Turkey

ISTANBUL, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has discussed humanitarian aid for Gaza over the phone with Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political bureau of Hamas, local media reported Sunday.

Erdogan told Haniyeh that "Türkiye is making efforts to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches Gaza and that the injured can be treated in Türkiye when necessary," NTV television reported, citing Erdogan's office.

Erdogan said Türkiye was working for a "ceasefire in the region as soon as possible" and reiterated his country's position regarding the conflict.

ANKARA, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Turkish protesters clashed with police overnight in angry demonstrations following a blast that killed large numbers of Palestinians at a Gaza hospital, and further rallies were expected on Wednesday.

Palestinian officials said the blast at Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital was caused by an Israeli air strike. Israel blamed the blast on a failed rocket launch by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, which denied responsibility.

President Tayyip Erdogan called the blast "the latest example of Israeli attacks devoid of the most basic human values".

ISTANBUL, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Turkish police on Tuesday rounded up 17 suspects accused of transferring money to Islamic State (IS) members in a large-scale operation in Istanbul, local media reported.

Authorities found that the suspects were illegally transferring money between Türkiye and conflict zones through companies and individuals, the private news agency Demiroren said.

16 October 2023; MEMO: Turkiye stands with Egypt in rejecting the exile of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in the face of Israel’s war with the Hamas group, Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, said alongside his counterpart in Cairo on Saturday, Reuters report.

According to the report, Fidan said it is important to act to stop the conflict from spreading and to re-start peace talks centred on achieving a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians.

ANKARA, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in a call on Monday that Western countries should refrain from "provocative steps" regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Turkish presidency said.

Erdogan also told Sunak that Western powers must "remember the unkept promises to Palestine and do what is necessary", the presidency said on social messaging platform X. It said the two also discussed the resolution of the "grave humanitarian crisis" in Gaza.

ANKARA, Oct 14 (NNN-XINHUA) – Türkiye, yesterday, condemned Israel’s call for Gaza City residents to evacuate to the southern part of the Gaza Strip within 24 hours, ahead of a possible ground offensive, saying, the move violates international law.

“Forcing the Gazan people of 2.5 million, who have been under indiscriminate bombing and deprived collectively of electricity, water and food, to relocate in an extremely small area is a blatant breach of international law and inhumane,” the ministry said in a statement.

ANKARA, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Recent remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan have sparked speculations that his country could sever ties with the European Union (EU), but still, experts think a break-up is not in the interest of either side.

During a speech in the parliament on Oct. 1, Erdogan said his country no longer expects anything from Brussels after waiting for decades to become an EU member.

14 October 2023; AA: A third Turkish plane carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza Strip civilians arrived in Egypt on Saturday.

The plane landed at El Arish International Airport in Egypt, which neighbors the embattled strip and has allocated it for humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The military aircraft, in collaboration with the National Defense Ministry, Turkish Red Crescent, and Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), is delivering much-needed aid to the people of Gaza.

ANKARA, October 13. /TASS/: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has issued instructions to deliver the first batch of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip via Egypt.

Aircraft carrying humanitarian cargo have already flown out of Turkey, A Haber television said.

The humanitarian aid will reportedly be delivered via the Rafah crossing point between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

ISTANBUL, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday that Türkiye is ready to do its part to stop the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and reduce escalated tension.

"Türkiye is ready to do its best to stop the clashes as soon as possible and reduce the tension that has escalated with the recent incidents," Erdogan said at the inauguration ceremony of a Syriac Orthodox Church in Istanbul.

He said the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is the root of the problems in the region, and lasting peace is only possible through a final settlement.