Israel-Hamas War: Day 18 – Erdogan's Defense Of Hamas Sparks Reaction From West; UN Secretary-General Backtracks 'Shocking' Comments Prompting Call For Resignation

The conflict between Israel and Hamas continues into its eighteenth day, while tension remains high as new actors and diplomatic incidents become intertwined in the ongoing war.

Here are the latest developments:

• Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking at his AK party’s group meeting in parliament, expressed support for Hamas, rejecting its classification as a terrorist organization, and labelling it as a group of fighters defending their lands. He canceled plans to visit Israel, citing the “inhumane” nature of the war, The Times of Israel reported.

• Erdogan’s remarks were met with strong criticism in the Western world. According to Al Jazeera, Italian politician Matteo Salvini strongly criticized Erdogan’s remarks, referring them as “disgusting”. Salvini urged Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani to officially request a meeting with the Turkish ambassador to Italy in response to these remarks.

• UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres attempted to clarify his previous remarks that appeared to justify Hamas’s attacks on Israel. On Tuesday, Guterres said that Hamas’ attacks “did not occur in a vacuum,” sparking fierce reactions from Israel, which called for his resignation. Minister Benny Gantz called Guterres a “terror apologist,” while UN envoy Gilad Erdan described the UN chief’s comments as “shocking,” according to the Times of Israel.

• In Gaza, the health system faces a crisis, described as being in a state of complete collapse, according to the Minister Of Health of Palestine. A lack of fuel, medicines, and personnel has left the health system non-operational, posing a grave humanitarian concern, Al Jazeera reports.

• Reports from Al Jazeera indicate that in the past three days, aid trucks allowed into Gaza through the Rafah crossing with Egypt have been denied permission to carry fuel due to Israeli restrictions, classifying diesel as a “dual-use” good.

• The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared aerial pictures on Tuesday, revealing that Hamas currently possesses over 500,000 liters of fuel in Gaza.
  
• Negotiations for the release of over 200 hostages taken by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel are ongoing, according to Qatar’s foreign minister.
  
• As the Times of Israel reported Tuesday, Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and other Iranian-backed groups issued a joint statement aiming to achieve a “real victory for the resistance in Gaza and Palestine” and halt Israel’s “treacherous and brutal aggression” in Gaza and the West Bank.

• According to Bloomberg, the United States has urged Gulf Arab nations to take action against what it suspects is a surge in fundraising activities by the militant group Hamas, which occurred in the aftermath of its deadly assault on Israel earlier this month.

Market Reactions

On Wednesday, the overall risk sentiment appeared subdued as European equity indices traded flat, and S&P 500 futures indicated a 0.3% decline an hour before the New York market opened.

The U.S. dollar, as measured by the Invesco DB USD Index Bullish Fund ETF UUP, continued its ascent with a 0.2% gain, following a 0.6% rally on Tuesday.

Treasury yields saw an increase, with the 10-year yield rising by 5 basis points to 4.87%, while the 30-year yield surged by 6 basis points to 5%. In the previous session, the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF TLT marked its third consecutive day of gains with a 1.3% increase.

Gold, tracked through the SPDR Gold Trust GLD, registered a 0.2% rise, while crude oil rebounded with a 0.4% increase after three consecutive sessions of losses.

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