Turkey's Erdogan: West needs to keep its promises to Palestinians

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in a call on Monday that Western countries should refrain from "provocative steps" regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Turkish presidency said.

Erdogan also told Sunak that Western powers must "remember the unkept promises to Palestine and do what is necessary", the presidency said on social messaging platform X.

It said the two also discussed the resolution of the "grave humanitarian crisis" in Gaza.

President @RTErdogan spoke by phone with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom.

The call addressed the current situation in the Israel-Palestine conflict, policies that should be followed in order to restore peace in the region and urgent measures for the resolution…

— Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye (@trpresidency) October 16, 2023

The Gaza Strip has been under Israeli bombardment since militant group Hamas launched its surprise attack against Israel on October 7.

Over 2,800 Palestinians have died, with around 11,000 more injured.

Since the conflict, Turkey has recently joined Egypt in rejecting the exile of Palestinians from their homeland, following Israel's ongoing attacks in Gaza- as well as Israel's evacuation order for Palestinians who were forcibly moved south.

Additionally, Ankara has sent aid for Palestinians in need and launched diplomacy tactics to mediate the conflict, such as calling on Hamas to release 200 Israeli and foreign hostages in Gaza.

Israel and Turkey had recently warmed ties after a decade of tensions, although the assault on Gaza could impact this.

(Reuters)