Their ‘sensitivity’ contradicts reality
While Israel's occupation and massacres in Gaza continue, supporters are trying to monopolize the Palestinian struggle. However, many of the issues, from suspicious trade figures to military bases, contradict this ‘Palestine sensitivity’.
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Israel's genocide in Gaza is raising voices around the world, and protests are also taking place in Turkey. Support actions for Palestine are being held in many parts of the country. However, the “Palestine sensitivity” that the government and its supporters are trying to monopolize does not correspond to reality. The scenes that unfolded when the plane carrying 137 activists, 36 of whom were Turkish, from the Global Sumud Fleet, which was attacked and detained by Israel in international waters, landed at Istanbul Airport also drew criticism.
Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar, Chair of the KADEM Board of Trustees and wife of Selçuk Bayraktar, also welcomed the activists from the Global Sumud Fleet at Istanbul Airport. Speaking there, Bayraktar said, “It is such a great injustice, such a great cruelty, and it has been going on for so long that people really no longer accept it, as you say.” Many social media users recalled that Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar's husband, Selçuk Bayraktar, founded a joint venture called Leonardo, LBA Systems with Baykar, which sells weapons to Israel.
The government and its supporters organized numerous rallies in support of Palestine. These rallies, attended by civil society organizations, turned into political performances with caliphate flags unfurled. Despite claims that trade had ceased, questionable trade figures remained a constant topic of discussion. Some developments highlighting the government's ambivalent stance on Israel can be summarized as follows:
• Trade with Israel continued openly even months after the start of the massacre in Gaza. After the war that began on October 7, 2023, footage emerged showing Israeli soldiers receiving textile products such as thermal leggings and underwear exported from Turkey to Israel.
The AKP government, which claimed to stand with Palestine, accelerated trade with Israel. According to a report by the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM), trade with Israel continued to increase, with exports reaching $1 billion 140 million 574 thousand.
Furthermore, trade with Israel, which the government claimed had been “zeroed out,” was confirmed by Israel this time. Israeli authorities revealed that the astronomical increase in exports to Palestine was due to sales to Israel. Turkey became the fifth largest trading partner with Israel in 2024. Following trade restrictions with Israel, Turkey's increased exports to Greece also attracted attention. Iron and steel trade increased by 65 percent annually and 88 percent in September. This situation reinforced suspicions that the shipments were going to Israel via the Port of Piraeus.
• The VELA ship, owned by a Greek company, had set sail from Barcelona to transport steel to Israel Military Industries and arrived at the Port of Mersin. While the government was called upon to stop the ship, the reaction to Madleen and the lack of response to VELA drew criticism. The owner of the VELA ship is Greece-based Holler Shipping, and its operator is also Greece-based Costamare Shipping. The VELA ship was also protested by port workers in Australia on the grounds that it was carrying ammunition to Israel. Workers refused to load containers belonging to Israel-based ZIM Lines onto the VELA, operated by Costamare.
• The Kürecik Radar Base in Malatya was established by NATO in 2012 to serve as an early warning radar against ballistic missile attacks. Data obtained from the Kürecik radar system is believed to have been used to detect and intercept missiles launched by Iran against Israel. Data obtained from the base is shared with NATO member countries. It had previously been reported that missiles launched by Iran in a previous retaliatory attack against Israel were also detected early and intercepted thanks to the Kürecik Radar Base.
• With the agreement signed at the Paris Air Show, Baykar, owned by President Erdoğan's son-in-law Selçuk Bayraktar, and Leonardo, which sells weapons to Israel, established a joint venture called LBA Systems.
• Azerbaijani oil, which meets the fuel needs of the Israeli army, is transported to Israel via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled ‘Hassasiyet’leri gerçekle çelişiyor, published in BirGün newspaper on October 7, 2025.
