ANKARA, Turkiye: Turkiye and Israel announced trade barriers on each other Tuesday as relations deteriorated further amid the war in Gaza.
Turkiye, a staunch critic of Israel’s military actions in the territory, announced that it was restricting exports of 54 types of products to Israel with immediate effect. They include aluminum, steel, construction products, jet fuel and chemical fertilizers. In response, Israel said it was preparing a ban on products from Turkiye.
The announcements came a day after Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Israel had barred Turkish military cargo planes from joining an operation to airdrop humanitarian aid to Gaza and vowed to respond with a series of measures against Israel until it declares a ceasefire and allows aid to flow in without interruptions.
“There is no excuse for Israel to block our attempt to deliver aid by air to starving people of Gaza,” Fidan said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government, which suffered major setbacks in local elections last month, is faced with intense pressure at home to halt trade with Israel. Critics accuse the government of engaging in double standards by leveling strong accusations against Israel while continuing lucrative commercial relations.
Erdogan, whose ruling party has roots in Turkiye’s Islamic movement, has been an outspoken critic of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians since taking office in 2003.
The Turkish leader stepped up his criticism of Israel following its military offensive in Gaza, describing Israel’s actions as war crimes verging on “genocide” and asserting that the Hamas militant group, considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and European Union, is fighting for the liberation of its lands and people.
In a post on X, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Erdogan was “once again sacrificing the economic interests of the people of Turkiye for his support of the Hamas murderers in Gaza.”
In the same post, he said he had contacted organizations in the US and asked them to stop investing in Turkiye and refrain from importing Turkish goods.
Hamish Kinnear, senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at Britain-based risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, said domestic considerations were behind Turkiye’s decision to slap trade restrictions on Israel, saying Erdogan’s ruling party was trying to “rally its base in the wake of defeat in local elections.”
“Reduced bilateral trade will be the result, especially if Israel retaliates with trade restrictions of its own,” Kinnear said. “Turkiye’s government has likely made the calculation that damaged trade ties are worth it for the potential gain in domestic political support.”
Turkish exports to Israel amounted to $5.4 billion in 2023, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute.
Turkiye and Israel had normalized ties by appointing ambassadors to their respective countries in 2022, following years of tensions.
Since January, Turkish authorities have detained dozens of people, including private detectives, on suspicion of spying for Israel, mostly on Palestinians living in Turkiye.
Turkiye and Israel announce trade barriers on each other as relations deteriorate over Gaza
https://arab.news/z6h6m
Turkiye and Israel announce trade barriers on each other as relations deteriorate over Gaza
- “There is no excuse for Israel to block our attempt to deliver aid by air to starving people of Gaza,” Fidan says
Libya’s Ramadan celebrations tempered by economic woes
- Libya’s other economic problems included the absence of a unified national budget, in light of its political divide, as well as uncoordinated public spending due to parallel state institutions, Tetteh said
- Refills of gas cylinders, officially priced at 1.5 dinars ($0.24) but often unavailable through state-run distributors, now sell for 75 dinars ($11.85) on the black market and at times more
TRIPOLI: Libyans have been enjoying Ramadan with feasts and fireworks — but soaring prices, a devalued currency and political divisions have left many with little to celebrate.
Fifteen years on from the fall of longtime leader Muammar Qaddafi, the country remains split between east and west, while shortages of goods, including fuel, disrupt daily life, despite Libya sitting atop vast oil and gas reserves.
During the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, shoppers stock up on treats, as families gather for lavish meals before and after the daytime fast that stretches from sunrise to sunset.
But this year supermarkets have been rationing their goods, while many petrol stations are short of gas. In the capital Tripoli, most ATMs were out of cash this week.
Firas Zreeg, 37, told AFP while weaving through a crowded supermarket that the economy was deteriorating, blaming currency speculators for the fall in the dinar, “which has negative repercussions on our daily lives.”
The price of cooking oil has doubled in recent weeks, while meat and poultry prices rose by half.
Refills of gas cylinders, officially priced at 1.5 dinars ($0.24) but often unavailable through state-run distributors, now sell for 75 dinars ($11.85) on the black market and at times more.
- ‘Burden on citizens’ -
Libya has struggled to recover from the chaos that erupted following the 2011 Arab Spring uprising that toppled Qaddafi.
It remains divided between a UN-recognized government based in Tripoli and an eastern administration backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar.
The country has largely been stable in recent years although there have been bouts of deadly violence, including the killing of Qaddafi’s son and heir apparent Seif Al-Islam this month.
With security holding, many Libyans are more focused on their livelihoods.
Last month, the central bank in the western territory devalued the dinar — the second time in less than a year — by nearly 15 percent, “aimed at preserving financial and monetary stability and ensuring the sustainability of public resources.”
In an address this week, Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah acknowledged that the devaluation had once again “put the burden on citizens.”
Hanna Tetteh, head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, warned on Wednesday that “poverty and pressure on society [are] increasing.”
“The situation, in addition to the fragile security landscape, should be a matter for concern as such conditions can lead to unexpected political and security challenges,” she told the UN Security Council.
Libya’s other economic problems included the absence of a unified national budget, in light of its political divide, as well as uncoordinated public spending due to parallel state institutions, Tetteh said.
Revenues from the oil industry were also declining, she added, while the central bank has said public spending is growing at an unsustainable pace.
On Tuesday, Libya marked 15 years since the start of the uprising that eventually toppled Qaddafi, with fireworks lighting up the sky in Tripoli, but for many Libyans life remains a struggle.
“Minor improvements in security were made over the past three years,” Zreeg told AFP, but Libyans are still faced with huge economic challenges.
