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International Desk, June 09, 2025 : Despite publicly announcing the suspension of oil exports to Israel amid outrage over the ongoing violence in Gaza, Azerbaijan, a Muslim-majority country, has been exposed for continuing these supplies in secret. An investigative report by Israel’s prominent daily, Haaretz, has revealed that Azerbaijan’s announcement was merely a facade.
According to the report, under pressure from Turkey, Azerbaijan declared in late 2023 that it would halt oil exports to Israel and subsequently removed all related data from its customs database. However, in reality, the oil supply never stopped. Azerbaijan is now using the guise of a “third country” to channel oil to Israel through an international pipeline passing through Turkey, while officially listing the oil’s destination as elsewhere.
An Israeli official told Haaretz, “We have received assurances from Azerbaijan that fuel and strategic relations will continue as before. There is nothing to worry about.” In 2023, approximately 30% of Israel’s total oil imports came from Azerbaijan, a dependency that continues covertly.
In May 2023, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, angered by Israel’s actions in Gaza and its obstruction of a Turkish aid plane, announced the severance of all trade relations with Israel. However, opposition parties in Turkey claim that Azerbaijan’s oil continues to flow to Israel through Turkish territory, raising questions about Erdogan’s stance.
Protesters in Istanbul gathered outside the office of Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company, SOCAR, condemning the trade. They stated, “Doing business with occupiers under a Muslim identity is not only hypocrisy but also a betrayal of Palestinians.”
While the Israeli government claims it can find alternative sources if Azerbaijan halts oil supplies, Haaretz’s findings confirm that the flow of oil from Azerbaijan remains uninterrupted.
AI/MR
