US to Label Products From Parts of Judea and Samaria as ‘Made in Israel’

Incredible. Thank you to President Donald J. Trump, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Ambassador David Friedman, and tJared Kushner for their steadfast support for the State of Israel. #BDSFail.

US to label products from parts of Judea and Samaria as ‘made in Israel’

By Israel National News, December 24, 2020

Products from parts of Judea and Samaria sold in the United States will be labeled “Made in Israel” as of today as per regulation issued by US Customs.

According to the US Customs regulation, “Goods produced in the territorial areas of the West Bank where Israel continues to exercise relevant authorities—specifically Area C under the Oslo Accords and the area known as ‘H2’ which is under Israeli administrative control consistent with the 1997 Hebron protocol—must be marked as […] ‘Made in Israel.’”

On the other hand, “Goods produced in Areas A and B under the Oslo Accords, which are under the civilian oversight of the Palestinian Authority for these purposes, along with the area known as ‘H1’ from the 1997 Hebron Protocol, must be marked as […] ‘Made in West Bank.’”

In addition, “Goods produced in Gaza must be marked as […] Made in Gaza,” and no products are to be labeled “West Bank and Gaza” or in any other way grouping the two areas together.

Prior to the Oslo Accords, US policy was that all goods from Judea and Samaria or Gaza had to be marked as made in Israel.

By 1995, however, the State Department advised for only “West Bank” or “Gaza” to be used for products from these regions – not “Israel.”

In 1997 that guidance was expanded to include “West Bank and Gaza” or similar markings “reaffirming territorial unity of the two areas.”

In explaining its current decision, US Customs said that “By letter dated December 1, 2020, the Department of State has now advised U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that there has been no further transfer of relevant authorities from Israel to the Palestinian Authority since issuance of the earlier guidance and Israel continues to exercise relevant authorities in areas of the West Bank. The Department of State further advised that it recognizes that Israel has disengaged from Gaza and that Gaza and the West Bank are politically and administratively separate and should be treated accordingly.”