ANKARA, October 25. /TASS/. Israel’s potential ground offensive to forcibly root radical Palestinian group Hamas out of the Gaza Strip will inevitably turn into a bloodbath, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said at a press conference in Doha.

"Israel should immediately back away from committing this mistake. It is necessary to urgently declare a ceasefire and create a corridor for humanitarian aid," he stressed. "Israel will be unable to achieve permanent security with weapons, violence and cruelty. A ground operation against Gaza will turn this misdeed into a real bloodbath," the top Turkish diplomat elaborated.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the Gaza-based Palestinian radical group Hamas staged a surprise incursion into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. In response, Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians, and has begun delivering air strikes on the enclave and certain parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are underway in the West Bank as well.