Ireland unveils draft import ban on Judea and Samaria goods
(JNS) — The Irish government on Wednesday reiterated its intention to boycott Israeli goods from Judea and Samaria, publishing a draft bill it said would be voted on in parliament.
The draft states: “The importation of goods originating in an Israeli settlement is prohibited,” clarifying that “Israeli settlement” means “a city, village or industrial zone located in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.”
Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement on Wednesday that, “The prohibition created by the bill will also then engage the customs powers under that act, including those relating to search, seizure and forfeiture.”
The draft bill will now be referred to the Irish parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade “for pre-legislative scrutiny,” the statement said.
According to Simon Harris, the Irish deputy prime minister, minister for foreign affairs and trade and minister for defense, “Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are illegal and threaten the viability of the two-state solution. This is the longstanding position of the European Union and our international partners. Furthermore, this is the clear position under international law.”
If passed, Ireland would become the first E.U. member state with a ban on Israeli goods.
German court overturns ban on far-right antisemitic magazine, citing freedom of expression
(JTA) — A German court overturned a ban Tuesday on a far-right German magazine that frequently espouses antisemitic and anti-immigrant rhetoric.
In Tuesday’s decision, the German Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig ruled that while the magazine, Compact, frequently presents unconstitutional viewpoints, it does “not yet” present a threat to Germany.
The initial ban on the incendiary magazine had been put in place last June after the court found Compact had “rejected the constitutional order and exhibited a fundamentally anti-constitutional stance” in its publications.
Nancy Faeser, the interior minister at the time of the initial ban last year, called the magazine “the main mouthpiece for the rightwing extremist scene” and said that it “agitates in an unspeakable way against Jews, against people with a history of migration and against our parliamentary democracy.”
But in the recent ruling, the judge found that while Compact had promoted anti-constitutional ideas, that did not justify the ban.
London restaurant becomes celebration venue for Iranian strikes on Israel
(JNS) — Sounds of jubilant cheering and pro-Palestinian anthems filled a London restaurant as patrons celebrated live coverage of Iranian missile strikes on Israel, according to disturbing video footage that has emerged.
In one video, a woman enthusiastically shouts “Israel’s on fire” while pointing to Arabic news broadcasts allegedly showing missile impacts across Israeli cities. The restaurant’s sound system immediately begins playing Palestinian nationalist songs, including an anthem containing the phrase “my blood is Palestinian,” as celebrants dance amid images of destruction in Israel. Anti-Israel activist Anika Zahir filmed the scenes.
The establishment, called “Shakshuka,” operates in central London under Palestinian owner Haleem Kheralla. Palestinian flags and anti-Israel imagery decorate the interior, including maps that omit Israel entirely.
