By Worthy News’ George Whitten and Stefan J. Bos
ANKARA/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Turkey on Thursday suspended all trade with Israel in protest over its ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza, which the Turkish trade ministry said had turned into a “humanitarian tragedy.”
The ban on imports from and exports to Israel “covering all products” will remain in place until the Jewish nation allows an “uninterrupted and sufficient flow” of aid into Gaza, Turkish trade officials said.
Israel has denied wrongdoing and has accused Hamas of stealing aid in Gaza intended for innocent Palestinians.
Turkey’s decision came despite trade between the two countries amounting to almost $7 billion last year.
Israel’s foreign minister accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of acting like a “dictator.”
Israel Katz said on social media platform X that Erdogan was also “disregarding the interests of the Turkish people and businessmen and ignoring international trade agreements.”
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITIES
Turkish officials said they will “coordinate with Palestinian authorities” to ensure that Palestinians are not affected by the suspension of imports and exports.
Last month, Turkey — a staunch critic of Israel’s military actions — already announced it was restricting exports of 54 types of products to Israel, including aluminum, steel, construction products, and chemical fertilizers.
Israel responded by also announcing trade barriers.
It has rejected Turkey’s criticism, saying the war on Gaza was triggered by Hamas fighters who, on October 7, killed at least 1,136 Israeli citizens and took about 250 people hostage.
Israel sent soldiers into Gaza and bombarded suspected Hamas sites in the territory, killing more than 34,000 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
The ministry figures have been complex to verify, and it doesn’t differentiate between combatants and Palestinian civilians.
‘GENOCIDE’ CASE
Despite questions about the death toll cited by Hamas-linked officials, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said earlier this week that Ankara would also join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Nicaragua and Colombia have previously tried to intervene in the same case with separate applications, but the court has yet to make a judgment on their request.
Fidan revealed that Turkey discussed the issue with some members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, who said they are likely also to join the case.
The announcement came after the Turkish president last month publicly met Hamas leaders, including the political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, for the first time since the October 7 October attack against Israel by the group.
He also dispatched his Foreign Minister Fidan to Doha to meet senior Hamas officials.
Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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