Ireland is set to unveil become the first EU country to ban imports from occupied Palestinian territories.
Foreign and trade minister Simon Harris unveiled the draft legislation to Cabinet on Tuesday. The bill looks to ban the imports of goods from businesses in the occupied territories.
It is different from the original draft of the Occupied Territories Bill, which would have banned goods and services.
If the bill passes through Cabinet, it will go under scrutiny of the Oireachtas committee next month.
While Ireland does minimal trade in goods from these areas, Harris said that it is a necessary step to bring an end to the war in the Middle East.
Harris said the legislation was in response to an escalation in what he called Israel’s “war crimes” in Gaza.
Speaking to the Financial Times on Monday, Harris said: “It is clear war crimes are taking place, children are being starved and food is being used as a weapon of war.
“The world has not done enough and we need to act.”
He went on to tell the publication: “Given the scale and gravity of what we’re now seeing with the deprivation of aid and the bombardment of Gaza … this is an appropriate course of action to take.”
The settlements include residential, agricultural and business interests in the West Bank and East Jerusalem that lie outside Israel’s internationally recognised borders.
The legislation would make it illegal to import goods originating from the occupied territories, but would not amount to a boycott on Israeli goods.
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