Ankara: Turkey has dismissed Israeli media reports claiming that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan pressured Hamas officials to make concessions in ceasefire talks with Israel, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Oncu Keceli said on Monday. The statement was issued after Fidan's meeting with Hamas Shura Council chairman Mohammed Darwish in Doha on Sunday, where they discussed the ceasefire negotiation process and humanitarian aid delivery.

According to Namibia Press Agency, the allegations surfaced following Fidan's meeting, sparking a swift rebuttal from the Turkish Foreign Ministry. Keceli stated, "The allegation made by one of the Israeli newspapers that our minister forced Hamas to make concessions regarding the ceasefire during his meeting with Hamas officials in Doha yesterday does not reflect the truth."

The backdrop to these discussions is the recent resumption of Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip, which began on March 18. The Israeli government cited the refusal of the Palestinian movement Hamas to accept a US proposal to extend a ceasefire that had expired on March 1. In response, Israel has reportedly cut off the electricity supply to a desalination plant in the Gaza Strip and halted the entry of trucks carrying humanitarian aid.