The Bahraini minister said there will be “no restrictions or special treatment or special rules” for Israeli businesses.
By LAHAV HARKOV, TOVAH LAZAROFFThe Israeli national flag flutters as apartments are seen in the background in the Israeli settlement of Efrat in the West Bank August 18, 2020.(photo credit: RONEN ZVULUN/REUTERS)
Israeli products produced over the pre-1967 lines from West Bank settlements, east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights can be labeled “Made in Israel” in Bahrain, Bahraini Industry, Commerce and Tourism Minister Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani said Thursday.“Without going into details and border lines, Israeli products or services... will be treated like Israeli,” he said, adding: “We will recognize them as Israeli products.”Much of the business between Israel and Bahrain will not necessarily be in tangible products, but rather in services from Israel’s tech sector, Al Zayani said.His words come at a time when the Palestinians are pushing the international community to boycott Israeli products produced over the Green Line, in east Jerusalem and in the West Bank by forcing Israel to withdraw to the pre-1967 lines.Bahrain routinely supports anti-Israel United Nations resolutions that stipulate its member states must treat Israeli goods produced over the pre-1967 lines as if they were made outside of Israel.On Wednesday, Bahrain was one of 145 countries that approved a UN General Assembly resolution, called the “Peaceful settlement of the Question of Palestine.”It called on member states “to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.”The text further stated that UN member states should “not render aid or assistance to illegal settlement activities, including not to provide Israel with any assistance to be used specifically in connection with settlements in the occupied territories, in line with Security Council Resolution 465 (1980) of 1 March 1980.”At the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday, a Bahraini representative affirmed his country’s support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at the pre-1967 lines, with east Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital. This includes support for past international understandings that confirm that position, such as the Arab Peace Initiative, he added.“We confirm the need to offer all forms of support to the just cause of the Palestinian people,” the Bahraini representative said.He said his country believes the region is served by peace with Israel, and that such a peace is an important step forward toward ending the conflict with the Palestinians and to “achieve the aspirations of the Palestinian people.”“The Middle East faces unprecedented challenges today, and these challenges require firm action that requires cooperation among everyone,” particularly in fields of interest, he said. “We need to enhance the values of co-existence and tolerance and acceptance of the other.”Israel this month ratified its normalization deal with Bahrain, under the rubric of the US brokered Abraham Accords. It followed a similar deal with the United Arab Emirates. As part of those deals, Israel agreed to suspend plans to annex West Bank settlements.US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, however, still took steps to shore up the legitimacy of the settlements, by visiting a winery in Judea and Samaria. During his visit, the State Department reversed its guideline to allow West Bank Israeli products previously labeled as “made in the West Bank” to now be labeled “made in Israel.”The EU has published guidelines that advise placing consumer labels on products that give product of origin information. A European Court ruling that has yet to be implemented has mandated the placement of labels that clarify to consumers that these products were not produced in Israel.Al Zayani said there will be “no restrictions or special treatment or special rules” for Israeli businesses.“We will treat Israel and Israeli companies like we do Italian or German or Saudi companies, for that matter,” he said. “Israelis are welcome as any other international company in Bahrain.”Al Zayani made the remarks while leading the first-ever trade delegation from Bahrain to Israel.During the visit, he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, Economy Minister Amir Peretz and others.Efrat Municipal Council head Oded Revivi welcomed Bahrain’s stance, saying such a policy “proved we are talking about a true peace.”“Now we must adopt this view with our neighbors within and without Israeli borders,” he said. “Buying products from Judea and Samaria strengthens the joint industrial areas, brings together cultures and actually strengthens peace. This is a message to Israelis and the world.”
