Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged the United States and other nations to take firm actions to push Israel to respect the Gaza ceasefire agreement, according to Reuters.
Recommended Measures
“As Turkey, we are doing our utmost for the ceasefire to be secured. The Hamas side is abiding by the ceasefire. In fact, it is openly stating its commitment to this. Israel, meanwhile, is continuing to violate the ceasefire,” Erdogan told reporters on his return flight from a regional Gulf tour.
Erdogan suggested measures such as sanctions or the suspension of arms sales to pressure Israel to stop violating the ceasefire deal.
“Israel must be forced to keep its promises via sanctions, halting of arms sales,” he added.
Turkey’s Involvement in Gaza Negotiations
Turkey has recently been part of the ceasefire negotiations as a mediator after previously maintaining a largely indirect role.
This involvement has effectively increased after a meeting in September between Erdogan and US President Donald Trump at the White House.
“The international community, namely the United States, must do more to ensure Israel’s full compliance to the ceasefire and agreement,” Erdogan said.
Gaza Reconstruction
Notably, Ankara has revealed its intention to take part in the reconstruction plan of Gaza by joining a “task force” overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire. In this context, Turkey said that its armed forces are willing to participate in either a military or civilian capacity as required.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday signaled his opposition to any involvement of Turkish security forces in the Palestinian enclave.
Israeli Turkish Relations
In response to Netanyahu’s comments, Erdogan avoided his typically sharp criticism of the Israeli leader and seemed to soften his earlier push for a direct role in Gaza, mentioning that talks over the issue were still in progress.
“Talks are continuing on the task force that will work in Gaza. The modalities of this are not yet clear. As this is a multi-faceted issue, there are comprehensive negotiations. We are ready to provide Gaza any form of support on this issue,” he said.
Moreover, the Turkish leader renewed his call for Gulf states to take the lead on financing efforts to rebuild Gaza, stressing that no single country could address the reconstruction alone.
Tensions between Israel and Turkey have been rising since the outbreak of the Gaza War in October 2023 with Erdogan accusing Israel of committing a genocide in Gaza.
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