Le Soir, 26 February 2010

EU hands Palestinians a legal victory

Published on 26 February 2010 at 14:31
Le Soir, 26 February 2010

Cover

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that products originating from the Israeli-occupied territories may no longer benefit from custom duties exemptions granted to Israel under its association agreement with the EU. "Thursday, 25 February will no doubt mark an important victory for pro-Palestinian militants," writes Le Soir. "The ruling sets the stage for jurisprudence over an issue (the origination rule) that has poisoned trade relations between Europe and Israel for a long time."

The Belgian daily notes that on 8 December 2009 "the 27-member EU government again restated its recognition of the 1949 cease-fire lines as the Jewish state's borders," which excludes the territories occupied by Israel since 1967. Some 276 Israeli companies, "from SMEs to multinationals" are located in the occupied territories, Le Soir reports.

Receive the best of European journalism straight to your inbox every Thursday
Tags

Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!

It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.

Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!

Are you a news organisation, a business, an association or a foundation? Check out our bespoke editorial and translation services.

Support independent European journalism

European democracy needs independent media. Join our community!

On the same topic