Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a joint media statement in Baghdad on April 22, 2024. Ahmad Al-Rubaie/AP Hide caption
Toggle caption Ahmed Al-Rubaie/AP
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a joint media statement in Baghdad on April 22, 2024.
Ahmed Al-Rubaie/AP
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey on Thursday suspended all imports and exports to Israel over Israel’s ongoing military operations in the Gaza Strip, vowing to keep the measure in place until the Israeli government allows humanitarian aid to flow into the strip.
“Import and export transactions with Israel have been suspended for all products,” Turkey’s trade ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said Turkish authorities would coordinate with the Palestinian Authority to ensure that Palestinians were not affected by the import and export suspension.
The ministry described the measures as the “second phase” of measures against Israel, adding that they would remain in effect until Israel “allows an uninterrupted and sufficient flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza.”
Last month, Turkey, a strong critic of Israel’s military action, announced it would restrict exports to Israel of 54 products, including aluminum, steel, construction materials and chemical fertilizers. Israel has responded by announcing trade barriers.
Earlier, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Thursday accused Turkey of blocking Israeli imports and exports from Turkish ports.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is “violating the agreement by blocking Israeli ports,” Katz wrote on social platform X.
Katz said he had directed officials to “immediately engage with relevant government agencies to develop alternatives to trade with Turkey, focusing on domestic production and imports from other countries.”
After suffering heavy defeats in local elections in March, Erdogan’s government has faced intense pressure at home to halt trade with Israel, with critics accusing the government of double standards in pushing commercial ties while strongly criticizing Israel.
Turkey recognized Israel in 1949. Tensions between the two countries have waxed and waned under Erdogan’s administration. The Turkish leader has stepped up his criticism of Israel following its military attacks on Gaza, accusing it of war crimes and genocide. Erdogan has described the Hamas militant group, which Israel, the United States and the European Union consider a terrorist organization, as freedom fighters.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said this week that Turkey has decided to join South Africa’s lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice and will soon submit a formal request to intervene in the case.
South Africa has filed a lawsuit at the International Court of Justice alleging that Israel violated the Genocide Convention with its military attacks on Hamas. Israel denies that its military operations in Gaza violate the Genocide Convention.
