Gaza Contact Group, Türkiye, discuss boosting Palestine's recognition

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has attended talks organized by the Gaza Contact Group in Saudi Arabia, as part of efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.

The Gaza Contact Group, formed by members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League, has convened to discuss steps to boost recognition of a state of Palestine and increase pressure on Israel and its supporters.

Diplomatic sources said the meeting, held in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh, has come to an end, with representatives also discussing decisions to be taken at the upcoming OIC Summit in Banjul, Gambia on May 4.

Fidan will continue his multilateral and bilateral meetings in Riyadh through Monday, sources said.

Efforts for lasting peace

Fidan is scheduled to meet with his counterpart Ayman Safadi of Jordan, Espen Barth Eide of Norway, Shai Muhsin Zindani of Yemen, and EU foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell.

The contact group was established at a joint summit of the OIC and the Arab League in Saudi Arabia in November to stop the conflict in Gaza and help achieve lasting peace.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack led by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas on October 7 last year.

The Israeli military offensive, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians since then, has turned much of the enclave, home to 2.3 million people, into ruins, leaving the majority of civilians homeless and facing the threat of famine.