|
World Jewish News
Israel exporting Golan apples to Syria
17.02.2009
Apples grown by Israeli farmers in the Golan Heights will be exported to Syria, the IDF announced in a statement Tuesday. The move followed a request from the Red Cross, and was approved by relevant government departments in Jerusalem and Damascus.
The transfers, beginning Tuesday, will be facilitated via the Kuneitra crossing, and supervised by Red Cross and United Nations officials on both the Israeli and the Syrian sides, the IDF said.
The statement added that approximately 8,000 tons of fruit would be transferred in the coming weeks, with some 20 truckloads crossing into Syria daily. The transfer has been carried out yearly for the past four years.
The first such delivery took place in 2005, marking the first time Syria had traded with territory Israel captured in 1967. At that time, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said that the deal was agreed upon "due to the harsh economic conditions that our brothers in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights are suffering from."
The apples, the ministry had said were "Syrian, grown on Syrian land and owned by Syrians." It added that the reason behind the deal was to "meet the pressing demands of Syrian citizens languishing under occupation and to help alleviate their suffering."
In response to the statements, then-Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev had said, "It is our hope that trade across the frontier between Israel and her Arab neighbors in the not-too-distant future will be a common event as we move forward to enhanced peace and cooperation in the region."
The army said Tuesday that preparations had been made to ensure a fast, efficient transfer.
Источник: JPost.com
|
|
