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Palestinians gather to pay respects to former Turkish leader

January 31, 2014 at 12:49 am

Palestinians have gathered in Gaza to pay their respects to the former Prime Minister of Turkey, Necmettin Erkaban, who passed away this week. Ismail Haniyeh, the Prime Minister of Gaza, expressed his condolences to the government and the people of Turkey. Mr. Erkaban and the current government of Turkey stood by Palestine and “formed a strategic alliance with the nation… as we saw in the recent war on Gaza. We have come to offer condolences to the leadership and the people of Turkey,” said Mr. Haniyeh.


Necmettin Erkaban entered politics in 1969, was the leader of the Felicity Party (SP) and has been described as “the legendary leader” of the National View (Milli Görüs) political movement, influencing and shaping Turkish politics. Prime Minister Haniyeh commended Erkaban’s work and said that his leadership skills and governance continues to be reflected by his “students”, who include several of Turkey’s leading political figures, including President Gul and current Prime Minister Recep Erdogan.

“We the Palestinian people,” added Mr. Haniyeh, “join the people of Turkey in their time of grief, and commend the immense consolation he [Erkaban] gave to his country and the people of Palestine;  we ask God to bless his soul in eternal Paradise.”