Turkey tells Iran to avoid further escalation with Israel

Turkey does not want further escalation of tension in the region after Iran’s drone and missile attack against Israel, Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan tells his Iranian counterpart in a phone call on Sunday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told Fidan that its “retaliatory operation” against Israel had ended, adding that Iran would not launch a new operation unless it was attacked, Turkish diplomatic sources say.

Turkey has been one of Israel’s harshest critics throughout the war against Hamas, and has been outspoken in its support for the Gaza terror group.

In January, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi, and the two discussed US and UK strikes on Iran-backed Houthi targets in Yemen, which the two slammed as a disproportionate use of force.