Under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Türkiye played a key role in the humanitarian pause and hostage exchange between Israel and Palestine in Gaza. An influential mediator that proved itself in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Türkiye was the first option of countries whose citizens were held hostage.
Countries formally contacted Türkiye for the release of 22 Thai, 22 Argentine and two Tanzanian citizens held by Hamas. Eleven Thais were among those released in two instances of hostage exchange between Hamas and Israel.
The Hamas sources and Turkish sources said on Monday that the release of Thai hostages from Gaza was completed following efforts from Erdoğan. "In response to the efforts of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas has completed the release of Thai detainees inside the Gaza Strip," Hamas said in a statement.
Separately, sources in Ankara said that Thai nationals were released through the efforts of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), upon the instruction of President Erdoğan. Earlier last week, Erdoğan said MIT head Ibrahim Kalın and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan are working with Qatar on the release of hostages held by Hamas. Speaking at a joint news conference with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Erdoğan said: "Türkiye hopes to achieve positive results on hostage exchange as soon as possible."
Ankara is currently working on the release of other foreign nationals held hostage. Hamas released 58 hostages, while Israel released 117 Palestinians during the humanitarian pause. Türkiye remains committed to maintaining a permanent cease-fire between the two sides and repeatedly suggests discussion of a two-state solution to the issue. Erdoğan has earlier called upon the international community to bring the sides to the table for a lasting solution: The establishment of a fully sovereign, independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Kalın oversees efforts in the field for the release of hostages. In the past six weeks, he held four critical meetings with the Hamas officials, including one in Doha, Qatar, two in Ankara and one in Istanbul. Türkiye asked Hamas to release civilian hostages first, to help Türkiye’s efforts for lasting truce and humanitarian aid delivery. Turkish officials held in-person talks with Hamas’ political bureau administrations in Qatar.
The Turkish ambassador in Doha was also tasked with Fidan to attend the talks. Türkiye conveyed requests from countries whose citizens were among the hostages of Hamas in those talks. Hamas officials conveyed these requests to the resistance group’s military wing in Gaza, urging them to include third-country citizens in the batch of Israeli hostages set to be released.
Hamas had some 239 hostages until the start of the humanitarian pause last week, and civilians were prioritized in hostage exchange between Hamas and Israel. Ankara warned both sides not to violate the truce and not allow third parties to undermine the process.
Half of the hostages held by Hamas have a military background and the gradual release of more hostages is expected if the humanitarian pause deal expands.
Parents of Israeli hostages captured by Hamas have also sought Erdoğan's assistance, Turkish media outlets reported earlier this month. Broadcaster CNN Türk was the first to publish the letter by parents dated Nov. 3. The letter is signed by Meirav Lesham Gonen and Malki Shem-Tov, mother of 23-year-old Romi and father of 21-year-old Omer, respectively. “We, the family members of the abducted Israelis who are being held hostage by Hamas since Oct. 7, are writing to ask for your humanitarian intervention in this crisis,” the letter read.
“As the leader of one of the region’s great powers, with vast influence in the Middle East, in the Muslim world and beyond, we believe that you are in a unique position to be of immeasurable assistance,” they said in the address to Erdoğan. The parents appealed to Erdoğan “on the deepest humanitarian level to do all in your power to obtain a sign of life from the hostages, to facilitate all their medical needs without delay and to bring about their immediate release.”
Erdoğan said earlier this month before a summit of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) that if Türkiye intervenes to solve the hostage crisis, Israel should swiftly release Palestinians. On the other hand, Hamas should release Israelis as well. Hamas has expressed a willingness to release civilians, Erdoğan said on Nov. 10. There are also high-ranking officers among the hostages held by Hamas, said Erdoğan, adding that Israel made minors prisoners: "If positive steps are taken, we are willing to take any risk and contribute to the resolution of this issue. In the last month, Israel has arrested nearly 2,000 people in the West Bank. Before that, there were around 10,000 people thrown into prisons, including women and children. Hamas primarily demands the release of Palestinians arrested by Israel in the West Bank and Gaza, especially women and children."
Türkiye also works to evacuate injured Gazans and cancer patients in hospitals in the Palestinian enclave, along with its own citizens. Türkiye's efforts also helped a Palestinian academic living and working in Türkiye to reunite with his family trapped in Gaza. On the 45th day of the conflict, the wife, two daughters and the son of Dr. Shaban Sahmoud were evacuated to Türkiye. Sahmoud was living with his family in Istanbul before seeing them to Gaza where they attended school two years ago. When the conflict erupted, desperate Sahmoud contacted Turkish authorities for their evacuation from Gaza. Eventually, his wife Abir, 9-year-old daughter Minna, 12-year-old daughter Maria and 13-year-old son Ahmed managed to arrive at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. After a 13-hour journey, they reached Türkiye.
Sahmoud told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Monday that his family was living in Khan Younis, a village near the border, but they had to relocate when Israeli bombardment targeting the border intensified. "They had no safe place. We believed central (Gaza) would be safe but nowhere was safe. They relocated three times (since the conflict began)," he said. Sahmoud says what happened in Gaza was not "a war" but "a massacre" of children and women. Sahmoud said he was grateful to Turkish consuls in Egypt and Jerusalem who always kept in touch with him. "I asked them about evacuation and they told me they would try it whenever the opportunity arises," he said.
"Electricity, phone lines and internet were down in Gaza and we could make calls once in a week or once in about 10 days. It was very difficult," he said. Sahmoud said Palestinians, particularly people in Gaza, loved Türkiye and the Turkish nation. "They are like brothers and sisters for us," he said.
His daughter Minna said it has been challenging for her family and they could barely find food. "We had to wait for hours to buy bread. People at the hospitals had no medicine," she said. Minna recounted how her aunt's home was bombed and the entire family was killed, including a 6-month-old baby.
"This was the worst night for us. ... We are safe here in Türkiye but we have relatives back in Gaza. My grandparents are there. Now there is a cease-fire, they are back at their home and well," she added.
