Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Turkey and Israel must stick together in the Middle East, in a statement to journalists on his trip back from visiting Saudi Arabia. Speaking to a group of journalists, the Turkish leader said, “Israel is in need of a country like Turkey in the region. We have to admit that we also need Israel“. Hurriyetdailynews.com reports: Speaking to a group of journalists aboard the presidential plane returning to Turkey from Riyadh, where he met with Saudi King Salman bin Abdülaziz al-Saud, Erdoğan said the mutual need “is a fact of the region.” “We need to see that. If we can take steps in reciprocal sincerity, then normalization will continue,” he added. Relations with Israel have been tense since May 31, 2010, when Israeli forces raided a Gaza-bound flotilla of mainly Turkish activists, killing 10 people aboard the Mavi Marmara, the largest of the six vessels in the flotilla. Presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said on Dec. 28, 2015, progress was made with Israel on the issue of compensation for Mavi Marmara victims, adding that Turkey had not changed its three conditions for normalization of ties between the two countries: “There has been progress [...]