2024-04-21 15:31:00
Turkey’s president discussed “urgent need” for a ceasefire with Hamas chief
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the “urgent need” for a ceasefire following meeting Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh during a meeting in Istanbul, a statement from Erdogan’s office said on Saturday.
The meeting marked the first time Haniyeh met Erdogan since October 7, when Israel began its military invasion of Gaza. Earlier this week, the Hamas leader held talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Doha.
“During the meeting, President Erdoğan said that Turkey continues its diplomatic efforts to draw the attention of the international community to the persecution of the Palestinians and emphasized at every opportunity the need to end the atrocities and the urgent need for an end to the permanent fire. ”, according to a statement from the Turkish presidency.
During the meeting, Erdogan also urged Palestinians to “act in unity” amid Israel’s war once morest Hamas, saying the strongest response is through “unity and integrity.”
Erdogan also said Turkey has provided Gaza with more than 45,000 tons of humanitarian aid to “alleviate some of the suffering” and would continue to provide relief efforts.
Commenting on tensions between Israel and Iran, Erdogan emphasized that these incidents “should not give ground to Israel.”
“Efforts must be made to refocus attention on Gaza so as not to dissipate the atmosphere in the West that questions Israel’s attacks,” the statement said.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz criticized the meeting between Erdogan and Haniyeh. In a post on X, Katz described atrocities that he said were committed by “the Muslim Brotherhood alliance.” He concluded his post by saying: “Erdogan, shame on you.”
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