Senior Hamas officials in Turkey after Qatar says leadership unwelcome - report

Senior members of Hamas's leadership outside of Gaza have been in Turkey in recent days, Israeli state broadcaster KAN reported on Sunday.

This latest report comes after an American source confirmed to the news outlet earlier this month that Qatar had agreed to remove Hamas from its territory.

It is unclear whether the two reports are related, KAN added.

"You are not welcome here"

The American source spoke to KAN after an earlier report from the state broadcaster claimed that Qatar had told the terrorist group, "You are not welcome here."

Additionally, Reuters had also reported that the US was exerting pressure on Doha to expel Hamas weeks after the terror organization rejected the latest hostage deal/ceasefire proposal.

Further, Turkey has expressed sympathy for Hamas throughout the war.

In early August, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a day of mourning after the elimination of Hamas political bureau leader Ismail Haniyeh. The Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv lowered its flag to half-mast to mark the occasion.

Earlier, in March, Erdogan stated that Ankara “firmly backs” Hamas, the Saudi outlet Arab News reported.

“No one can make us qualify Hamas as a terrorist organization,” he reportedly said during a speech in Istanbul. “Turkey is a country that speaks openly with Hamas leaders and firmly backs them.”