a program called the Joint Strike Fighter. However, the United States booted Turkey from development of the F-35 in 2019 after the NATO ally went ahead with purchases of the S-400 missile defense from Russia.<\/p>\n US law does not permit Turkey to operate or possess the S-400 system if it wishes to rejoin the F-35 program. However, US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said in December that the warm relationship between Trump and Erdogan helped the two sides hold \u201cthe most fruitful conversations we have had on this topic in nearly a decade.\u201d<\/p>\n Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n \u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n \t\t\t
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\n\t\tTurkey\u2019s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gives a speech during the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, in Antalya, southern Turkey, April 17, 2026. (Riza Ozel\/AP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/9742362-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tIllustrative: A US Air Force F-35 Lightning II assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing, approaches a KC-135 Stratotanker during a refueling mission over Sweden, June 10, 2026. (US Air Force)<\/p>\n
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