Israel summons Turkish envoy over half-mast salute for Hamas leader

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's foreign ministry summoned the deputy Turkish ambassador for a reprimand on Friday after Turkey's embassy in Tel Aviv lowered its flag to half mast in response to the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh.

"The State of Israel will not tolerate expressions of mourning for a murderer like Ismail Haniyeh," Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.

Haniyeh was killed in Tehran while there to attend the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Israel has not made any official claim of responsibility for his death but Iran and allies including Hamas and Hezbollah have accused Israel of the assassination and vowed revenge.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan declared Friday, Aug 2, a day of national mourning for Haniyeh.

Katz's statement said Haniyeh had been Hamas leader during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed some 1,200 Israelis and foreigners and saw more than 250 taken hostage into Gaza, triggering Israel's assault on the coastal enclave.

Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Oncu Keceli, responding to Katz's remarks on social media platform X, said: "You cannot achieve peace by killing negotiators, threatening diplomats," in an apparent reference to Haniyeh's killing.

Tensions between Israel and Turkey have risen sharply since the start of the war in Gaza, in which more than 39,000 Palestinians have been killed.

(Reporting by James Mackenzie; Additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara; Editing by Peter Graff and Deepa Babington)