Erdogan: Turkey will not support plans to 'erase Palestinians from history'

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said that the beseiged Gaza enclave must be part of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state once the war is over, and that Ankara would not support any plans "gradually erasing Palestinians" from history.

"Once all of this that is happening is finished, we want to see Gaza as a peaceful region that is a part of an independent Palestinian state, in line with 1967 borders, with territorial integrity, and with East Jerusalem as its capital," Erdogan said on Saturday, according to Turkish media.

"We will support formulas that will bring peace and calm to the region. We will not be supportive of plans that will further darken the lives of Palestinians, that will gradually erase them from the scene of history."

Erdogan made the remarks a day before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to arrive in the Turkish capital.

Turkey has called for an immediate ceasefire and has offered to set up a system to guarantee it.

Earlier on Saturday, Ankara said it had recalled its ambassador to Israel for consultations, after Israel recalled its envoys to Turkey last month to reassess their ties following Erdogan's description of Hamas as freedom fighters.

On Saturday, Israel's foreign ministry said Ankara's move to recall its ambassador was "another step to side with terrorist organisation Hamas".

He said Turkey would support any initiatives to ensure that Israel is held accountable for what he described as war crimes and human rights violations, and that a failure to do so would erode trust in the global system.