Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan told US TV that Hamas is not a terror organization and assured that Turkey expects Israel to apologize, compensate and lift the Gaza siege.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan assured in an interview with a US TV station Wednesday that Hamas is not a terrorist organization as the resistance group had entered into elections and had ministers and parliament members who are imprisoned in Israel.

"Don’t mix terrorist organizations with such an organization… Let me give you a very clear message, I don't see Hamas as a terror organization. Hamas is a political party… it is a resistance movement trying to protect its country that is under occupation”, Erdogan said.

“Where is terrorism? They entered into the elections and after the elections this is how they were reacted, I mean, calling them terrorists, this would be a disrespect to the Palestinian people’s will”, he added.

The Turkish PM welcomed the latest Palestinian reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah, considering that Hamas was never an obstacle in achieving peace, and regarded it as a step towards peace in the Middle East.

Erdogan described the relation with the Zionist entity as “a once stable relationship that has been descending in a downward spiral ever since Israel's Gaza war against Hamas and the raid by Israeli forces on the Mavi Marmara".

He further said that Turkey is still waiting for three things that are "apology, compensation, and lifting the siege of Gaza”.

The Turkish PM stated that his country works on bringing opposing sides together, but “of course, all parts should know their limits, their borders, and then we can take these steps”.