Gaza City [Gaza], December 23: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Monday he expects US President Donald Trump to announce the start of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal in the "first weeks" of the new year.
"Our expectation is that the second phase will begin in the first weeks of the new year, with a declaration by Mr Trump," Fidan said in Damascus, adding that transferring administration to a Palestinian-led structure was a "priority." Fidan was speaking at a joint press conference with his Syrian counterpart, Asaad Al Shaibani.
Fidan said the US presented preliminary project studies on rebuilding Gaza during talks in Miami over the weekend, which included representatives from Turkiye, Qatar, and Egypt.
In Gaza, killings by the Israeli army continued despite the ceasefire with two Palestinians in Gaza City the latest victims.
Two Palestinian civilians were killed by Israeli forces near the Shujayea court, in the east of Gaza City, according to medical sources cited by the Wafa news agency.
They were among the 12 Palestinians reported killed in the latest 24-hour reporting period, including eight who had died earlier but whose deaths had previously been unreported.
The death toll in the territory has now risen to at least 70,937 since October 7, 2023.
Fidan met Syrian President Ahmad Al Sharaa on Monday, accompanied by the Turkish intelligence chief and defence minister, to discuss security, economic, and regional cooperation, according to the state news agency Anadolu.
A key issue is the implementation of a March agreement to integrate the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into Syria's state security structures, a core Turkish national security concern.
Fidan on Monday accused the SDF of stalling and said its coordination with Israel posed a major obstacle in talks with Damascus. Ankara earlier warned the SDF to accelerate integration.
Al Shaibani said Damascus is reviewing a response the SDF sent over the weekend, but criticized the group for delays in north-eastern Syrian reconstruction.
The deadline to implement the March deal was the end of 2025, and Ankara raised the possibility of a military intervention if it is stalled further.
Source: Qatar Tribune
