Ankara: Palestinian Authority ‘Welcomes’ Türkiye’s Normalization with Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, January 12, 2015. REUTERS/Adem Altan/Pool
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, January 12, 2015. REUTERS/Adem Altan/Pool
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Ankara: Palestinian Authority ‘Welcomes’ Türkiye’s Normalization with Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, January 12, 2015. REUTERS/Adem Altan/Pool
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas during a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, January 12, 2015. REUTERS/Adem Altan/Pool

Türkiye announced that the Palestinian Authority welcomed the establishment of relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv, and that the Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements strongly desired that as well, as the country would better defend the Palestinian cause.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu commented on the talks between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ankara, which started on Tuesday, stressing that the Palestinian Authority welcomed the establishment of relations between his country and Israel.

Cavusoglu added that the Hamas and Fatah movements strongly desired Türkiye to normalize its ties with Israel, as it would better defend them on issues related to the Palestinian cause.

Last week, Israel and Türkiye announced the complete normalization of relations between them, and the return of the ambassadors of the two countries, following a phone call between Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Erdogan.

In a short statement issued on Tuesday, Hamas rejected Cavusoglu’s claims on the movement’s “acceptance” to normalizing relations between the two countries.

“We stress our rejection of all forms of normalization, which contradict our national principles and the interests of our people and the peoples of the Arab and Islamic region,” the movement said.

The Islamic Jihad also strongly condemned Türkiye’s normalization of relations with Israel. The movement’s spokesman, Tariq Salmi, said that exchanging ambassadors with the occupation entity and normalizing relations… will encourage the occupation to commit more aggression.”



Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
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Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed

The Palestinian Authority said internet and fixed-line communication services were down in Gaza on Thursday following an attack on the territory's last fibre optic cable it blamed on Israel.

"All internet and fixed-line communication services in the Gaza Strip have been cut following the targeting of the last remaining main fibre optic line in Gaza," the PA's telecommunications ministry said in a statement, accusing Israel of attempting to cut Gaza off from the world, AFP reported.

"The southern and central Gaza Strip have now joined Gaza City and the northern part of the Strip in experiencing complete isolation for the second consecutive day," the ministry said in a statement.

It added that its maintenance and repair teams had been unable to safely access the sites where damage occurred to the fibre optic cable.

"The Israeli occupation continues to prevent technical teams from repairing the cables that were cut yesterday", it said, adding that Israeli authorities had prevented repairs to other telecommunication lines in Gaza "for weeks and months".

The Palestinian Red Crescent said the communication lines were "directly targeted by occupation forces".

It said the internet outage was hindering its emergency services by impeding communication with first responder teams in the field.

"The emergency operations room is also struggling to coordinate with other organisations to respond to humanitarian cases."

Maysa Monayer, spokeswoman for the Palestinian communication ministry, told AFP that "mobile calls are still available with very limited capacity" in Gaza for the time being.

Now in its 21st month, the war in Gaza has caused massive damage to infrastructure across the Palestinian territory, including water mains, power lines and roads.