High-Level Talks with Egypt Could Take Place, Erdogan Says

19 July 2022, Iran, Tehran: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint press conference with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi at the Saadabad Presidential Palace in Tehran. (Iranian presidency/dpa)
19 July 2022, Iran, Tehran: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint press conference with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi at the Saadabad Presidential Palace in Tehran. (Iranian presidency/dpa)
TT

High-Level Talks with Egypt Could Take Place, Erdogan Says

19 July 2022, Iran, Tehran: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint press conference with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi at the Saadabad Presidential Palace in Tehran. (Iranian presidency/dpa)
19 July 2022, Iran, Tehran: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint press conference with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi at the Saadabad Presidential Palace in Tehran. (Iranian presidency/dpa)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday there is no reason for high-level talks with Egypt not to take place, as its efforts to mend ties with Cairo remain stagnant.

"Talks on the lower levels are continuing. It is not out of the question for this to happen on higher levels, so long as we understand each other," Erdogan told state broadcaster TRT Haber in an interview, adding that the two countries should avoid making statements "hurting" one another.

Turkey launched a charm offensive in 2020 to repair ties with regional countries, making overtures to Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Efforts with Cairo have so far yielded little progress.



Palestinian Health Ministry Says One Dead in Israel West Bank Raid

Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
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Palestinian Health Ministry Says One Dead in Israel West Bank Raid

Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)

The health ministry in the occupied West Bank said one person was killed and nine injured in an Israeli raid on a refugee camp, with the Israeli military saying Saturday it had opened fire at "terrorists".

An 18-year-old man, Muhammad Medhat Amin Amer, "was killed by bullets from the (Israeli) occupation in the Balata camp" in the territory's north, the Palestinian health ministry said in a late-night statement, adding that nine people were injured, "four of whom are in critical condition".

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, the raid began on Friday night and triggered violent clashes, AFP reported.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli troops entered the camp from the Awarta checkpoint and "deployed snipers on the rooftops of surrounding buildings".

In a statement on Saturday, the Israeli military said that during the "counterterrorism" operation, "terrorists placed explosives in the area in order to harm (military) soldiers, hurled explosives, molotov cocktails, and rocks and shot fireworks at the forces".

"The forces fired toward the terrorists in order to remove the threat. Hits were identified," the statement said.

Violence in the West Bank has intensified since war broke out in the Gaza Strip after Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Since then, at least 815 Palestinians have been killed in the territory by Israeli troops or settlers, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah.

In the same period, Palestinian attacks in the West Bank have killed at least 25 Israelis, according to official Israeli figures.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since conquering it in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.