Gaza Strip

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv on May 25, days after an Egypt-brokered truce halted fighting between the Jewish state and the Gaza Strip's Islamist rulers Hamas.

Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh on May 24 said that the Palestinian group supported Turkey's rapprochement with Egypt.

Belarusian Transport Ministry announced that Hamas was behind the bomb threat that allegedly forced a Ryanair flight to land in Minsk on May 23, reports the Belarusian news.

According to the media, the intensive bombing of the positions of that movement by the Israeli forces destroyed the infrastructure of Hamas.

Dozens of Israeli settlers on May 24 forced their way into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem for the second day in a row after a hiatus of three weeks, according to a Palestinian agency.

The U.N. Security Council on May 22 welcomed announcement of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and urged full adherence to the truce.

The ceasefire between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza was holding on May 22, as humanitarian aid began to enter the Israeli-blockaded enclave ravaged by 11 days of bloodshed.

As thousands of displaced Palestinians returned to their homes, and Israelis began to resume normal life on Friday, international focus turned to the reconstruction of the bomb-shattered Gaza Strip.

The Turkish foreign minister and his U.S. counterpart discussed bilateral and regional issues in a phone call on May 21.

Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and Antony Blinken discussed the U.N. General Assembly meeting on Palestine, as well as developments following a cease-fire announcement in Gaza, according to diplomatic sources.

Bulgarian writer Georgi Bardarov's novel Absolvo Te, which means "forgiveness of all sins", is among the winners of the European Union Prize for Literature (EUPL). The novel was published in 2020. It intertwines the threads of several conflicts that still smoulder today.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu brushed aside on May 20 "both sides" arguments for the ongoing violence in Israel and Palestine, maintaining Tel Aviv is the sole responsible party.

Speaking during a U.N. General Assembly session on the situation in Israel and Palestine, Çavuşoğlu said blame must be assigned "where it belongs."