Communications Directorate

Israel will one day pay the price for the atrocities it is committing against the Palestinians in Gaza, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, urging once again for a ceasefire and uninterrupted flow of humanitarian assistance to the civilians stranded in the enclave.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday received Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniyeh in Istanbul as Middle East tensions run high.

The meeting at the Dolmabahce palace on the banks of the Bosphorus began shortly after 2:30 pm (1130 GMT) and lasted about two and a half hours.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has spoken with Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas on the phone to discuss the latest developments regarding the continued offensive by the Israeli military on the Palestinians in Gaza, reiterating once again the need for an immediate ceasefire in the enclave.

In the midst of local election tallies, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has engaged in diplomatic exchanges via telephone with several global leaders, including Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Uzbekistan leader Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

The bilateral trade volume between Türkiye and Israel has declined by 33 percent between Oct. 7 and March 20, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat has said. 

"Public institutions and state-owned companies never do business with Israel," Bolat said in an interview with private broadcaster 24 TV.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has congratulated Russian President Vladimir Putin on his election victory and reiterated Ankara's readiness to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

According to the Communications Directorate, Erdoğan called Putin to congratulate him on late March 18.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson discussed Sweden's NATO membership process, the fight against terrorism, bilateral relations, and regional and global issues in a phone call on Friday, the Communications Directorate said.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has spoken over the phone with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on the ongoing prosecution of Israel at the International Court of Justice over its massacres against Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

A security meeting with top Turkish officials chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday has ended, the Communications Directorate said in a statement posted on X.
The meeting came after nine Turkish soldiers were killed in a PKK terror attack in northern Iraq.

"Türkiye is ready to act as a facilitator and host peace talks in order to achieve peace in Ukraine," President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky.

Erdoğan spoke over the phone with Zelensky, the Communications Directorate announced late on Jan 5.