Erdogan’s meeting with Hamas leader Haniye: Key issues, expectations

President Erdogan hosts Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Istanbul in a that garnered international attention

Dr. Doğacan BAŞARAN —Exclusive A Hamas delegation that involved the head of the group Ismail Haniyeh met with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday in Istanbul.
The visitors had high expectations from Türkiye. The delegation, which includes Khaled Meshaal, the head of Hamas’ International Relations Bureau, engaged in discussions with President Erdogan and other high-ranking state officials, in a visit that is a clear sign of the importance that the Hamas delegation places on the summit with Türkiye.

Search for a permanent cease-fire

Hamas aims to accelerate diplomatic efforts to end Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip that started on Oct. 7. Türkiye and Qatar are working together to broker a cease-fire in this regard.

Ankara has been acting in solidarity with the Palestinian people since the beginning of the Israeli attacks and warned that the war in Gaza was a harbinger of regional and even global crises. Therefore, Ankara has been calling on the international community to stop Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people.

Türkiye is clearly a party to the Palestinian issue. As a consequence, Ankara does not try to position itself as a mediating actor. However, Türkiye claims that it can be a guarantor actor in the mediation processes and puts itself forward as the ideal state to defend the rights of Palestinians. This claim is by no means empty.

The acceptance of Türkiye as a guarantor state in the ceasefire efforts, which are currently being mediated by Qatar, may open the door to a lasting peace. But how?

Türkiye’s demand for guarantorship

It is necessary for some states to mediate in order to stop the attacks and achieve a ceasefire. Nevertheless, guarantors are needed to prevent a resumption of hostilities. Therefore, Türkiye’s stance in favour of the Palestinian people shows that Ankara can be a guarantor state. In the past, Hamas officials have also expressed their favor for Türkiye’s guarantorship proposal. On this note, a formula under the mediation of Qatar and Egypt, with the United States as guarantor for Israel and Türkiye as guarantor for Hamas, could pave the way to regional peace.

Of course, the normalization process between Türkiye and Egypt is also very valuable. Indeed, the statements made by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan after meeting Egyptian Foreign Minister Sami Shoukry in Istanbul on the same day as the Hamas delegation’s meeting with President Erdogan indicate that Türkiye can be positioned as a guarantor state in the process to be mediated by Qatar and Egypt to stop the massacres in Gaza.

Fidan in his statement said, “Egypt and Türkiye are two important brotherly countries at the two ends of the Mediterranean. We have a great potential for co-operation.” Fidan indicated that one of the pillars of this co-operation could be the Palestinian issue. Fidan also called on Islamic countries to increase pressure on Israel.

On the other hand, the fact that Türkiye is a member of NATO despite all the conjunctural problems it has been experiencing in its relations with the U.S. indicates that a certain form of relationship can be established with the other pillar of the guarantorship. Therefore, it is possible to state that after the Hamas delegation’s visit to Türkiye, we can expect an increase in efforts to achieve a permanent ceasefire.

Israel planned offensive in Rafah

Israel claimed that the south of Gaza is “safe” and directed millions of displaced civilians to the south during its attacks, which began on Oct. 7 and initially targeted the north of the Gaza Strip. Later on, the Israeli attacks concentrated on the south of Gaza. As such, the city of Rafah, the last safe haven for 1.4 million Palestinian civilians, is seen as the last point that Israel will target in its offensive.

While the Tel Aviv administration is preparing to organize a land operation in Rafah, the international community is concerned that such an operation will be the last stage of the genocide in Gaza. The world conscience is of the opinion that Israel must be stopped. Therefore, among the expectations of Haniyeh and his delegation from President Erdoğan is the expediting of diplomatic efforts to prevent the land operation against Rafah.

Türkiye’s position is in line with the need to prevent a ground operation against Rafah. With this aim in mind, Türkiye is calling on both the Western states and the Islamic world to put pressure on Israel. It is foreseeable that Ankara’s efforts on this issue will intensify after President Erdoğan’s meeting with Haniyeh.

Issue of humanitarian aid to Gaza

The Palestinian people are not only being massacred by Israeli bombardment, but they are also being starved to death in the Gaza Strip due to the blockage of aid. For this reason, the delivery of aid to Gaza is a crucial issue.

It is known that on the one hand, Türkiye has been trying to deliver aid through Egypt, and on the other hand, it has been intensifying its diplomatic efforts to mobilize the international community for aid, just like the ceasefire issue. These efforts will increase even more after the visit of the Hamas delegation.

In conclusion, the visit of the Hamas delegation led by Haniyeh to Türkiye can be interpreted as a concrete indicator of the expectations that the Palestinian people hold of Türkiye. It is possible to claim that a ceasefire model involving Türkiye’s guarantorship will be discussed more frequently in the future.