Benny Gantz, head of the centrist Blue and White party, speaks during a swearing-in ceremony at the Knesset, in Jerusalem, May 17, 2020. Photo: Adina Valman / Knesset Spokesperson’s Office / Handout via Reuters.

JNS.org – Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz contacted Turkey’s defense attaché to Israel and the Turkish Defense Ministry on Sunday and offered to send a search and rescue delegation to help Turkey cope with the aftermath of devastating floods.

Gantz said that a team from the IDF Home Front Command could also provide medical personnel and supplies.

At least 58 people have been killed by flooding in northern Turkey, and dozens more were missing as of Sunday afternoon.

Recently, strained Israeli-Turkish relations have shown signs of thawing. Last month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan congratulated Israeli President Isaac Herzog on his election victory—the first conversation between Erdoğan and a senior Israeli official since 2013.

The conversation lasted some 40 minutes, and Herzog and Erdoğan agreed to bolster bilateral relations, stressing that ties between Israel and Turkey were of great importance to stability and security in the greater Middle East, and that cooperation between the two countries had great potential, especially in the energy, tourism and technology sectors.

This article first appeared in Israel Hayom.