Amsterdam (QNN)- The Netherlands has begun enforcing a nationwide ban on the import, purchase and sale of goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, with deliberate violations potentially carrying prison sentences of up to six years.
The measure took effect Tuesday and applies to businesses as well as individuals, including travelers bringing affected goods into the country in their personal luggage.
It also prohibits brokerage services connected to the products and attempts to circumvent the restrictions.
“If Customs finds goods that can be established as falling under this sanctions measure, we will seize them and draw up an official report,” a Customs spokesperson said.
The Dutch Public Prosecution Service said individuals and companies that intentionally violate the rules could face up to six years in prison as well as fines. Unintentional violations can carry a maximum sentence of one year.
The Dutch government describes the measure as covering goods originating wholly or partly in Israeli settlements in territories it considers occupied, including the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.
The Netherlands says the restrictions are intended to ensure that Dutch economic activity does not contribute to maintaining settlements it considers unlawful under international law.
The Dutch measure follows a landmark 2024 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice, the United Nations’ highest court, which found Israel’s continued presence in territories captured in 1967 unlawful and said countries must not provide aid or assistance that helps maintain that situation.
The ban covers more than imports. Since Sept. 22, Dutch businesses are prohibited from buying or selling affected goods, providing brokerage services that facilitate their trade or using alternative commercial arrangements to circumvent the restrictions.
Travelers are subject to the restrictions as well. Goods produced wholly or partly in affected settlements cannot be brought into the Netherlands even if they are souvenirs, gifts or intended for personal use. The rule applies even if the product was purchased before the ban took effect. Goods ordered online and shipped to the Netherlands are also covered.
Dutch authorities also direct businesses and travelers to an EU postcode list to help determine whether a product originated in a location covered by the restrictions.
The Dutch government first announced plans for the restrictions earlier this year and formally published the measure in July, setting Sept. 22 as its effective date.
The Netherlands is acting on its own because a Europe-wide ban has proven unworkable, blocked by insufficient support among EU member states even as the European Commission has repeatedly put options to them ranging from a licensing system to tariffs to a full ban.
In doing so, the Netherlands joins a small but growing group of European states that have imposed similar sanctions at the national level.
Belgium, Spain, and Ireland have already introduced comparable measures against settlement trade, and France has called for an end to EU imports of products from illegal settlements.
This month, British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said that the government considers Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories unlawful in its entirety, bringing Britain’s position in line with the 2024 advisory opinion by the ICJ.
The United Kingdom also announced a ban on the import of all goods produced by illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, in the country’s most significant policy since London’s historic recognition of Palestinian statehood last year.
In a speech to Parliament, he accused Israel of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” in Palestine and affirmed that it is official UK policy that the Israeli settlements rapidly expanding across the occupied West Bank are “unlawful”.
He said he did not believe “the British people want us supporting the occupation by accepting products from settlements in our shops”.
Miliband also announced tougher new restrictions on arms sales to Israel.
“I can also announce that we’re extending the existing global human rights regime such that it will enable swifter action to deter settlement expansion, including crucially seeking to prevent the development of E1,” Miliband added.
E1, a proposed settlement in the West Bank, would divide the Palestinian territory in two and put an end to hopes for a two-state solution, he said.
The UK’s trade ban on goods from illegal settlements comes amid an intensifying wave of Israeli settler pogroms on Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank and controversial settlement expansions that have prompted a UK-led debate on Europe-wide trade restrictions.
After Miliband’s speech, 12 countries shared a joint statement supporting the two-state solution and announcing their own intentions to impose restrictions on trade with illegal Israeli settlements.
France, the UK, Canada, Denmark, Spain, Finland, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Sweden called on the Israeli government to immediately halt the expansion of settlements.
