Erdogan, Abbas Discuss Developments in Gaza, Palestinian Territories

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Presidential press office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shaking hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) in Ankara, Türkiye, 14 August 2024. (EPA/ Turkish Presidential press office)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Presidential press office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shaking hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) in Ankara, Türkiye, 14 August 2024. (EPA/ Turkish Presidential press office)
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Erdogan, Abbas Discuss Developments in Gaza, Palestinian Territories

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Presidential press office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shaking hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) in Ankara, Türkiye, 14 August 2024. (EPA/ Turkish Presidential press office)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Presidential press office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shaking hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) in Ankara, Türkiye, 14 August 2024. (EPA/ Turkish Presidential press office)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received in Ankara on Tuesday Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is on a two-day visit to Türkiye.

The officials discussed the developments in the Palestinian territories and Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza and the threat of a broader war in the region.

They tackled means to pressure Israel to stop its hostilities, reach a ceasefire and establish the two-state solution.

Abbas was received at Ankara airport by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

The Palestinian leader is scheduled to deliver a speech before the Turkish parliament on Thursday to address the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people and its war on Gaza.

Erdogan stressed to Abbas that Türkiye will stand against Israel’s attempts to spark a regional war.

Türkiye will continue its constructive, active and balanced foreign policy, he vowed.

Israel will be held accountable before international law for the genocide it is committing in Gaza, he declared.

Parliament is cutting its summer recess to host Abbas for his speech. The move is seen as a gesture of Türkiye’s strong support to the Palestinian people and their cause.



Lebanon: Hezbollah Says it Launches First Drone Attack on Israel's Ashdod Naval Base

File photo: Members of Israeli security and emergency services deploy at the site of a shooting on the Yavne interchange, near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on October 15, 2024. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)
File photo: Members of Israeli security and emergency services deploy at the site of a shooting on the Yavne interchange, near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on October 15, 2024. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)
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Lebanon: Hezbollah Says it Launches First Drone Attack on Israel's Ashdod Naval Base

File photo: Members of Israeli security and emergency services deploy at the site of a shooting on the Yavne interchange, near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on October 15, 2024. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)
File photo: Members of Israeli security and emergency services deploy at the site of a shooting on the Yavne interchange, near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on October 15, 2024. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)

Lebanon's Hezbollah has launched a drone attack on the Ashdod naval base in southern Israel for the first time, the Iran-backed group said on Sunday in a statement.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army on the attack.
On Saturday, Israeli airstrikes in central Beirut killed at least 20 people, as the once-rare attacks on the heart of Lebanon's capital continued without warning while diplomats scrambled to broker a cease-fire.
Lebanon's Health Ministry said 66 people were wounded in the strikes, which were the fourth in central Beirut in less than a week.
US envoy Amos Hochstein traveled to the region in pursuit of a deal to end months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah that has erupted into full-on war.
Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population.
Also Saturday, a drone strike killed two people and injured three in the southern Lebanese port city of Tyre. Other airstrikes killed eight people, including four children, in the eastern town of Shmustar, five others in the southern village of Roumin, and another five people in the northeastern village of Budai.