In a high-profile diplomatic meeting held in Ankara on Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan welcomed Khalil al-Hayya, the newly appointed chief of Hamas’s political bureau, and a full delegation from the Palestinian militant group, according to Turkish diplomatic sources cited by the semi-official Anadolu Agency. The meeting, which was publicly confirmed by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs via an official Twitter post on July 29, 2026, comes at a period of escalating violence across Palestinian territories occupied by Israel, and amid growing global legal pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
During the opening of the talks, Fidan formally congratulated Hayya on his recent elevation to the top leadership role of Hamas. Hayya, who is currently based in Qatar, took over the post on July 20, 2026, making him the third person to lead Hamas’s political wing since the outbreak of the ongoing Israel-Gaza war in October 2023. He succeeds Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by Israeli forces in Rafah just three months after Israeli operatives assassinated previous leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July 2024. Tragically, Hayya has also lost four of his own sons – Osama, Hamza, Hammam and Azzam – to the conflict, marking a deep personal toll alongside his new political responsibilities.
In the closed-door briefing, Hayya updated Fidan on the ongoing military operations carried out by Israeli forces across the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. He highlighted that overnight attacks carried out by Israeli air forces between Thursday and Friday alone left at least six Palestinian civilians dead and 25 more injured. Beyond Gaza, Hayya accused Netanyahu’s government of accelerating the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory and ramping up provocative attacks on religious holy sites located in East Jerusalem, a territory claimed by Palestinians as the capital of their future state. He added that Hamas remains fully committed to playing a constructive part in future peace negotiations aimed at ending the conflict, and outlined ongoing efforts by the group to secure national reconciliation between competing Palestinian political factions.
The meeting also comes against the backdrop of a major international legal development: the International Criminal Court has recently issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, charging him with alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the military campaign in Gaza.
Responding to Hayya’s briefing, Fidan reaffirmed that Turkey will maintain its unwavering support for what Ankara describes as the Palestinian people’s just cause, both in multilateral diplomatic forums and across global international institutions. The foreign minister stressed that Turkey will continue working to focus global public and political attention on Israeli military actions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, including targeted attacks on religious holy sites. Fidan also added that Turkey plans to expand the flow of humanitarian aid into the blockaded and besieged Gaza Strip, and will continue backing regional and international efforts to advance a lasting peace process between Israelis and Palestinians. He also publicly praised Hamas’s ongoing engagement in negotiation efforts aimed at bringing an end to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.