Turkish police used tear gas and water cannon as hundreds of people at a pro-Palestinian rally on Sunday tried to storm Incirlik air base that houses U.S. troops, hours before U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken was due in Ankara for talks on Gaza.

The protest at Incirlik came as Turkey has stepped up its criticism of Israel over the past week, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accusing the Jewish state of “state terror” and “genocide” in its offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza.

Israel and Hamas agreed to a cease-fire early Saturday, ending 11 days of heavy fighting that left more than 250 people dead, most of them Palestinians.

Turkey has been a vocal critic of Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians and has supported Hamas, a group that the U.S. and European Union consider a terrorist organization.

Erdogan has called for a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the Gaza situation. Turkey is currently the group’s rotating president.

The U.S. State Department has called on Turkey to “cease its provocative actions” and said Blinken would discuss the issue with Erdogan during his visit.

Blinken is also scheduled to meet with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and visit a refugee camp in Gaziantep, near the Syrian border.

Read also: Israeli Defence Forces report successes on the ground in Gaza

Image: Staff Sgt. Vince Parker, U.S. Air Force.

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