Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey, came under fire from Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz over the trade stoppage, charging him with disdaining Turkish companies and global trade agreements. Since the fighting in Gaza intensified in October and Hamas militants captured over 250 captives in addition to killing over 1,100 Israeli civilians, tensions between Turkey and Israel have grown. Israel responded by initiating military operations in Gaza, which resulted in a considerable number of Palestinian casualties.
As the humanitarian situation worsens, Turkey's new trade embargo expresses its dissatisfaction of Israel's conduct in Gaza. Turkey had already imposed export restrictions to Israel earlier in April, affecting steel, iron, and construction equipment. With the two countries' combined commerce expected to reach $6.8 billion in 2023, the complete ban is a major step toward widening the divide between these erstwhile regional allies.
Israel has demonstrated no desire for negotiation or a truce, defending its military action as required to oppose Hamas following the fatal attacks on its civilian population. In spite of this, Israel's Foreign Minister pledged to counteract the effects of the trade boycott by locating alternate import sources and encouraging homegrown manufacturing.