What is behind the claims that Hamas is establishing itself in Türkiye?

For days, various media outlets have been informed of the same point by Israeli sources: Qatar has asked Hamas to leave Doha while ceasefire talks in Gaza are leading nowhere.

Now, new reports indicate that the leaders of the Palestinian movement are moving to Türkiye instead.

Qatar itself has formally denied the closure of the Hamas political office in Doha, although this has not stopped the rumor that Turkey will become Hamas' main base of operations outside of Palestine.

Officials in Ankara say they find the timing confusing and suspicious.

Turkish Foreign Ministry officials repeatedly stressed this week that Hamas members have been in Turkey since Israel sent them there as part of the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal. .

They also note that Hamas officials living elsewhere frequently travel to Türkiye to hold meetings and sometimes stay there for extended periods.

Meanwhile, Hamas sources told Palestinian media on Monday that their offices would lead nowhere.

Bilgehan Ozturk, a regional expert at the Ankara-based think tank SETA, believes that it is no coincidence that these Israeli reports coincide with the re-election of Donald Trump and the announcement of his very pro-Israeli cabinet.

Ozturk suggested to Middle East Eye that the timing of these reports could be an attempt to counterbalance the positive relations between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Trump by portraying Turkey as Hamas' main sponsor.

Measure aimed at increasing pressure on Hamas

Several sources familiar with the matter said Israel could try to get the Biden administration to step up pressure on Hamas and lay the groundwork for Trump to take an even more aggressive stance against the Palestinian movement.

For years, Washington turned a blind eye to Hamas' presence in Türkiye.

But since Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, the United States has sanctioned some people and businesses in Turkey over their alleged ties to the group.

A State Department spokesperson made clear Monday that Washington will no longer tolerate Hamas' presence in Turkey, demanding that its members be deported to face trial in the United States.

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Turkey, in response, may seek ways to protect itself from such pressures.

This week, Israeli newspaper Walla reported that Ronen Bar, head of Israel's domestic intelligence agency, the Shin Bet, secretly traveled to Turkey on Saturday to meet with Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin.

The two men reportedly discussed the possibility of Turkish mediation. However, neither Turkish intelligence nor the Shin Bet commented on the matter, and the report did not specify the source of the information.

A source in Ankara expressed doubts that Turkey would take on Qatar's role as mediator between Israel and Hamas, citing poor relations between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Erdogan.

The source suggested, however, that by disclosing details of the meeting between Turkish and Israeli intelligence services at a time when Hamas's presence in Turkey is under closer scrutiny, Ankara could highlight its unique position: it can simultaneously host Hamas leaders and Israeli intelligence officials within its territory. the same week.

Another source familiar with the matter speculated that if Hamas leaders left Qatar for countries like Iran or Lebanon, it could present an opportunity for Israel to assassinate them, as it did with Saleh. al-Arouri in Lebanon in June and Ismail Haniyeh in Iran. in July.

However, the sources noted that Turkey is complicating the situation because it is a NATO member and Israel has historically refrained from carrying out assassinations or military operations against Hamas leaders on Turkish soil.