Wine extracted from an Israeli settlement in the West Bank and marked “from the land of Israel” will soon be available for sale in the United Arab Emirates, settlers ’business leaders said.
Palestinians have criticized the export deal, saying settlements are illegal under international law, a view shared by many countries but which Israel is accused of.
A worker sorts bottles of wine while working at Tura Winery in Rehelim, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank
(Photo: Reuters)
After forging official relations with the UAE last year under a U.S.-made deal that angered Palestinians, bottles from Tura Winery in the Rehelim settlement are now in stock in the UAE, the liquor dealer said. that is, although they did not appear to be on shelves yet.
The owner of the winery, Vered Ben-Sa’adon, told Reuters that the exports showed that the new Israeli-UAE ties were also expanding to settlements, on the land of the West Bank which was captured in the 1967 Six Day War and Palestinians are seeking a state.
“It’s very interesting for him (people in the UAE) to feel the process of peace, to be a part of it. When you sit in a hotel in Abu Dhabi, and drink a glass of Tura (wine), it’s going to be a part of history, “said Ben – Sa’adon, 44.
Tura, which also manufactures and has shipped olive oil to the UAE, puts labels on its wine bottles that include the line: “WINE FROM THE TAND OF ISRAEL”.
Vered Ben-Sa’adon, owner of Tura Winery in the settlement of Rehelim on the West Bank
(Photo: Reuters)
Tura said the term refers to an area that includes Israel and the West Bank, where settlers apply the Bible to land they own. referred to as Judea and Samaria.
The UAE rejected a comment when asked about the government’s stance on Israeli settlements, but has said its relations with Israel would promote peace in the region.
The UAE has not said whether it would issue special labels on settlers’ goods saying they had been deported in cities.
The European Union needs such leaflets.
Bottles of wine can be seen at Tura Winery in the West Bank village of Rehelim
(Photo: Reuters)
But under instructions issued by US President Donald Trump last year, the United States, Israel’s closest ally, said its importation from settlements should be marked “Made in an Israel ”or“ Bathar Israel ”.
U.S. President Joe Biden has criticized Israeli settlements, but has not said he would change the Trump administration’s billing guidelines.
Palestinians are protesting
“It breaks your heart to see your Muslim brothers (in the UAE) supporting your enemy at your expense,” said Nizam Abdul Razzaq, 57, a Palestinian wool and bee farmer in Yasouf, a small town two km (1.2 miles) from Rehelim.
A representative from African + Eastern, an alcoholic retailer in the UAE, said they had Tura wine in stock, although they were not yet available on store shelves. The vendor also sells wine imported from Israel-affiliated Golan Heights.
Palestinian farmers collect crops in a field in Jericho
(Photo: Reuters)
Photos posted on Tura’s Facebook page show that they held a signing ceremony in Dubai in December with FAM Holding, a UAE business company. A bottle of Tura wine will be seen on the table at the event.
A FAM representative said they had import contracts for wine and olive oil with Tura and for honey with Paradise Honey, a company in the West Bank town of Hermesh.
Israel FAM imports were agreed with the UAE government, the representative said, without specifying whether origin labels would be required.
Tura Winery owner Vered Ben-Sa’adon and Shomron Regional Council chief Yossi Dagan sign trade deal with UAE officials
(Photo: Facebook)
Matan Paradise, whose family runs Paradise Honey, said they sent “small shipments, to Dubai. I hope next month we’ll send a lot more.”
Ziyad al-Thatha, the Palestinian Authority’s economy ministry which has limited autonomy in the West Bank, called the UAE’s purchase of settlement goods “a gross violation of international laws … and an attempt to in an area in ownership. ” “
Israel argues that its settlements are illegal, citing biblical, historical and political ties to the land, as well as security needs. About 440,000 settlers live in the West Bank among about 3 million Palestinians.