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Hamas Plots Attacks on Israel from Turkey as Erdogan Turns a Blind Eye
(Telegraph-UK) Raf Sanchez - Turkey is allowing senior Hamas operatives to plot attacks against Israel from Istanbul, as President Erdogan plays host to the terrorist group's leaders. Transcripts of Israeli police interrogations show that senior Hamas operatives are using Turkey to direct operations in Jerusalem and the West Bank, including an assassination attempt earlier this year on the mayor of Jerusalem. Last weekend Erdogan met Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas, and Turkish intelligence agents maintain close contact with the group's operatives in Istanbul. Turkey agreed in a U.S.-brokered 2015 deal with Israel to stop Hamas planning attacks from its soil but has consistently failed to honor the agreement, Israeli officials said. A dozen Hamas operatives have moved to Istanbul from Gaza in the past year, according to Israeli and Egyptian intelligence records.