All ties between Turkey and Israel were severed this week after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan confirmed to journalists that the relationship is over.
"The government of the Republic of Turkey, under the leadership of Tayyip Erdogan, will not continue or develop relations with Israel," Erdogan told the press while aboard his personal airplane following visits to Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.
"[Our ruling coalition] is resolute in its decision to cut ties with Israel, and we will maintain this stance in the future as well. We, as the Republic of Turkey and its government, have currently severed all relations with Israel."
Back in May, Turkey imposed a trade embargo on Israel, though this was something of a smokescreen as Turkey simply hid its trade relations with Israel under the guise of delivering goods to "Palestine."
From now on, the only relations that Turkey and Israel will have together are the diplomatic kind as necessary for continuity of government. Everything else is now off limits, including the presence of a Turkish ambassador in Tel Aviv and an Israeli ambassador in Ankara.
(Related: Did you know that Turkey and 51 other nations are now calling for a global arms embargo on Israel?)
Erdogan to do everything he can to hold Netanyahu accountable
Turkey also plans to take further action against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his military actions in Gaza. International human rights groups almost uniformly agree that Israel is committing a Palestinian genocide in the embattled enclave.
Turkey is a participant in the ongoing genocide case currently moving through the International Court of Justice (ICJ). That case supports the existence of Palestine and advocates for a global arms embargo against Tel Aviv.
At least 52 countries, one of them Turkey, are right now on board with the arms embargo initiative, which aims to stop all further shipments of weapons and ammunition to Israel from anywhere in the world.
"We recently submitted our formal letter regarding this initiative to the president of the United Nations Security Council and the secretary-general of the United Nations," Erdogan confirmed.
"During our summit in Riyadh, a decision was made to invite all organizations and members of the Arab League to sign this letter."
Relations between Turkey and Israel deteriorated to an unsustainable level following a September 2023 meeting between Erdogan and Netanyahu that sought reconciliation between the two nations. Then October 7 happened and all bets were off.
Erdogan says he recognizes that Netanyahu is in the wrong and that Turkey will do whatever it can to hold Netanyahu accountable for crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.
Ankara is becoming increasingly critical of the Netanyahu regime in the year since October 7. Erdogan's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost voter support in the recent elections over its weak response to the war in Gaza. Now, Erdogan is trying to step up the rhetoric, at least, and time will tell if he truly means business in a literal sense.
"As usual, a double game by the populist Erdogan that diverts the public's attention in his country from very serious problems in the Turkish economy," wrote a commenter claiming to be from the region about how there is more here than meets the eye.
"It is enough to enter any supermarket or pharmacy store or many other places in Israel to see that there are lots of cheap Turkish products. Talks apart, actions apart."
Another piped in that this latest move by Erdogan will make it harder for Israel to send aid to Turkey the next time there is a major earthquake or other humanitarian disaster.
Israel is becoming increasingly isolated on the world stage. Learn more at Prophecy.news.
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