U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that he discussed the imperative of Palestinian militant group Hamas' saying 'yes' to the Gaza ceasefire agreement in his talks with Turkey's President and Foreign Minister.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken shakes the hand of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan after a joint press conference at the Ministry headquarters in the Turkish capital Ankara on December 13, 2024. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via Reuters
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that he discussed the imperative of Palestinian militant group Hamas' saying 'yes' to the Gaza ceasefire agreement in his talks with Turkey's President and Foreign Minister.
"In my discussions with President Erdogan and with Minister Fidan we talked about the imperative of Hamas saying yes to the (Gaza) agreement that's possible to finally help bring this to an end," Blinken said, following his meeting with Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara.
"We appreciate very much the role that Turkiye can play in using its voice with with Hamas, to try to bring this to conclusion."
Reporting by Simon Lewis
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday he had instructed the military to intensify pressure on Hamas after the Palestinian terrorist group this week rejected an Israeli proposal for another temporary truce, instead demanding a deal to end the war in exchange for the release of hostages.
The past few days have unfolded like a geopolitical drama of historic proportions in Lebanon, where Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Shia militia long considered untouchable, appears to be teetering on the edge of a seismic shift.
Israel has not ruled out an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities in the coming months despite President Donald Trump telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. was for now unwilling to support such a move, according to an Israeli official and two other people familiar with the matter.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.