UPDATE - Turkish FM speaks with counterparts to discuss Gaza

By Zuhal Demirci

ADDS CAVUSOGLU'S PHONE CALLS

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Tuesday spoke to numerous counterparts over the phone about the recent developments in Gaza.

Diplomatic sources said Cavusoglu spoke with the Jordanian, Indonesian, Iranian foreign ministers Ayman al-Safadi, Retno Marsudi, and Javad Zarif, as well as OIC Secretary General Yousef bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen.

Also on Tuesday, Cavusoglu held phone calls with his Qatari, Kazakh, Kuwaiti, and Afghan counterparts Mohamed Bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani, Kairat Abdrakhmanov, Sabah al-Khalid al-Hamad al-Sabah, and Salahuddin Rabbani.

At least 60 Palestinians were martyred and hundreds more injured by Israeli forces along the Gaza border Monday amid protests marking the Nakba anniversary and the relocation of the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Since the border rallies began on March 30, more than 100 Palestinian demonstrators have been killed by cross-border Israeli gunfire, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

The rallies are to culminate on Tuesday, the 70th anniversary of Israel's establishment -- an event Palestinians refer to as the "Nakba" or "the Catastrophe".

Last week, the Israeli government said the ongoing border protests constituted a “state of war” in which international humanitarian law did not apply.