Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Al Jazeera that Hamas is showing "genuine cooperation" with a proposed Gaza roadmap while criticizing ongoing Israeli strikes. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the plan, though senior Hamas officials say they remain committed. Key disputes center on the surrender and storage of weapons and the demand for a Palestinian state. US envoy Jared Kushner is in the region to mediate.
Erdoğan Praises Hamas' "Genuine Cooperation" Over Gaza Roadmap, Criticizes Israeli Strikes
FILE PHOTO - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gives a press conference following the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Ankara. (is associated with: «Erdoğan praises Hamas for its cooperation on Gaza plan») Marek Ladzinski/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Al Jazeera in an interview published online that Hamas is showing "genuine cooperation" and meeting its obligations under a proposed Gaza peace roadmap.
"Hamas is demonstrating genuine cooperation," Erdoğan said, while also criticizing Israel for continuing strikes in the Gaza Strip and saying US President Donald Trump has expressed concern about Israel's actions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly rejected the recently announced roadmap put forward by the so-called Board of Peace for the Gaza Strip, which has been largely devastated by the conflict. By contrast, senior Hamas official Basem Naim said Hamas remains committed to the roadmap.
Under the Board of Peace plan, as outlined by its backers, Israel and Hamas would cease hostilities, Hamas would surrender its weapons, and Israel would gradually withdraw its forces from Gaza. Hamas has made surrender of heavy arms conditional on several demands, including the establishment of a Palestinian state; Israel rejects those conditions and insists on complete disarmament.
The proposal envisions storing the group's weapons inside Gaza, a measure Israel fears could nevertheless leave arms accessible to Hamas in the future — a central sticking point in negotiations.
Jared Kushner, the US negotiator and President Trump's son-in-law, is in the region attempting to mediate and is due to meet Netanyahu in Israel later today.
Erdoğan has repeatedly criticized Israel and Netanyahu personally, and relations between Ankara and Jerusalem are widely seen as severely strained. Turkey, by contrast, maintains strong contacts with Hamas and has been portrayed as a key interlocutor; Ankara played a notable role in brokering the recent ceasefire in the Gaza war.
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