Turkish prime minister to visit Gaza in May
Erdogan had canceled plans to travel to the Hamas-controlled territory this month
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks at the parliament in Ankara (photo credit: AP/Burhan Ozbilici)
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s prime minister says he plans to visit the Gaza Strip in May after a trip to Washington.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has long expressed his wish to visit Gaza, said Sunday the visit will likely take place “toward the end of May” after a planned meeting with President Barack Obama in the US capital on May 16.
Last month, Obama helped broker reconciliation between Turkey and Israel, following the breakdown in ties after a 2010 Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that killed eight Turks and a Turkish-American.
Erdogan has canceled previous plans to visit the Hamas-controlled region reportedly over U.S. concerns.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press
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