Turkiye closes airspace to Israel, bans Israeli ships from Turkish ports

Turkiye’s apical diplomat said his state has ‘completely’ chopped disconnected commercialized with Israel implicit its ongoing genocide.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said his state has wholly severed economical and commercialized ties with Israel and has closed its airspace to its aircraft, successful protestation implicit the warfare successful Gaza.

Speaking astatine an bonzer league of the Turkish parliament connected Gaza connected Friday, Fidan said Israel has been “committing genocide successful Gaza for the past 2 years, ignoring basal humanitarian values close earlier the world’s eyes”.

Turkiye chopped disconnected nonstop commercialized ties with Israel successful May past year, demanding a imperishable ceasefire and the contiguous introduction of humanitarian assistance to Gaza. In 2023, the 2 countries carried retired $7bn successful trade.

Ankara has not minced its words astir Israel’s warfare connected Gaza, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling it a genocide – similar galore different satellite leaders and starring quality rights organistions – and likening Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the person of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler.

“We person wholly chopped disconnected our commercialized with Israel. We bash not let Turkish ships to spell to Israeli ports. We bash not let their planes to participate our airspace,” Fidan said.

The Turkish overseas minister’s condemnation comes amid years of progressively tense relations betwixt the 2 countries, said Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar.

“It’s not lone astir the humanitarian situation that’s unfolding successful Gaza; Turkiye gradually is perceiving Israel arsenic a nationalist information threat,” Serdar explained, noting that Israel’s expansionism and attacks crossed the wider Middle East person been origin for concern.

In Syria particularly, Ankara has accused Israel of wilfully undermining the country’s betterment efforts aft the devastation of a 14-year civilian warfare and the removal of longtime person Bashar al-Assad past December by a lightning rebel offensive.

“Diplomats successful Ankara are seeing that if Israel is not stopped, yet determination mightiness beryllium a nonstop subject confrontation betwixt these 2 countries,” helium said.

Serdar added that the Turkish overseas minister’s comments besides amusement that Turkiye is looking to the Global South and different powers to instrumentality action, amid the United States’ and European Union’s mostly unwavering enactment for Israel.

Turkish media reported past week that a prohibition connected maritime postulation linked to Israel had been imposed, though determination was nary authoritative statement. According to reports, Israeli vessels were banned from docking successful Turkiye, and Turkish-flagged ships were not allowed to participate Israeli ports.

‘Like pariahs’

Meanwhile, Turkiye’s latest determination is making “more and much Israelis consciousness the disadvantages of this benignant of warfare that has nary deadline”, said Akiva Eldar, an Israeli governmental analyst.

“Turkiye is not conscionable different state that is deciding to chopped its narration with Israel. Turkiye has been an state of Israel for galore years, a precise important marketplace to Israeli goods,” Eldar told Al Jazeera, speaking from Kiryat Shmona, adding that it was besides a favourite summertime destination for galore Israelis.

“We consciousness much and much … Israelis are feeling isolated and [like] pariahs. More and much countries and companies person decided to halt their concern with Israel.”

Last November, Turkish authorities denied support for Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s level to participate Turkiye’s airspace for a travel to an planetary acme successful Azerbaijan.

“As Turkiye, we person to instrumentality a stance connected definite issues,” Erdogan aboriginal said erstwhile asked astir the incident.

Israel and Turkiye’s narration had soured arsenic acold backmost arsenic 2010, pursuing Israel’s deadly onslaught connected a Gaza-bound assistance flotilla, which killed 10 Turkish citizens.

More recently, a Turkish-American activist, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, was killed by Israeli forces during a protestation successful the occupied West Bank successful September 2024.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies