Palestinian leader Abbas to meet Turkey's Erdogan in Ankara ahead of Netanyahu visit

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will host Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ankara on Tuesday for talks on the Israeli-Palestine conflict, enhanced Turkish-Palestinian relations, as well as other regional and international issues, according to a statement by Erdogan's office.

The meeting with Abbas came just a few days before Erdogan is set to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid warming ties between the two countries.

Erdogan and Netanyahu will review bilateral relations "in all aspects" and discuss steps to improve cooperation between the two countries, Erdogan's office said.
 

Until last year, relations between Turkey and Israel were strained, beginning with the 2010 Israeli raid on the Gaza flotilla, during which 10 Turkish citizens were killed. Tensions between the two reached a culmination with the killing of 60 Palestinians by Israel during a protest in Gaza.

For this, Erdogan recalled the Turkish ambassador, accusing Israel of "state terror" and "genocide", prompting Israel to dismiss the Turkish consul general in Jerusalem.

Within the last year, there have been efforts by both sides to fully normalise relations, with Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit to Ankara last year appearing to defuse a decade of mutual tension.

The upcoming visits come amid some of the worst state violence by Israel in the history of the West Bank, including the killing of three young Palestinians in Nablus earlier today during an Israeli military raid.