( CNN ) -- Turkey 's top diplomat angrily rejected U.S. newspaper reports alleging the Turkish government leaked Israeli intelligence secrets to Iran . `` This is just a smear campaign . This is not true . It is dirty propaganda , '' Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said , according to a ministry spokesman . Davutoglu was referring to a column published in the Washington Post on Thursday . Citing `` knowledgeable sources , '' the Post 's David Ignatius reported that in early 2012 , the Turkish government revealed to Iranian intelligence `` the identities of up to 10 Iranians who had been meeting inside Turkey with their Mossad case officers . '' The Mossad is Israel 's intelligence service . The reported leak took place at a time when relations between Turkey and Israel were at an all-time low , after Israeli commandos killed eight Turks and an American activist during a botched 2010 raid against the Mavi Marmara , a Turkish aid ship seeking to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza . Until then , Turkey and Israel had enjoyed decades of close military , intelligence and economic ties . `` With the full knowledge of the Turks , we used to use the Turkish soil in order to run intelligence operations , '' said Danny Yatom , a retired Israeli major general who spent several years running Mossad . Speaking in a conference call with journalists , Yatom said Israel likely reduced its intelligence-sharing with Turkey after the rupture in relations following the Mavi Marmara raid . But , he added , `` this information that was transferred by the Turks to the Iranians about a year ago , this is information that they ( the Turks ) might acquire from Israel many years ago . '' Washington , a close ally of both Turkey and Israel , has sought to smooth over differences between the Middle Eastern countries . Earlier this year , U.S. President Barak Obama helped broker a telephone apology for the Mavi Marmara raid from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to his Turkish counterpart . On Thursday , Turkish officials suggested that the Washington Post report was part of a broader effort to discredit Turkey 's top spymaster , Hakan Fidan . A week ago , the Wall Street Journal published a profile of Fidan , who is the head of the Milli Istihbarat Teskilati , or MIT , Turkey 's main intelligence agency . The article suggested Fidan was the architect of a policy that has funneled weapons and money to rebels in neighboring Syria . Turkey has been one of the most vocal supporters of the Syrian opposition throughout civil war of the past two and a half years . The Syrian National Coalition , one of the main opposition groups in exile , opposition activists and rebels have been hosted in Turkey , which has also provided health care to injured fighters . In addition , CNN journalists have witnessed weapons being smuggled across the border from Turkey to Syrian opposition groups . But in recent months , several hard-core al Qaeda-linked fighting groups have begun challenging more moderate rebel factions for control of northern Syria . Last month one such group , the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria , drove Syrian rebels out of the northern border town of Azaz . Since then , ISIS militants have repeatedly clashed with rebel groups , which continue to control a key customs terminal on the border between Turkey and Syria . Turkey , meanwhile , has kept the border gate firmly closed . This week , the Turkish military announced its artillery fired at ISIS positions near Azaz in retaliation for a suspected ISIS mortar shell that landed near the Turkish border town of Kilis . One Turkish expert suggested the artillery strikes against al Qaeda-linked targets should be interpreted as a message to Turkey 's NATO allies . `` What the Turks did yesterday , is to try to send a message to Turkey 's critics , especially in the West , that the Turks have not gotten too cozy with the jihadists , '' said Henri Barkey , a professor of international relations at Lehigh University . This was not the first time Turkish army has engaged in cross-border artillery duels along the frontier with Syria . As the warring parties have grown increasingly fractured , reports say Turkish military units have fired at Syrian government forces , rebels groups , and even Kurdish militias . `` Our engagement rules compel the military to strike back whenever we see a threat to our own borders , '' said a Turkish government official , speaking to CNN on condition of anonymity .
`` This is just a smear campaign . '' The letter was signed by the heads of several major American Jewish organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, which has been critical of Trump and his campaign. A column in the Washington Post says Turkey told Iran about Iranians talking to Israelis . RA retired chief of Israel 's intelligence : Turkey could have gotten the info years ago . Turkish officials suggest there is an effort to discredit Turkey 's top spymaster .