Turkish foreign minister meets Hamas leader in Qatar
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) poses with Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, in Doha, Qatar, June 9, 2024. (AA Photo)


Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday met Ismail Haniyeh, political bureau chief of Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, the Foreign Ministry said in a social media post.

The meeting took place in Qatari capital Doha where Fidan traveled to attend the sixth meeting of foreign ministers of the Türkiye-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) for high-level strategic dialogue talks.

The Fidan-Haniyeh meeting comes one day after Israel launched an all-out assault on Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, killing dozens of Palestinians and injuring hundreds of others.

Haniyeh is a frequent visitor to Türkiye which champions Palestinian cause and stands among few countries recognizing his group as a resistance movement. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also pioneers efforts for reconciliation between Hamas and al-Fatah, which retains the Palestinian Authority based in Ramallah. He hosted Haniyeh and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas recently for rare high-level talks on the matter.