After the Hamas attack on Israel at the weekend,Ankara has launched diplomacy seeking to mediate the conflict.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has ordered his government to seek negotiations on the hostages.AP
The official,speaking on condition of anonymity,said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had ordered the talks. Erdogan has held phone calls with regional powers this week to convey Ankara’s offer to mediate and discuss the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“Turkey is carrying out negotiations regarding the civilian prisoners held by Hamas. Upon President Tayyip Erdogan’s orders,the relevant institutions are carrying out a process regarding the civilians held by Hamas,” the person said,without providing further details.
Turkish politicians,including Erdogan,have previously met members of Hamas. There has been no official statement from Ankara about contact with the group since the fighting began.
Scores of Israelis and others from abroad were taken to Gaza as hostages,some of whom were paraded through streets. Both sides have said many women and children were among the dead and wounded.
Palestinians transport a captured Israeli civilian from Kfar Azza kibbutz into the Gaza Strip.AP
Turkey,which has backed Palestinians in the past,supports a two-state solution to the conflict and hosts Hamas members. It has been working to repair its ties with Israel after years of acrimony,primarily by focusing on energy cooperation.
Since the fighting began on Saturday,Ankara has called for restraint and urged the protection of civilians in both Israel and Gaza.
It has also warned against the conflict spreading to a wider region,saying the only path to regional peace was through the formation of an independent Palestinian state.
Erdogan on Wednesday also said Israel’s response to Hamas in Gaza amounted to,referring to its blockade cutting off water and electricity to the city and to civilian deaths.
Music festival goers heard rockets before Gaza militants fired on them and took hostages.
Hamas released a video that appears to show the release of a female hostage and two children.
Although Hamas has issued a statement claiming they were released,Israeli media experts remained unconvinced.
Al Jazeera,which published the video,quoted Israeli reporters who questioned the veracity of the video,and also suggested it could be Hamas trying to improve its public image.
In another significant move,Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed the Palestinian-Israeli conflict on Wednesday,in the first telephone call between the two leaders since a China-brokered deal between Tehran and Riyadh to resume ties.
Raisi and the Saudi crown prince discussed the “need to end war crimes against Palestine,” Iranian state media said.
The Saudi crown prince,for his part,“affirmed that the Kingdom is making all possible efforts in communicating with all international and regional parties to stop the ongoing escalation,” Saudi state news agency SPA said.
He also reiterated Saudi Arabia’s rejection of targeting civilians in any way,SPA added.
Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to resume ties in March under a deal negotiated by China after seven years of hostility,which had threatened stability and security in the Gulf and helped fuel conflicts in the Middle East,from Yemen to Syria.
Reuters
