ISTANBUL

Israeli diplomats in Türkiye had already left a while ago, a Turkish diplomatic source said Saturday after Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen's remarks about Israel's withdrawal of diplomats from Türkiye.

"Israeli diplomats are not in Türkiye at the moment. As of Oct. 19, they had already departed from our country,” the sources noted, adding that in a note sent Oct. 18 to the Turkish Foreign Ministry the diplomats at the embassy had informed officials that because of recent developments, they would leave the country Oct. 19.

"It is difficult to understand who Cohen ordered to return. Because the diplomats he mentioned in his statement had already left our country," it said.

Recent media reports, citing Israeli sources, suggested that Israeli diplomats, including Ambassador Irit Lillian, left Türkiye due to security concerns rather than a diplomatic crisis.

“Given the grave statements coming from Turkey, I have ordered the return of diplomatic representatives there in order to conduct a reevaluation of the relations between Israel and Turkey,” Cohen wrote on X.

The statement on social media was made shortly after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's speech at the "Great Palestine Meeting," a pro-Palestine rally in Istanbul.