Turkey’s sudden ban on trade with Israel is already affecting Jews in both countries

ISTANBUL (JTA) – Despite months of deteriorating relations and increasingly hostile rhetoric, the complete shutdown of trade between Turkey and Israel earlier this month came as a shock to many.

The shutdown, which Turkey’s Islamist-leaning president Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on May 3, is putting pressure on prices in Israel, cutting off a major trade route for kosher food and affecting people on both corners of the eastern Mediterranean.

“For the last two weeks, everything stopped. We can’t do normal business,” Rami Simon, a Turkish Jew who trades aluminum and construction materials to Israel, told The Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

The shutdown is one of the most sweeping steps taken by any country to oppose Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Erdogan said trade would resume only when there is a permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the terror group that Erdogan has said he supports.

It also marks a significant breach for countries that have long had close physical and economic ties and, until recently, resilient diplomatic relations despite periods of tension. READ MORE