Turkish parliament speaker to receive Palestinian National Council chief

By Duygu Yener

ANKARA (AA) — The speaker of Türkiye's parliament will receive the head of the Palestinian National Council on Thursday.

According to information from his office, Numan Kurtulmus will meet with Rouhi Fettouh, who heads the highest decision-making body of the umbrella Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), for talks on joint efforts to stop Israel's attacks targeting civilians in Gaza.

The meeting comes as Kurtulmus continues to pursue diplomatic channels to halt Israeli attacks on civilians in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

The two top officials will also discuss Türkiye's efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to the region and joint efforts on international platforms to end Israel's bombardment of hospitals and refugee camps.

Fettouh is also expected to hold meetings with other government officials during his visit.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 10,569 Palestinians, including 4,324 children and 2,823 women, have been killed since then. The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is nearly 1,600, according to official figures.