Turkey and Iran on Wednesday called for a regional conference to prevent the expansion of the war between Israel and Hamas, Agence France-Presse reported.
“We do not want the human tragedy in Gaza to turn into a war that affects the region’s countries,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in a joint media appearance with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who urged that the meeting take place “as soon as possible.”
The Israeli army has intensified its air and ground assaults on the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, which has been under airstrikes since the surprise attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Oct. 7.
More than 10,000 people are reported to have been killed in the conflict since then, including 8,525 Palestinians and more than 1,538 Israelis.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected increasingly vocal calls for a cease-fire, saying it would be a “surrender” to Hamas.