Turkey welcomes Palestinian reconciliation agreement

Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed the Palestinian reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas signed on Wednesday in the Gaza Strip.

The Anadulo news agency quoted informed sources in the premier’s office as saying that yesterday Erdogan called the head of Hamas’ political bureau Khaled Mashaal who briefed him on the details of the reconciliation signed between Fatah and Hamas.

Erdogan is reported to have commended signing the agreement that would end years of internal division and achieve Palestinian national consensus.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to convey his country’s support for the agreement, the Palestinian state news agency WAFA reported.

WAFA said Davutoglu “stressed Turkey’s support for the agreement and full readiness to help the parties implement it.”

The Palestinian move sparked Israel to announce its intention to suspend peace talks with the Palestinian Authority.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office released a statement saying: “The Cabinet has unanimously decided to freeze talks with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas, a terrorist organisation calling for the destruction of Israel.”

The statement went on to say that “Israel will also respond by taking unilateral measures against the Palestinian Authority.”