Türkiye on Thursday urged for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, as Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told his American counterpart Antony Blinken of the urgent need to ensure uninterrupted humanitarian aid to the area.
The call came during a phone conversation between the two top diplomats, which sources said focused on the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza and broader regional tensions.
Blinken is on his 11th trip to the Middle East since the start of Israel's war on Gaza. He was in Doha on Thursday to meet with Qatari officials as the U.S. struggles to break the logjam of cease-fire negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
Israel also invaded Lebanon over three weeks ago after a year of exchanging cross-border fire with Iran-backed Hezbollah. It has expanded its campaign and increased airstrikes across Lebanon.
During the call with Blinken, Fidan reiterated the need for Israel to halt its attacks on Lebanon, which risk further destabilizing the region, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported, citing sources from the Foreign Ministry.
He highlighted the importance of preventing the conflict from spreading across the region and underscored that all parties must exercise restraint.
Fidan said the humanitarian situation in northern Gaza has reached catastrophic levels and emphasized the necessity of declaring a cease-fire without delay, highlighting the importance of ensuring uninterrupted humanitarian aid to the enclave.
The Turkish diplomat said Israel should end its attacks on Lebanon, and underscored that all parties must exercise restraint to avoid a regional war.
In addition to the Middle East, the two diplomats discussed the ongoing war in Ukraine, sources said.
Blinken also extended condolences to Türkiye over Wednesday's terrorist attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) headquarters in Ankara, which claimed five lives and injured 22 others.
