Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have discussed the Israeli-Hamas war during a phone conversation it has been reported.
During the telephone call, according to the announcement of the prime minister's office, "the two leaders discussed the latest developments following the terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel and the situation in the Gaza Strip. The Prime Minister underlined the need to avoid a humanitarian crisis and not to threaten regional stability."
The announcement of the Turkish presidency
According to the announcement of the Turkish presidency, "our president Erdoğan stated that Turkey has made every effort to end this conflict process, which may have extremely negative consequences on a regional and global scale, and will continue to do so."
Mitsotakis - Sisi: Concern about the spread of the crisis in the Middle East
It is recalled that Mitsotakis had a telephone conversation with the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday evening. During the telephone conversation, the latest developments following the terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel and the situation in the Gaza Strip were discussed.
The prime minister underlined the need to prevent a humanitarian crisis. The two leaders agreed that it is important for humanitarian aid to reach Gaza, while expressing concern over the possibility of the crisis escalating and spreading across the region.
Greece and Tukey's position on the war
Greece and Turkey have taken on starkly differing positions on the conflict, with Greece categorically condemning Hamas and offering solidarity to Israel, whilst Turkey unapologetically supports the Hamas terrorist organisation.
On Sunday, the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs, G. Gerapetritis, had a telephone conversation yesterday with his Israeli counterpart, Eli Cohen and expressed his condolences for the victims of the Hamas terrorist attacks and reiterated Greece's unequivocal condemnation of every act of terrorism and inhumane treatment.
Additionally, the Minister of Foreign Affairs underscored Greece's position regarding the need for humanitarian protection of civilians.
Meanwhile, Erdoğan has condemned Israel’s blockade and bombing of the besieged Gaza Strip, calling it a “massacre”.
Speaking to the members of his ruling AK Party in parliament last Wednesday, the Turkish president said even war had a “morality” but the flare-up since the weekend had “very severely” violated that.
“Preventing people meeting their most fundamental needs and bombing housing where civilians live – in short, conducting a conflict using every sort of shameful method – is not a war, it’s a massacre,” he said, referring to Israel cutting off electricity and water to Gaza and destroying infrastructure.
“We openly oppose the killing of civilians on Israeli territories. Likewise, we can never accept the massacre of defenceless innocents in Gaza by indiscriminate, constant bombardments,” Erdoğan said.
“Israel should not forget that if it acts like an organisation, not as a state, it will eventually come to be seen like one,” he said.
Turkey, which has backed Palestinians in the past and hosted members of Hamas, has been working to mend ties with Israel after years of animosity. Unlike the European Union and the United States, Turkey does not consider Hamas a “terrorist” organisation.
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