Davutoglu meets with Hamas' leader-in-exile

Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has met with Hamas' leader-in-exile Khaled Meshaal during a visit to Syria Monday, CNN reported citing a confirmation by a spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry. 

The parties reportedly discussed ways of improving relations between Hamas and Fatah Palestinian groups, according to Anatolia news agency. They also spoke of how to break Israel's Gaza blockade, said on the Hamas website. Some media reported that this meeting threatened to increase tensions between Turkey and Israel at a time when relations are already strained, especially in the light of Israel’s recent lifting of a travel warning to avoid traveling to Turkey. This alarm was imposed after the May 31 raid on the international aid flotilla of mostly Turkish pro-Palestinian activists, of which 9 were killed.

It’s worth mentioning that both Israel and the United States formally label Hamas a terrorist organization.

Within the framework of his working travels, Ahmet Davutoglu also met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al Hariri during his Damascus visit. According to Turkish media, Davutoglu also held talks with former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.