The Times of Israel reports: The head of the Hamas terror group was among the first foreign officials to congratulate Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his apparent election victory Sunday.
Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh phoned Erdogan Sunday evening, according to a statement posted on Hamas’s official website. Haniyeh congratulated Erdogan and said he would dispatch a delegation to Turkey in the coming days, and indicated a willingness to deepen ties with Ankara, the statement said.
Several world leaders supportive of Erdogan, including Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, also called to congratulate him on his “victory,” the presidency said. Erdogan has been among Hamas’s strongest supporters on the world stage, and Turkey under him has been accused of harboring leaders of the terror group and allowing it to launder money for militant activities.
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