Palestinian official hails Turkish aid in Gaza

By Zuhal Demirici and Adam Abu Bashal

ANKARA

Palestine’s top housing and infrastructure official on Tuesday lauded the work Turkey has done to help the people of the Gaza Strip.

The state Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) "has carried out numerous projects in Gaza varying from humanitarian aid to infrastructure," Mufid al-Hassaina, Palestine’s minister of public works and housing in the unity government, told Anadolu Agency.

"On behalf of the people of Palestine, I'd like to thank President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim and the Turkish community for their support for the Palestinian cause," he added.

Al-Hassaina said TIKA had completed a housing project in Gaza which would meet the shelter needs of 2,250 people, principally war victims, the needy poor, and the disabled.

Emphasizing that the solar energy panels TIKA installed are crucial for local people suffering from Israeli power cuts, including those in hospitals, he added, "A lot of people were saved in operating rooms thanks to TIKA."

Al-Hassaina said the solar panels are also critical for education needs in the face of power cuts of up to 21 hours long.

"The hospitals built by Turkey have already provided great assistance to the Palestinian people,” he explained, citing the Turkey-Palestine Friendship Hospital to be finished before 2018, set to be the largest in Gaza.

He added that the hospital staff would be picked with coordination between Turkish and Palestinian authorities.

Detained TIKA employee

On Muhammad Murtaja, a TIKA employee who was detained by Israel this February, he said: "Israel has blockaded the Gaza Strip since 2006; international groups carrying out humanitarian aid are pressured and blocked by them."

Murtaja was detained by Israel on Feb. 12. After 37 days in custody, the court decided that he would be jailed pending trial.

* Ali Murat Alhas contributed to this report from Ankara.