It has been nearly two months since a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas began, but Israel’s violations of the deal have delayed a proposed Gaza peace plan by the United States, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan stressed during a round table discussion in the U.S. on Friday.

The U.S. hosted Qatari, Egyptian and Turkish officials in Miami to discuss the second phase of the plan on Friday. Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Fidan insisted that Israel’s violations made the peace plan "incredibly more difficult.”

Fidan stated that considerable time has passed since the implementation of the Gaza Peace Plan, which was launched based on the agreement reached at the Sharm el-Sheikh Peace Summit in Egypt.

"Now, since the first phase has been completed following the release of the last hostage, the parameters for moving to the second phase are being discussed. Perhaps after Sharm el-Sheikh, yesterday's meeting was the most important one. Frankly, we continued our meetings in various formats and settings until late last night," he said.

Fidan, who described the meeting as promising, said the sides also had the opportunity to discuss in detail the problems encountered during the first phase.

"Especially as Türkiye, we clearly stated that cease-fire violations (by Israel) are endangering the peace plan and creating major risks for transitioning to the second phase. The ongoing violations by Israel, in particular, are making the process incredibly more difficult. What we see is that all parties are in agreement on this issue, and we also had various discussions on how to prevent this," he said.

Palestinians have accused Israel of repeatedly violating the cease-fire, which halted the two-year genocidal war that has killed over 70,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,000 others since October 2023.

According to Gaza's Health Ministry, at least 395 Palestinians have been killed and 1,088 others wounded in Israeli attacks since the truce took effect.

"Among the issues we discussed regarding the transition to the second phase was a preliminary study for the reconstruction of Gaza, which was presented," he underlined.

"As Türkiye, we stated that three parameters are important for us in any work to be carried out regarding Gaza. First, Gaza must be governed by Gazans; second, Gaza must not be divided territorially in any way; and third, everything done in Gaza must be done for Gazans," said Fidan. He noted that significant investment is envisaged for Gaza's reconstruction, stressing that the investment must benefit Gazans.

Fidan also said discussions were held on possible timelines for transferring Gaza's administration to a committee composed of technocrats, as well as on the establishment of a Peace Council and parallel talks on forming an International Stability Force.

International Stability Force, or rather, who should contribute to it, is an issue of contention for Israel. The Netanyahu administration has been vocal about its opposition to the inclusion of Turkish troops in the force, while Ankara has repeatedly assured that Turkish peacekeepers were well-prepared to join the force, citing past experiences of the army in such missions from Afghanistan to the Balkans.

Türkiye has been a staunch critic of Israel, with which it was about to normalize relations before the new round of Palestine-Israel conflict began in 2023. The country cut off trade with Israel and joined other countries to file a lawsuit against "genocide” in Gaza. It also engaged in a diplomatic blitz to secure a cease-fire, though it adheres to its principle that a lasting solution to the conflict is recognition of a sovereign State of Palestine.

"I think it was the most important meeting at the highest level since Sharm el-Sheikh," Fidan said.

Fidan stressed the importance of humanitarian aid, saying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is particularly sensitive to the issue.

Noting that the country completed a massive housing project of about 500,000 homes within three years after an earthquake that killed 50,000 people on Feb. 6, 2023, in Türkiye, Fidan said that experience could be applied to Gaza.

Talks with Hamas

Elsewhere, National Intelligence Organization (MIT) chief Ibrahim Kalın, a key representative of Türkiye in cease-fire talks, hosted a Hamas delegation in Istanbul on Saturday.

Media outlets reported that Hamas' negotiating team head ​Khalil Al-Hayya and Kalın discussed necessary measures ‌to be ‍taken for proceeding to the second phase of the Gaza peace plan. They also discussed steps to be ‌taken to prevent Israel's cease-fire ​violations.

Separately, they talked about Türkiye’s aid to Gaza and efforts to mobilize the international community to ensure more humanitarian aid access to the Palestinian enclave, particularly tents. Türkiye sent more than 100,000 tons of aid to Gaza throughout the conflict, by sea and air. However, Israel’s blockade of the border crossings hindered the aid access, leaving thousands of Palestinians without basic amenities. A famine declared in Gaza in August is now over, thanks to improved access for humanitarian aid, the United Nations said on Friday, but warned the food situation in the Palestinian territory remained dire.

More than 70% of the population is living in makeshift shelters, it said, with hunger exacerbated by winter floods and an increasing risk of hypothermia as temperatures plummet. The U.N.'s agencies said that despite the roll-back of famine, hunger, malnutrition, disease and the scale of agricultural destruction remains "alarmingly high."

"Humanitarian needs remain staggering, with current assistance addressing only the most basic survival requirements," the food, agriculture, health and childrens' agencies said in a joint statement.

"Only access, supplies and funding at scale can prevent famine from returning," they said.