On the background of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s quest for closer ties with Israel and Israeli President Issac Herzog’s upcoming visit, he is taking steps to expel members of Hamas’s military wing from the country, the Turkish Hurriyet Daily reported on Tuesday.

According to the report, Hamas leaders have been notified by the government that “members holding military ranks will not remain in Turkey” and “will not receive military assistance.” However, the report’s emphasis on “military” seems to imply that Hamas’s political activities in the country will be allowed to continue.

Israel has been heavily pressuring Ankara to expel Hamas members since November after Israeli security forces uncovered a large Hamas cell that was in the advanced preparation stages of major terror attacks against Israelis in a number of places in Jerusalem and Yehudah and Shomron. The terror cell was headed by Saleh al-Arouri, a resident of Turkey.

Al-Arouri, the founding commander of Hamas’s military wing Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, who oversees operations in Yehudah and Shomron, raised substantial funds for the cell and offered $1 million prize if the members successfully kidnapped an Israeli Jew.

Al-Arouri was also the mastermind behind the kidnapping of three Isaeli teens in 2014, which led to Operation Protective Edge. He’s wanted by the US and is the subject of a $5,000,000 bounty by the Rewards for Justice Program.

The shooting attack in the Old City of Jerusalem in November, which killed Eliyahu Kay, h’yd, was also tied to Turkey. The perpetrator of the attack, Hamas terrorist Fadi Abu Shkhaydam, met with Hamas members in Turkey several times prior to carrying out the attack and was trained there.

Turkey has granted a welcoming and safe haven for Hamas members for years. It even granted citizenship to a number of Hamas members despite being informed by Israel that those members are actively involved in financing and planning terror operations against Israel on Turkish soil.

Israel confirmed on Tuesday that President Isaac Herzog will be visiting Turkey and meeting with Erdogan next month, the first such visit by a senior Israeli leader in over a decade.

A senior Turkish delegation traveled to Israel on Tuesday to prepare for Herzog’s visit. The delegation members are meeting with Foreign Ministry Director-General Alon Ushpiz, Director-General of the President’s Office, Eyal Shviki, and other senior officials from both offices.

Last month, Ushpiz secretly traveled to Turkey to begin a dialogue between the two countries and lay the groundwork for Herzog’s visit.

Turkey has also warmed ties with the United Arab Emirates in recent months and is interested in reigniting ties with Egypt.

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(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)