ANKARA: Hakan Fidan, Turkey’s Foreign Minister, has announced that the country has severed all trade and economic relations with Israel. In a statement during an emergency session of the Turkish parliament regarding the Gaza conflict, he noted that Ankara has also closed its airspace to Israeli aircraft and is preventing armed ships from entering Turkish ports. Moreover, Turkish commercial vessels will not be allowed to dock at Israeli ports. Fidan stated that Israel has committed “genocide” in Gaza over the past two years, violating fundamental humanitarian values in the eyes of the world. He accused Israel of using hunger as a weapon of war and obstructing humanitarian aid to Gaza. He condemned Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, and Iran, describing them as a clear indication of a “terrorist state’s mindset that challenges the international order.” Turkey first announced the suspension of its trade relations with Israel in the month of Thor last year in response to the Gaza conflict. The Turkish Ministry of Commerce stated that this decision would remain in effect until Israel allows “free and sufficient” aid to flow into Gaza. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has repeatedly criticized the war in Gaza and accused Israel of “genocide.”
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