Ankara [Turkey], July 21: Türkiye will host Israeli and Palestinian leaders separately next week, the Turkish presidency announced on Thursday.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will pay a visit to Türkiye on July 25 and meet with Turkish President RecepTayyip Erdogan, according to a statement from the Turkish presidency.
The two leaders will discuss Türkiye-Palestine relations and cooperation, the latest developments in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and other regional and international issues, the statement said.
Erdogan will also host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 28, the Turkish presidency said.
The two sides will talk about their relations as well as the steps to improve cooperation, it said.
The relations between Israel and Türkiye became strained in 2010 when a Turkish-led flotilla attempting to break Israel's blockade on the Gaza Strip clashed with Israeli forces, leaving 10 Turks on board killed. In 2018, the two countries expelled each other's top diplomats amid a quarrel over the Israeli killing of 60 Palestinians during their protests against the opening of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.
But Türkiye and Israel have stepped up efforts to mend their ties in recent years. In 2022, Israeli President Isaac Herzog made a rare visit to Türkiye, which was seen as a major step toward normalizing ties.
Source: Xinhua