Ankara: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced on Friday, August 29, that Turkey has suspended all economic ties with Israel and closed its airspace to Israeli aircraft over the ongoing Gaza offensive.
Speaking at an extraordinary parliamentary session, Fidan said the decision responds to Israel’s “massacres against Palestinians” and “aggressive policies” across Gaza, Jerusalem, the West Bank, Syria, Iran, and Lebanon. He accused Israel of seeking to make Gaza uninhabitable by blocking aid and using “starvation as a weapon.”
“We have completely cut off our trade with Israel. We have closed our ports to Israeli ships and barred Turkish ships from docking at Israeli ports. No other country has fully severed trade ties with Israel as we have,” Fidan declared.
He accused Tel Aviv of attempting to undermine the two-state solution with US backing and criticised the international community’s failure to halt the violence.
Fidan pledged to continue working with Qatar and Egypt on a lasting resolution and reiterated Turkey’s opposition to any plan involving the forced displacement of Palestinians.
Turkey and Israel have had a free-trade agreement since 1997, with steel, oil, and plastics among the main exchange items.
According to the Jerusalem Post, Turkish port authorities now require shipping agents to certify that vessels are not linked to Israel and not carrying military cargo.
Since October 7, 2023, Israeli strikes have killed 62,966 Palestinians and injured 159,266, according to Gaza’s health authorities. More than 9,000 remain missing, while 317 people, including 121 children, have died of starvation amid severe aid restrictions.
