Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Wednesday with a high-ranking Hamas delegation, marking his first encounter with the group since the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Unlike many of its NATO allies, Türkiye does not consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization and Erdogan has maintained a close relationship with the group, regularly hosting its leaders.
A brief statement from the president’s office said Erdogan met with the delegation, which includes senior leader Mohammed Darwish and other members of the Hamas leadership council, in the Turkish capital Ankara.
The statement did not provide further details but a photograph of the meeting showed that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and intelligence chief, Ibrahim Kalin, were present.