Turkish foreign minister to attend Union for Mediterranean group meeting in Barcelona

By Merve Berker

ANKARA (AA) – Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend the eighth regional forum of the Union of the Mediterranean on Nov. 26-27.

According to a statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Sunday, Hakan Fidan will travel to Barcelona to attend the event, in which “humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the regional situation” will be discussed as the only agenda item.

Fidan will also meet with his Spanish counterpart Jose Manuel Albares, along with other foreign ministers assigned by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation-Arab League Extraordinary Joint Summit to discuss the latest developments in Gaza.

A four-day humanitarian pause, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the US, went into effect on Friday, temporarily halting Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip.

In the first two days of the humanitarian pause, Israel and Hamas exchanged 41 Israelis and foreigners for 78 Palestinians in Israeli jails.

Under the agreement, the hostages and prisoners will be released in batches during the course of four days.

Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

It has since killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave. The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.