Vessels belonging to Israeli shipping firm ZIM remain active in Turkish waters despite a trade ban Turkey imposed on Israel in May due to its war on the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, according to investigative journalist Metin Cihan, who cited open source data.
The Turkish government announced a trade ban to Israel after a public outcry over Israel’s military actions in Gaza, stating that restrictions would remain in place until Israel allows uninterrupted humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Cihan revealed on X on Sunday that despite protests against ZIM, a publicly held Israeli company and one of the top 20 global carriers, by pro-Palestinian activists in many countries such as Belgium, the US, Canada and Malaysia, one of the countries where ZIM ships operate most easily is Turkey, where their activities continue without disruption in ports in İstanbul, İzmir, Kocaeli, Bursa and Mersin.
Türkiye olarak İsrail'in katliamlarına karşı tutumumuzun ve ticaret yasağının ne kadar kof olduğunu bir örnekle anlatmak istiyorum.
ZIM diye dev bir şirket var. İsrail'in en büyük denizcilik şirketi. İsrail ordusuna sevkiyatlar yapıyor. Hatırlarsınız, ülkemizden İsrail… pic.twitter.com/ZpmmoDBRaa
— metin cihan (@metcihan) October 13, 2024
Cihan shared the “ZIM Port Schedule Turkiye,” which appeared on ZIM’s website, and a video showing ZIM company documents that include details about its operations in Turkish ports.
For instance, Liberian-flagged container ship ZIM China arrived at the Port of Mersin in southern Turkey on October 6 and departed a day later. The same ship also arrived at Aliağa-Nemport on Sunday, when Cihan made this revelation, and departed the same day for Piraeus, Greece.
Many other ZIM vessels are also scheduled to arrive at Turkish ports later in October.
The Haifa-based ZIM has more than 170 offices and representatives in some 120 countries throughout the world. Its vessels call at over 180 ports throughout the world.
The situation is further complicated by Cihan’s allegation that ZIM is transporting materials for the Israeli military, recalling that it was ZIM that shipped Turkey-made thermal underwear to the Israeli army, which sparked public outrage when it was revealed in December.
While President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and framed the country as a security threat, trade relations and indirect collaborations continue.
Following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which led to the death of approximately 1,200 Israelis and the taking of some 250 hostages, Israel launched an intense military campaign on Gaza. This bombardment, which has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians — mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry — has drawn widespread international condemnation.
Turkish President Erdoğan has repeatedly accused Israel of “genocidal behavior” and compared the actions of the administration of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to those of Nazi Germany.
Cihan has been revealing the extent of Turkey’s trade with Israel since November, and his reports ultimately led to a public outcry that resulted in the government imposing the trade ban in May.
Cihan’s later accusations have raised serious questions about the integrity of Turkey’s trade ban on Israel and the actions of high-profile figures within the Erdoğan administration and its allied political parties.