Turkish PM Erdogan: Hamas should not be marginalized

By Osman BOLU, JTW
Tuesday, 20 January 2009

BRUSSELS - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday claimed that the Hamas should not be marginalized by the international community.Erdogan, speaking on an official visit to the European Union (EU) headquarters in Brussels, said the Hamas group had clearly won elections in Gaza in 2007 and this had to be respected.

Erdogan said in a speech at a European Policy Center conference "we should not be squeezing them into the corner. Hamas should be left the time to show if it was capable of improving conditions in Gaza. If they are not successful they will lose the next time "."If we are to move towards democracy in that region then we should respect the decision of the people who went to the ballot box" Erdogan added.

Hamas has agreed a ceasefire with Israel after a 22-day war in Gaza which left more than 1,300 Palestinians dead. It is argued that Turkey has played a crucial role in persuading Hamas for a ceasefire.

Tuesday, 20 January 2009

By Osman BOLU, JTW