Istanbul/London CNN —
Turkey announced export restrictions to Israel after the country’s foreign minister accused Israel of refusing a request for airdrops of aid to Gaza.
In a statement on Tuesday, Turkey’s Commerce Ministry condemned Israeli actions that deny Gaza people access to “the most basic food, medicine and supplies” and announced a ban on the export of 54 items, including those that could be used for military purposes or construction.
“This decision will remain in effect until Israel declares an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, within the framework of its obligations under international law, and allows full and uninterrupted flow of humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip,” the State Department said.
Among the items mentioned in the statement are steel, aluminium, cement and electrical cables.
Turkey’s foreign minister said at a press conference in Ankara late Monday that Turkey was taking “a series of new measures against Israel” after Israel rejected Jordan’s request to join the aid effort. “We learned today that our request, which was welcomed by the Jordanian authorities, has been rejected by Israel,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.
“There is no excuse for Israel to block our attempts to airlift aid to the starving people of Gaza,” he continued.
Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, which controls access to Gaza, did not respond to CNN’s request for comment on Turkey’s claims.
Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a statement on Tuesday that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was “once again sacrificing the economic interests of the Turkish people for his support of Hamas.”
Katz said he had instructed the Israeli Foreign Ministry to draw up a “detailed list” of Turkish products that Israel would ban in response. Israel would also call on the United States and other allies to “halt investments in Turkey and block the import of Turkish products,” and would appeal to the U.S. Congress to “impose appropriate sanctions.”
“Israel will not succumb to violence or intimidation, and we will not remain silent about unilateral violations of trade agreements,” Katz said.
According to Israel’s coordinator of government activities in the Gaza Strip, Turkey is the largest donor to the Gaza Strip along with the United Arab Emirates.
Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) sees the newly announced export controls as insufficient, and in a statement on Tuesday criticized Ankara for continuing to trade with Israel despite publicly condemning the attacks on Gaza.
“We call on the government to immediately halt trade with countries that support attacks on Gaza and turn a blind eye to injustice and repression,” Volkan Demir, CHP’s deputy head of trade policy, said in a statement.
Lauren Izzo in Tel Aviv and Anna Cuban in London contributed to this article.
