Turkey suspends trade activities with Israel

Turkey halts all trade with Israel due to "non-stop violence" against Palestinians in Gaza, imposing restrictions until ceasefire achieved.

Ankara: Turkey has made the decision to cease all trade activities with Israel in response to what it deems as Israel's relentless violence against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, as stated by the Turkish Trade Ministry.

This latest development comes after Turkey had already imposed restrictions on a variety of exports to Israel the previous month, with Ankara declaring that these restrictions will remain in place until a ceasefire is established in Gaza.

The Ministry's statement pointed out that back in April, Ankara had already restricted the export of 54 product groups to Israel due to the ongoing "massacre, humanitarian catastrophe, and physical destruction" inflicted by Israel, along with its disregard for international ceasefire efforts and obstruction of humanitarian aid.

The Ministry further expressed concern over Israel's continued aggressive behavior and the worsening humanitarian crisis in Palestine, prompting the initiation of a second phase of state-level measures, resulting in the suspension of all export and import transactions with Israel for all products.

Turkey has asserted that these new measures will be strictly and decisively enforced until Israel allows for the uninterrupted and adequate flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Despite these actions, the Turkish Trade Ministry has assured that it is working closely with Palestinian authorities to ensure that the Palestinian people, who are living under occupation, will not be negatively impacted by these restrictions.

In 2023, trade between Turkey and Israel amounted to $6.8 billion, with Turkish exports making up 76% of the total trade volume.