Turkish foreign minister flies to Qatar for Gaza ceasefire talks

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has cancelled a trip to France and flown to Qatar on Friday to aid efforts for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, a Turkish official said.

“The minister made an abrupt decision to fly to Qatar to contribute to efforts for an immediate ceasefire,” an official who chose to remain anonymous told AFP.

He made the decision after holding a “teleconference with his counterparts from the United States and Qatar yesterday night [Thursday] and also spoke separately with the Palestinian groups,” the official added.

US Secretary of State John Kerry submitted a new ceasefire proposal to Israel and Hamas on Wednesday evening. The new initiative proposes a week-long truce, starting Sunday, during which time Israel’s forces will not leave the Gaza Strip and will continue to fulfil their aim of finding and destroying Hamas tunnels.

Kerry has suggested negotiations will begin during the truce, aided by mediation from Egypt and participation from the Palestinian Authority, with guarantees from the US, UN and EU that both sides’ key issues will be addressed.

Hamas has set out conditions that include an end to Israel’s punishing eight-year long blockade of Gaza and Israel has demanded an end to rocket fire from Palestinian groups based in the coastal enclave.

Hamas rejected a proposal by Egypt last week, saying the Egyptians had not consulted them on an agreement that did not address any of their core needs.

Neither side has responded to the new American initiative.