Turkey readies Gaza rescue crews pending final dispatch decision
The dispatch of Turkish search and rescue crews remains pending coordination with other countries and final approval in Ankara.
ANKARA — Turkey has readied dozens of search and rescue crews for Gaza, but their dispatch is pending both coordination with other countries and a final decision within Turkey, sources familiar with the matter told Al-Monitor Wednesday.
Turkey has assumed a facilitator role, alongside Qatar and Egypt, in implementing the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal, under which Hamas was to return all hostages — alive or deceased — to Israel by this past Monday. The group has so far handed over the bodies of seven hostages, while 21 are believed to remain in the Palestinian enclave.
Earlier Wednesday, Turkish media reported that the country’s disaster management agency, AFAD, would send an 81-member search and rescue team to assist efforts to locate the missing hostages. The Turkish crews have also chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense capabilities, Turkey’s private Ihlas News Agency reported, possibly to assist in handling unexploded ordnance in the enclave.
Asked about the timing for the final decision, another source familiar with the matter said both ongoing coordination with other countries and internal approval processes in Ankara were factors. The source didn't elaborate further.
