Turkish, Qatari foreign ministers discuss Gaza cease-fire negotiations

By Faruk Zorlu

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held a telephone call Wednesday with his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, to discuss Gaza cease-fire negotiations between Hamas and Israel, according to diplomatic sources.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, which killed less than 1,200 people.

More than 35,200 Palestinians have since been killed in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, and over 79,000 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

In the West Bank, nearly 500 Palestinians have been killed and thousands injured since then, along with daily arrest campaigns by the Israeli army.

Israel is accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.