Erdogan blasts Israel in call with Biden as Haniyeh’s death stirs fury in Turkey

Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, aired anger over Israel's suspected killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh during a telephone call on Thursday with US President Joe Biden, saying the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu displayed "its aversion to peace and a cease-fire with every step," according to a readout from the Turkish Presidency's Communication Directorate.

Erdogan noted that images of Netanyahu addressing the US Congress had created "deep disappointment in Turkey and in the world." Haniyeh's assassination had dealt a "heavy blow" to efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza, and Israel was trying to "spread the fire in Gaza to the entire region," Erdogan told Biden.

The phone call came soon after several Americans being held by Russia, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and several Russian opposition figures, were freed in a prisoner swap brokered by Turkey's national intelligence agency, the MIT. Biden thanked Erdogan for his efforts in securing the swap in a smooth manner, the readout said. The White House had not published a readout of the conversation at the time this article was published.

Erdogan declared a day of national mourning on Friday to mark Haniyeh's passing. "In order to display our support for the Palestinian Cause and our solidarity with the Palestinian people, we have declared a day of national mourning over the martyrdom of Hamas Political Bureau Chief, Ismail Haniyeh," Erdogan wrote on X.