Hamas welcomes any maritime deal between Palestine, Turkey

Head of Hamas’ Political Bureau Ismail Haniyeh said his movement would be happy with any maritime deal between Palestine and Turkey that would consider the use of natural gas off the Palestinian coast.

In an interview with HaberTurk news channel on Monday, Haniyeh said that any deal of this kind would benefit both Turkey and Palestine.

Haniyeh called for opening discussions over such an agreement among the countries in the region, noting that mutual talks would lead to positive results.

The senior Hamas official said that the Palestinian coasts have “strategic importance” as they contain massive natural gas reserves, stressing that the Palestinians have to benefit from this wealth.

Haniyeh said that his movement considers Turkey, Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia as important countries in the region.

Days earlier, a retired Turkish official proposed a deal to demarcate borders between Ankara and Palestine. However, he noted that such a deal needs a united sovereign Palestinian state in the besieged Gaza, and occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

He noted that Turkey has maritime borders with Gaza along the Mediterranean Sea, noting that such a deal would be similar to that signed between Turkey and Libya in 2019.

Gaza Marine sits about 30 kilometres off the Palestinian enclave’s coast and is estimated to hold over one trillion cubic feet of natural gas. As a result of Israel’s stifling siege on the Strip, Palestinians are unable to access the gas field.

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