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Türkiye and Qatar are mounting an urgent diplomatic campaign to maintain the tenuous Gaza ceasefire, with high-level meetings this week bringing together intelligence officials, foreign ministers and heads of state in the Qatari capital.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Wednesday, a day after Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held talks with Hamas officials. All discussions took place behind closed doors as mediators navigate what diplomats describe as a precarious moment for the truce.
When asked whether the closed-door discussions addressed Hamas's political future or plans for a proposed Gaza task force, a Turkish official told AFP that no firm decisions had emerged.
"These issues will depend on how Israel and the United States position themselves during the process," the official said.
Turkish foreign ministry published a photograph of Kalin and Fidan meeting with a Hamas delegation headed by Mohammed Darwish, who issued a statement reaffirming the group's commitment "to a complete ceasefire despite repeated enemy violations."
The intensified diplomacy comes as Türkiye expanding its role in Middle East peace efforts. Ankara has voiced strong backing for U.S. President Donald Trump's peace initiative, marking the first time Türkiye has formally entered Gaza mediation alongside traditional brokers Qatar and Egypt.
Vienna-based political analyst Hossam Shaker told AFP that Türkiye's involvement "represents an opportunity to strike a balance in mediation efforts" and could help counter "the usual American bias toward Israel."
During Wednesday's talks, Erdogan told the Qatari emir that while the Gaza ceasefire "has provided relief to Palestinians," a two-state solution remains the only path to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to his office.
Palestinian analyst Ahmad al-Heela said Türkiye and Qatar's mediation efforts would prove "crucial to maintaining the ceasefire and shaping Gaza's future," citing their relationships with both Washington and Hamas.
"However, Qatar and Türkiye face the challenge of persuading the US administration that Palestinians must have a voice in Gaza's future—a step toward a two-state solution," he told AFP.
Türkiye has signaled readiness to join an international task force in Gaza, with its military expressing willingness to participate if requested. A Turkish diplomatic source told AFP that "the task force, or stability force is expected to have a military component," though its structure remains undecided as discussions continue over participating nations and their contributions.
Meanwhile, 81 Turkish disaster response specialists remain "waiting at the Egyptian border" for Israeli authorization to enter Gaza, according to a Turkish official. The team from Türkiye's disaster management agency would assist in recovering bodies of Palestinians and Israelis, including hostages believed trapped in collapsed buildings.
Beyond Gaza, Türkiye and Qatar signed multiple agreements during this week's meetings, including on defense industry cooperation. Ankara is pursuing acquisition of used Eurofighter Typhoon jets from Qatar's fleet, a security source told AFP.
Andreas Krieg, a security expert at King's College London, estimated the deal could involve around a dozen aircraft. "I think at most, they'll be selling 12 (Eurofighters) to Türkiye and obviously that transfer will only take place once the new planes (ordered by Qatar) come in, probably by the end of the year, early 2026," he told AFP.
A Turkish official declined to provide specifics, saying only that "the details of the defence industry cooperation agreement will be clarified in the coming days."
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