Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, December 2, rejected calls from the American government to pressure Turkey to cut its ties with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas. Brian Nelson, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence at the US Treasury Department, expressed Washington’s “deep” concern about Ankara’s ties to Hamas during his visit this week. Connections and support claimed by President Erdoğan.
Published on: 02/12/2023 – 6:07 p.m
1 minute
With our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer
Turkey’s position towards Hamas is clear: the authorities in Ankara consider it a legitimate actor. A “political party that won elections,” according to President Erdoğan, who also describes the Palestinian Islamist movement as a “group of liberators protecting their land.”
The bloody attack against Israel on October 7th changed nothing: Turkey condemned all attacks on civilians, but never mentioned Hamas by name in its condemnations. And while he calls Israel a “terrorist state,” the Turkish president said over the weekend that he would “never consider Hamas a terrorist group, no matter what they say.” In other words, despite American pressure, Turkey will continue to do so on its own do not close Hamas offices established in the territory and do not expel their members.
Since the beginning of the conflict, the US has not identified any financial flows to Hamas via Turkey. But the existence of such links has been known for a long time. In recent years, Turkish NGOs, banks and companies have been accused of providing financial support to Hamas, even convicted by American courts or sanctioned by the US Treasury Department.
Also read Turkish-Iranian rapprochement against the background of the Gaza war