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.



Israeli Strike Wounds a Hospital Chief in Besieged Northern Gaza, Health Officials Say

A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
TT

Israeli Strike Wounds a Hospital Chief in Besieged Northern Gaza, Health Officials Say

A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A Palestinian man gestures toward ambulances transporting victims of Israeli bombing to the Kamal Adwan hospital in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, on November 23, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

An Israeli strike has wounded the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the northernmost part of Gaza, local and international health officials said.

Dr. Hossam Abu Safiya was in his office when it was hit by an Israeli quadcopter drone on Sunday, according to the humanitarian organization MedGlobal.

The doctor was wounded by shrapnel in his thigh and back, causing serious bleeding that requires surgical care, the aid group said. Abu Safiya is the lead physician in Gaza for MedGlobal, which has worked in Gaza since 2018.

Dr. Munir al-Boursh, director general of Gaza's Health Ministry, posted a video to social media on Monday showing Abu Safiya limping and leaning on a crutch while speaking to patients inside the hospital.

The Israeli military said it was unaware of a strike on the grounds of Kamal Adwan Hospital and said it does its utmost to avoid harming civilians.

During the past month, Kamal Adwan Hospital has been hit several times, was put under siege and was raided by Israeli troops, who are waging a heavy offensive in the nearby Jabaliya refugee camp and towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya. The Israeli military says it detained Hamas fighters hiding in the hospital, a claim its staff denies.

Abu Safiya said Israeli strikes on the hospital last week wounded nine medical staff and damaged the generator and oxygen systems. He said the hospital was treating 85 wounded, 14 children in the pediatric ward and four newborns in the neonatal unit.

Israel also denied knowledge of conducting any strikes on in the area of the hospital at that time.