Israel, Poland conclude joint air drill

Israeli and Polish pilots concluded a weeklong joint exercise in southern Israel, the first of its kind between the two countries, officials said. Polish air force Cmdr. Lech Majewski reviewed the joint drills, which included mock attacks and finished Thursday, despite the recent violence between Israel and Gaza, Ynetnews.com said. A reciprocal exercise in Poland is currently being planned, the Web site said. The exercise took place at the Ovda base in the Negev. "The main goal of this exercise is to teach the combat doctrine and operational agenda of other air forces," a senior Israeli air force official told the Web site. Due to the deterioration in diplomatic ties, Turkey has refused to participate in joint military exercises with Israel. Undeterred by Ankara's stance Israel has conducted joint military exercises with the United States, Greece, Romania and Italy, the site said.