Turkish Embassy moving out of Hayarkon Street building

While the relations between the two countries are at the lowest unprecedented level, the Turkish embassy in Israel moves to the home, from the well -known building that was identified in 202 Hayarkon Street in Tel Aviv, to Mapu Street in the city, “I learned” Globes “. The current embassy building will be replaced.

Türkiye was the first Islamic country to recognize the state of Israel, and sent an envoy here in 1950. The 800 square meter embassy building is located against the Hilton Hotel. Initially, it was rented from an Israeli private owned by an Israeli royal company, but in 2009 the building was purchased by a resident of the abroad for 27 million New. Even at the time of sale, the urban construction plan allowed the use of buildings in the street for residential purposes or hotels, and the hotel has always been the possible result.

In 2012, the Planning and Building Committee in the Tel Aviv region agreed to deposit a plan to convert the Turkish embassy building into a hotel.

Tension concentration

The current Turkish embassy building has become a source of tension between Israel and Turkey during the swords of iron war. After the killing of Ismail Hani, head of the Hamas political office, in Tehran on July 31 of last year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the day of mourning. Two days later, the Turkish embassy reduced its flag to half of the mast, a step that was very clear to the Israelis, because it was made on Friday, when the needs of Tel Aviv are crowded with people, and because of the prominent site of the embassy. Later, a drone is abandoned by an Israeli flag hovering over the embassy building, which angered the Turks.

The embassy was also a source of stability in relations between Israel and Turkey. Trade relations between the two countries were not affected in previous crises, such as Marmara Flotilla in 2010, and the Israeli Ambassador Eitan Na’h was expelled from Ankara in 2018, after the death of the Palestinians by IDF in riots on the Gaza border on the border. In 2021, last year before Ibrahim’s agreements began to make an impact, Türkiye was the largest trading partner of Israel in the Middle East. Total imports from Türkiye amounted to $ 4.76 billion, and the total exports to the country amounted to $ 1.91 billion. This was more than all trade with the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Bahrain together. In 2024, Türkiye banned all goods exports to Israel’s ports, in protest against the war in the Gaza Strip, but Israeli importers found ways to circumvent the embargo. Recently, tensions arose around the conflicting interests of the two countries in Syria, after the fall of the Assad regime.

Movement can be a positive sign

At the beginning of this month, the Turkish ambassador to Israel, Sakkan Ozkan Torunlalar, who was called to Ankara in 2023, retired, and at the same time new companies reached Tel Aviv.

Türkiye has a consulate in Jerusalem. The Consul General there is appointed as the “Ambassador of Palestine”. The Consul General, Ismail Cobanoglu, is responsible for Turkish affairs in Jerusalem, Judea, Samer, and Gaza Strip.

The step from the Turkish embassy can be a positive sign. If Ankara is considering dividing relations with Israel to support Hamas, it is unlikely to invest in this step, after decades on Harakon Street. As the possibility of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip grows, the Palestinian issue is politically important for Erdogan, and in this regard, it needs relations with Israel. Mapu Street may be the scene of positive diplomacy between the two countries.

It was published by Globes, Israel Business News – En.globes.co.il – on May 28, 2025.

© Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. , 2025.