Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Turkey has reiterated its support for the Palestinians. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Tuesday his country "will be in solidarity with Palestinians under all circumstances," Anadolu news agency reported.

Speaking at a press conference with Arab foreign ministers in Gaza, Davutoglu said that he felt at home in Gaza.

"I have today brought greetings to you from Turkish President Abdullah Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and 75 million Turks," Davutoglu said.

"I want to give a message to the Palestinians today. We will be in solidarity with them no matter what," he added.

"You are struggling here for the dignity of humanity. We will never leave you alone and God is our witness. Your pain is our pain. And your destiny is our destiny. Your future is our future," he said.

"The struggle will go on until you are free and until Jerusalem is free," Davutoglu said.

About 100 Palestinians, including dozens of civilians, have been killed since Israel's Operation Pillar of Defense against the Palestinian enclave of 1.7 million was launched on November 14 with an airstrike that killed the head of the military wing of Hamas, Ahmed Jabari. The airstrike came after a reported surge in rocket attacks on Israeli border towns from Gaza, which has been governed by Hamas since 2007.

The Israeli government says his assassination, and the subsequent offensive, aims to end rocket fire from Gaza.

Foreign Minister Davutoglu, who visited Gaza along with other ministers from Arab League countries, also said prior to his departure that intense efforts were being made to bridge differences between the Israeli and Hamas sides.

"It is clear, in the light of the new circumstances of the region, that the regional countries will not remain silent to the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza," he told reporters.

"It is time for the Palestinians to live in their homeland with dignity," the Turkish FM was quoted by Todays Zaman newspaper as saying.

Davutoglu headed to Gaza after meeting a delegation of Arab League foreign ministers and Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby in Arish, Egypt. The Gaza mission was decided upon at a meeting of the Arab League in Cairo last Saturday. Prime Minister Erdogan, who met with Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal during a weekend visit to Cairo, left two of his aides -- Justice and Development Party (AK Party) foreign relations chief Omar Celik and head of the National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan -- in Cairo to carry on with mediation talks.

Ankara has stepped up contacts with Israel in order to try to achieve a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

"Turkey is determined to keep channels open with all parties, directly and indirectly, if it can protect every single brother from Gaza ... There are views that have been delivered from Israel to us," Davutoglu told reporters before departing for Cairo.

A Turkish Foreign Ministry official confirmed that contact had been made with the Israeli authorities. Turkey has abstained from talks with Israel since 2010, since the killing of nine Turks by Israeli soldiers on board the Mavi Marmara ship.

In the meantime, Davutoglu visited a hospital in the besieged Gaza city. He offered his condolences to the families of victims.

Besides, Davutoglu sent a message to the international community and the United Nations.

"You may remain silent against what Israel is doing. However, we will continue to struggle against injustice," he said.

"Israel must end its attacks and the embargo on Gaza must end. Gaza should not be an open-air prison becuase of Israel," Davutoglu added.

"As the international community and the whole mankind, we will struggle until the embargo on Gaza ends," the minister said.

The Israeli offensive in Gaza risks opening a rift between Turkey and the United States, which insists that Israel has the right to defend itself from Hamas' Gaza attacks. The U.S. considers Hamas as a terror organization and therefore has no dialogue with the group, relying on countries like Turkey and Egypt to urge it to stop attacking Israel. Turkey, on the other hand, has bitterly criticized Israel, with Prime Minister Erdogan accusing it of "ethnic cleansing" and calling it a "terrorist state." Erdogan has also rejected the US remarks highlighting Israel's right to defend itself, saying this does not befit justice.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at a press briefing on Wednesday that Washington doesn't consider helpful at all some of the extremely harsh rhetoric coming from Turkey.

According to Nuland, the U.S. does not agree with some of the very complicated statements that have been made about Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

"We have made those views clear to the Turks," Nuland said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.

She said it was "essential to de-escalate" the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, dpa reported.

Clinton said she arrived in Jerusalem with a "clear message" from President Barack Obama of "rock-solid" and "unwavering" support for Israel's right to defend itself.

Calling for the rocket attacks on Israel to stop, she said she would work with the parties in the region, including Egyptian President Morsi in Cairo on Wednesday, toward a "durable" ceasefire, guaranteeing security for the residents of southern Israel and quality of life for those in Gaza.

Netanyahu reiterated he would prefer a "long-term" truce over a ground offensive in Gaza, but would not back down from launching one if necessary. He also thanked Clinton for Washington's support of the Iron Dome missile defense system, which shot down hundreds of the more than 1,000 missiles launched at Israel over the past seven days.

Israeli air strikes shook the Gaza Strip and Palestinian rockets struck across the border as Secretary Clinton held talks in Jerusalem in the early hours of Wednesday, seeking a truce that can hold back Israel's ground troops.

Clinton also met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Wednesday, dpa reported.

Around 50 Palestinian activists gathered outside the presidential compound where the meeting took place to protest her visit. Witnesses said police in riot gear were in the area.

Despite growing hopes for an end to the violence, the situation remained fragile on the ground on Tuesday as Israeli air strikes and Palestinian rocket fire continued for a seventh day. After a week of hostilities that have killed over 130 Palestinians and five Israelis, both sides are looking for more than a return to the sporadic calm that has prevailed across the blockaded enclave since Israel ended a much more devastating air and ground offensive four years ago.

Israel has troops massed along the Gaza border but says it is holding off on a possible ground invasion as talks continue.