Erdogan: We did not remain silent on Israeli massacre

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Justice and Development (AK) Party government did not remain silent to the Israeli massacre on the "Mavi Marmara" aid ship in May 2010. Speaking at a group meeting of his party at the Turkish parliament on Tuesday, Erdogan said that "Israel may have had different calculations after attacking the 'Mavi Marmara' aid ship in May 2010 (killing nine Turks on board)." Perhaps the Israelis thought that the "Mavi Marmara" incident would be forgotten as other bloody incidents they conducted, Erdogan stressed. "However, this time, the Israelis met with a different understanding and structure. The AK Party government did not remain silent against this illegality, aggressiveness and massacre," Erdogan indicated. "We did not take a step back and never got tired from follow-up and never gave concessions from laws," Erdogan also said. Israel on March 22 apologized to Turkey for their deadly raid on the "Mavi Marmara" aid ship which left nine Turks dead in May 2010 and accepted to pay reparations to the families of the victims. "The Israeli apology was important in remembering the martyrs of Turkey and those of Palestine," Erdogan said. Touching on the process of solution in Turkey, Prime Minister Erdogan underlined that they may need a group of wise men on the matter. "We would like to benefit from the wise men. We would like to see the presence of every one from all walks of life. However, this group will not be the authority to take decisions. As the (Turkish) government, we are the selector," Erdogan also said.