Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that it is neither fair nor realistic to place the entire burden of reaching an agreement on Gaza solely on Hamas and the Palestinians, emphasizing that Israel must halt its attacks to ensure the success of related efforts.

Erdogan added, in remarks before parliamentarians from the Justice and Development Party, that Israel remains a major obstacle to reaching an agreement on Gaza despite US President Donald Trump’s plan, according to Reuters.

He stressed that the ceasefire talks in Sharm El-Sheikh, attended by Turkish officials, are of great importance.

Earlier on Wednesday, Hamas said it had handed over lists of Palestinian and Israeli prisoners to be released under a swap agreement.

It also expressed optimism about the ongoing talks in Egypt regarding Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza.

The movement added that the negotiations, which will be attended by senior foreign officials, focus on mechanisms to end the war, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and the prisoner exchange deal.

On Tuesday, Trump expressed optimism about progress toward reaching an agreement.

An American team including special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law who served as Middle East envoy during Trump’s first term, is participating in talks on a plan described as the closest to ending the war.