Turkey has been asked by U.S. President Donald Trump to help convince Hamas to support his plan to end Gaza's war and it has been explaining to the group what needs to be done, President Tayyip Erdogan said.
President Tayyip Erdogan © Mena Today
Turkey has been asked by U.S. President Donald Trump to help convince Hamas to support his plan to end Gaza's war and it has been explaining to the group what needs to be done, President Tayyip Erdogan said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Hamas said it had exchanged a list of the names of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners to be released under a swap deal, saying it was optimistic about talks in Egypt on Trump's plan.
Turkey, which has voiced support for the plan and joined the negotiations in Egypt, has been one of the most vocal critics of Israel's offensive, which it calls a genocide. It has halted all trade with Israel, called for international measures against its government, and demanded a two-state solution.
In comments to reporters on a flight back from Azerbaijan, Erdogan said Turkish officials were involved in negotiations in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh on Wednesday, and added that Trump had asked Turkey to convince Hamas to accept the proposal.
"We have been in contact with Hamas throughout this process. We are in contact with them now too," Erdogan said, according to a transcript of his comments shared by his office.
"We are explaining to them what the most appropriate way is, what needs to be done for Palestine to march with commitment into the future."
"Both in our America visit and our latest phone call, we explained to Mr. Trump how a solution in Palestine can be achieved," he said, referring to his visit to the White House last month.
"He specifically requested that we speak to Hamas and convince them. We rapidly got in touch with our counterparts on this," he added.
Turkey's intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin, who attended the last round of talks in Doha, is involved in the negotiations in Egypt.
Asked about a potential Turkish troop deployment to Gaza in a post-war scenario and ways to ensure security in the enclave, Erdogan said the talks in Sharm el-Sheikh were critical for discussing the issue in detail, but that the priority was achieving a full ceasefire, securing aid deliveries, and rebuilding Gaza.
Ankara was ready to contribute to all efforts in post-war Gaza, he said, adding Gaza must be part of a Palestinian state and be governed by Palestinians.
Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu and Daren Butler
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