US warns Turkey against hosting Hamas leaders

The United States has warned Turkey against hosting Hamas leaders, saying there “can be no more business as usual” with the Palestinian militant group.

Miller said the US is not in a position to dispute the reports.

Turkey has denied the reports. “Hamas political bureau members visit Turkey from time to time,” a foreign ministry source told CNN. “The claims that the Hamas political bureau has moved to Turkey does not reflect the truth.”

The US’ warning comes after Qatar, a key mediator in indirect hostage talks between Hamas and Israel, suspended its role after concluding that the two sides are no longer negotiating in good faith, and closed Hamas’ political office in Qatar’s capital, Doha.

The US doesn’t believe “the leaders of a vicious terrorist organization should be living comfortably anywhere, and that certainly includes in a major city of one of our key partners,” Miller said.

Hamas is a designated terrorist group by the US. However, members of the group can freely come and go from Turkey, a NATO member, and have a regular presence in the country.

In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s chief foreign policy and security adviser, Akif Cagatay Kilic told CNN that Hamas’ political leader Haniyeh “might have been” in Turkey on October 7, the day the militant group led an attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages.

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