Israel wants to find new foreign suppliers, the Czech Republic is also being considered

With this action, Turkey is trying to force Israel to end military operations in the Gaza Strip, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today. The Israeli army continues retaliatory operations against the Palestinian movement Hamas, which last October carried out a terrorist attack in the south of Israel in which 1,200 people died. Turkish Ankara announced on Thursday the suspension of trade with Israel, citing the “worsening humanitarian tragedy” in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli government circles are now trying to assess the effects of this move on the Israeli economy. Israel bought fuel, machinery, cars and medical equipment from Turkey, Ynet reports. The head of Israeli diplomacy Yisrael Kac said on Thursday that his country intends to respond to this situation by looking for new suppliers abroad. According to a source from the Israeli Ministry of Economy, quoted by the Ynet server, “friendly countries such as Germany, Britain, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Greece” are mentioned as possible partners.

Foreign trade between Turkey and Israel reached about $6.7 billion last year, according to the Turkish Statistical Office.

Turkey will resume trade with Israel only if there is a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and an unlimited flow of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian enclave, Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat said on Friday. This was reported by the Reuters agency.

Turkey halted all exports and imports to and from Israel on Thursday, citing the “worsening humanitarian tragedy” in the Palestinian territories. In a speech in Istanbul, Bolat said that Israel’s uncompromising stance and the deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip had prompted Ankara to halt trade.

Turkey’s trade ministry first imposed trade restrictions in early April, halting exports of iron and steel products and construction equipment. The volume of trade between Turkey and Israel in 2023 was 6.8 billion dollars (6.3 billion euros).

Israeli Foreign Minister Yisrael Kac said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “is violating agreements by blocking ports for Israeli imports and exports”. He added that Israel will try to replace these losses with local production and imports from other countries.

In addition, Turkey will join the lawsuit of the Republic of South Africa (JAR), which has accused Israel of the genocide of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip at the International Court of Justice. This was reported by the DPA agency. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced the move in Ankara on Wednesday. He specified that they are still fine-tuning the details of participation in the lawsuit.

At the end of December last year, South Africa sued Israel at the United Nations General Court in The Hague for what it believed to be a violation of the Genocide Convention. She referred to violence by the army and statements by Israeli politicians and military commanders.

Israel condemned the lawsuit, calling it baseless and absurd.

In a preliminary ruling in January, the court acknowledged that there was a risk of genocide in the Gaza Strip, but did not order Israel to end its military operation there. The court said Israel must take all measures necessary to prevent genocidal acts.

The United States criticized the accusations against Israel for the alleged genocide in the Gaza Strip earlier this year. “This situation is meaningless, counterproductive and totally without any justification,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told the media.

The Republic of South Africa appealed to the court in connection with the Israeli military advance in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the JAR’s claims. Israel has long denied that it used disproportionate force in its offensive against Palestinian militants and emphasizes that it is only part of the legitimate defense of Israeli territory and population. Netanyahu also responded that Israel did not come to commit genocide.

According to Haaretz, international law expert Shelly Aviv Jeini of Haifa University stressed that the South African complaint cannot be taken lightly. Proving genocide requires proving the intent to exterminate a certain group of people and the specific acts that fulfill that intent.

The JAR claims that statements by high-ranking Israeli officials and the public atmosphere in Israel point to an intention to wipe Gaza off the map. At the same time, he points to the damage caused to civilians in Gaza and the hunger they suffer.

Hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza do not have enough drinking water. Humanitarian organizations cannot distribute aid because there is nowhere safe. Most of the hospitals are not functioning and others are overcrowded, they do not have enough medicine or medical supplies.