Products from Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories will no longer be allowed into the Netherlands starting September 22, the Dutch government announced on Tuesday. The ban applies to "the import, purchase and sale of goods from illegal Israeli settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territories," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, adding that circumventing these measures is also prohibited.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Over 500,000 Israeli settlers live in this territory, excluding East Jerusalem, alongside about three million Palestinians. All Israeli settlements are considered illegal under international law.
"With the proposed measures, the Netherlands reinforces its commitment to respect its international legal obligation not to contribute to this illegal situation," the ministry stated.
Ireland, Belgium and Spain have already imposed their own trade restrictions
According to a 413-page report published in June by the legal NGO Global Echo, which takes legal action on behalf of Palestinians, the Netherlands alone accounts for a third of all recorded exports of agricultural products grown in illegal Israeli settlements, and nearly half of exports to the European Union. The Dutch government, for its part, has not released official figures.
Several EU countries spoke out earlier this month in favor of a ban on imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but have not yet reached an agreement. Ireland, Belgium and Spain have already imposed their own trade restrictions. Violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank has intensified sharply since the start of the war in Gaza, with human rights organizations and the UN reporting near-daily attacks by Israeli settlers.
