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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| US to label all of West Bank Area C goods 'made in Israel' |
| 2020-12-26 |
Will this hold if Joe Biden is moved into the White House on January 20th? [Jpost] "Goods produced in some areas of the West Bank shall be marked as products of  “West Bank” and goods produced in Gaza shall be marked  as products of  "Gaza."The Trump administration granted de facto recognition of West Bank Area C sovereignty when it issued labeling requirement that all goods produced in that region, either of Israeli or Palestinian origin, should be labeled "Made in Israel." On Wednesday, the US Customs and Border Protection Agency published a notice to this effect to ensure that "country of origin markings for Israeli and Palestinian goods are consistent with the United States’ foreign policy approach." US Customs stated that "producers within certain areas designated in the Oslo Accords and the Hebron Protocol must mark their goods as ‘Israel,’ ‘Product of Israel’ or ‘Made in Israel’ when exporting those goods to the United States." The 1993 and 1995 Oslo Accords which it referenced divided the West Bank into three sections: areas A, B and C. It placed Areas A and B under the auspices of the Palestinian Authority, while Area C was placed under Israeli military rule, including oversight of Israeli and Palestinian civilian life. The wording of the customs notice would indicate that on issues of trade, Washington recognizes that Area C, which makes up 60% of the West Bank, can be considered Israeli territory for customs purposes, even though it is outside the sovereign boundaries of the state. The notice further indicated that areas A and B would be designated as the West Bank. Gaza would be marked as Gaza, according to customs. "Goods produced in areas of the West Bank where the Palestinian Authority maintains relevant authorities shall be marked as products of  “West Bank” – and goods produced in Gaza shall be marked as products of  “Gaza," the agency stated, adding that the policy should go into effect within 90 days. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo first announced that the US had shifted its policy with regard to the labeling of goods produced in the West Bank, which had not allowed for Israeli settlement products to be marked as being "Made in Israel." |
| Posted by:trailing wife |