Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan telephonic talks on Isreal Hamas conflict
Israel refused a request to bring food and medical supplies into Gaza Strip the food and medical supplies , Hussein Al-Sheikh,
Qatar said Tuesday it was too soon to start brokering talks on a potential prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas
ANKARA + Moscow + Qatar ( Web News )
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in a phone call on Tuesday, the Turkish presidency said.
The two leaders discussed possible measures to prevent increasing the tensions in the region and initiatives for delivering humanitarian aid there, it said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter.
In the call, Erdogan said Turkey will maintain its efforts to ensure calm in the region, according to the statement.
Israel refused a request to bring food and medical supplies
Israel refused a request to bring food and medical supplies into the Gaza Strip, Hussein Al-Sheikh, secretary general of the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization PLO said on Tuesday.
“We call on the international humanitarian institutions and the international community to intervene urgently to stop the aggression, allow the entry of relief materials, and restore electricity and water, because the Gaza Strip is facing a major humanitarian catastrophe,” he said.
Qatar: ‘Too early’ for Israel-Hamas mediation efforts
Qatar said Tuesday it was too soon to start brokering talks on a potential prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas after the militia seized around 150 hostages in a shock weekend attack.
Israel has been left reeling by the coordinated ground, air and sea assault from Gaza which saw hundreds of militants storm the border on Saturday, before mounting a bloody rampage that killed more than 900 people.
Qatari foreign ministry spokesman Majed bin Mohammed Al-Ansari said it was “too early” for mediation when asked about the prospects for a potential prisoner exchange.
“At this moment, it is a very difficult point to say that any party can start with mediation. I think we need to see developments on the ground,” he told reporters.
Concerns for the safety of those abducted to Gaza took on added urgency as Hamas threatened on Monday to start executing its prisoners if Israel carried out air strikes on Gaza without prior warning.
Israel has launched a ferocious retaliatory bombardment of what it says are Hamas targets in Gaza. Officials say 900 people have been killed.
On Monday, an informed source told AFP Qatar was spearheading efforts to negotiate an exchange of prisoners with talks making “some headway”.
On Tuesday, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani held a call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to discuss cooperation particularly on developments in the Palestinian territories, according to a statement from the Qatari leader’s office.
On Monday, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani held a call with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, whose government is a supporter of Hamas.
“We have discussed with all those we have contacted the need to contain this escalation within the current parameters and for it not to become a regional confrontation with other players,” the ministry spokesman said, expressing particular concern over the situation in southern Lebanon.
Qatar, which has hosted a Hamas political office for more than a decade, has provided millions of dollars in financial aid to Gaza.
Late last month, Qatar and Egypt brokered a deal between Hamas and Israel which saw the reopening of border crossings between Gaza and Israel.
EU’s Borrell says support to Palestinians will continue
“The overwhelming majority of the member states considered that we have to continue our support to the Palestinian Authority and the payments due should not be delayed”, Borrell said after a meeting of EU Foreign Affairs ministers.
Borrell also said Israel has the right to defend itself but some of the decisions it has made in recent days are against international law.
“Israel has the right to defend (itself) but it has to be done accordingly with international law, humanitarian law, and some decisions are contrary to international law”, Borrell said after a meeting of EU Foreign Affairs ministers in Muscat, Oman.