Seven months have passed since the genocide launched by Israel in Gaza on Oct. 7. To date, 35,000 people have lost their lives and 80,000 people have been injured due to the genocide that continues before the eyes of the world. According to United Nations data, nearly 2.5 million people were displaced within the country. A group of brave countries defend the truth without fear and stand by Palestine against Israeli terrorism, which is brazenly supported by Western countries, which are supposedly among the most democratic countries in the world. Türkiye comes first among these countries due to its historical responsibility in the region.
Türkiye stands by Palestine after Oct. 7, as it did before Oct. 7. In this context, Türkiye first recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv on Nov. 4 to reveal its political position and suspended the normalization process with Israel, which started after the Mavi Marmara crisis, without hesitation. In this way, Türkiye showed its reaction to Israel primarily within diplomatic boundaries. In addition, Türkiye is still in favor of a two-state solution and proposes that the Palestinian state should become a member of the U.N. to establish permanent peace in the region. However, unless the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council agree on these issues and take a positive attitude, a two-state solution and Palestine’s U.N. membership do not seem possible.
Importantly, Türkiye has never accepted the lie of self-defense that Israel used to cover its massacres in Gaza and saw the attacks as an extension of the Zionist project to destroy Palestine. Moreover, Türkiye never recognized Hamas, which started Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on Oct. 7, as a terrorist organization. Türkiye argues that Hamas is a liberation movement despite the Western disinformation campaigns. For this reason, Türkiye is completely separated from the countries in the region that declared Hamas a terrorist organization and took part in Trump’s so-called peace plan.
In addition, Türkiye has made diplomatic attempts to establish peace in the region. For example, Türkiye brought up the guarantor model just 10 days after the attacks started and announced that it could become a guarantor country on behalf of Palestine if the parties reached an agreement. Türkiye officially presented this proposal at the peace summit held in Cairo on Oct. 21, but this project could not be implemented because Israel and its supporters were in favor of a deadlock. Türkiye’s cease-fire calls were also not accepted by the bloodthirsty Israeli administration.
Arguing that Israel committed genocide in Gaza, Türkiye has conducted intense diplomacy for the liberation of Palestine and the liberation of the Palestinian people, both before and after Oct. 7. In this context, Türkiye has been following a communication strategy based on truth and concrete examples to demonstrate to the world the truth of the genocide suffered by Palestinians against Israel’s perception operations. For this reason, Türkiye has been trying to raise awareness in the international community through international events it organizes and publications on the subject. As a matter of fact, an anti-Israeli front has been formed, stretching from Africa to Asia, from Europe to Latin America, and growing stronger every day.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s devoted efforts in the formation of the growing anti-Israel front should not be forgotten. Erdoğan, who has been identified with the Palestinian cause since the Davos summit in 2009, where he made his famous “One Minute” speech, has tried to mobilize the international community both in one-on-one contacts with his counterparts and in the summits he attended within the framework of shuttle diplomacy after Oct. 7. Referring to all these, during his visit to Ankara last March, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared that he was grateful for Türkiye’s fulfillment of its historical responsibility toward the Palestinian people and its unwavering support for the Palestinian cause. Therefore, no matter how one looks at it, Türkiye is still making efforts to ensure the survival of Palestine and the Palestinian people.
Finally, with the decision taken last week, Türkiye announced that it will intervene in the genocide case filed by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). With this statement made by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Türkiye once again demonstrates that it supports every step taken for the benefit of the Palestinians in the eyes of the international community. In addition, with the implementation of this decision in the coming days, Türkiye will be the first country among countries with a predominately Muslim population to intervene in the said case.
Humanitarian aid provided to meet the urgent needs of the Palestinian people, who are struggling to survive due to the genocide carried out by Israel, constitutes the second dimension of the policy that Türkiye has followed since Oct. 7.
It is important to share here as an important piece of information that, according to Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) data, the total amount of aid Türkiye has provided to Gaza since Oct. 7 constitutes approximately one-quarter of the total aid provided to the region. For this reason, Türkiye is currently the country that provides the most humanitarian aid to Gaza. As a result of the aid collected by public institutions and nongovernmental organizations in Türkiye, the 11 aid ships sent to Gaza contain all kinds of aid materials that the Palestinians need. Although the aid sent by Türkiye is provided in a limited way under the supervision of Israel, each of them ensures that the Palestinian people can survive against oppression for a while longer.
Incidentally, it should be noted that Turkish society has not remained silent about the ongoing oppression in Gaza since Oct. 7. Thanks to the boycott calls made by groups with Islamic and humanitarian sensitivities, a strong boycott front has been formed against companies of Israeli origin or companies that have declared support for Israel. Thanks to the social awareness and sensitivity that has developed during the intervening period, there has been a noticeable decline in purchases from these relevant companies in Türkiye. Therefore, the Turkish nation, which has stood by the oppressed and fought for the truth in every period of history, has once again shown its unique character to the whole world since Oct. 7.
Türkiye has gradually reviewed its commercial relations with Israel to deter its continuation of the genocide in Gaza. Essentially, since trade between Türkiye and Palestine actually takes place under Israeli suppression, Ankara was in no rush to stop trade with Tel Aviv. If Türkiye had stopped trade with Israel immediately after the attacks that started on Oct. 7, Palestine, whose economy is dependent on foreign countries, would have been affected the most. Thus, Türkiye first restricted trade with Israel for 54 product groups with a decision made on April 9. Later, with an announcement made on May 2, Türkiye suspended all commercial relations with Israel until a cease-fire is declared in Gaza and the uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip is allowed.
Looking at the data published by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), it is noted that Türkiye exported $5.4 billion (TL 173.97 billion) to Israel and imported $1.6 billion from Israel last year. Additionally, contrary to popular belief, Türkiye does not have any dependence on Israel in any field, including the arms industry and the agricultural sector. Therefore, although the trade volume of $7 billion is in its favor, Türkiye once again has distinguished itself from the regional countries that only care about their own interests and reiterates that it will support Palestine’s just cause until the end.
To sum up, while Israel has been brutally continuing its attacks in Gaza for the last seven months, Türkiye is on the side of those who oppose this oppression, not on the side of those who support it. Ankara is doing everything it can, in proportion to the power it has, to end the oppression. However, unfortunately, the massacres in Gaza seem like they will continue, as the great powers that are supposedly responsible for maintaining world peace are hiding their heads in the sand.
*Lecturer at Istanbul Medipol University, Ph.D. holder in International Relations at Sakarya University
**Neslihan Tezcan, Ph.D. Candidate at Istanbul Medipol University
