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New Iraq going 'soft on Israel'
The ten-day Baghdad International Fair opened its doors for the 36th time on November 1.
Featuring exhibits from major international companies, the trade fair was held annually from 1964 until the 2003 US-led invasion. It resumed in 2007. However, a change to the fair's charter this year has angered many Iraqis. The Iraqi government has dropped an article from the charter which obliges participating companies to prove they do not have trade links with Israel.
Featuring exhibits from major international companies, the trade fair was held annually from 1964 until the 2003 US-led invasion. It resumed in 2007. However, a change to the fair's charter this year has angered many Iraqis. The Iraqi government has dropped an article from the charter which obliges participating companies to prove they do not have trade links with Israel.
ry of foreign affairs on October 7, alerted foreign embassies to the decision to drop article 45.
Sources within the Iraqi ministry of foreign affairs who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Al Jazeera that the EU had warned Iraqi officials that if article 45 was not removed, European companies would not participate in this year's event.
An EU source, who cannot be named because she is not authorised to speak to the media, said the first invitations to the fair, which were received by the embassies of EU countries in April, included the clause. However, EU missions in Baghdad later received an amendment suggesting that participating companies would not be required to boycott Israel.
Officials from the Iraqi ministry of foreign affairs were unavailable for comment.
'Destroying national spirit'
Members of the Iraqi parliament told Al Jazeera that they were unaware of the decision to remove the clause.
Nasar al-Rubei, a spokesperson for the al-Sadr parliamentary bloc, vowed to launch a campaign to restore article 45.
"It is not up to the government to take any action when it comes to Israel," he said.
"We live in a society that looks at Israel as an entity built on stolen land. We know that Iraq's foreign policy has not been defined yet, we know Iraq's foreign policy is the government's responsibility, but the relation with Israel is a special case. They must not touch it without people's approval.
"From our side, we will fight to restore article 45, we will launch a campaign to collect signatures for a petition asking the government to review its decision and to promise not to change anything related to Israel without the parliament's approval."
Laila al-Khafaji, a member of parliament from the Unified Iraqi Coalition, said: "We were completely unaware of that issue. I hold the ministry of foreign affairs and [the] foreign relations committee in the parliament [responsible] for making the parliament the last to know."
More
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/10/2009102712157981279.html
Sources within the Iraqi ministry of foreign affairs who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Al Jazeera that the EU had warned Iraqi officials that if article 45 was not removed, European companies would not participate in this year's event.
An EU source, who cannot be named because she is not authorised to speak to the media, said the first invitations to the fair, which were received by the embassies of EU countries in April, included the clause. However, EU missions in Baghdad later received an amendment suggesting that participating companies would not be required to boycott Israel.
Officials from the Iraqi ministry of foreign affairs were unavailable for comment.
'Destroying national spirit'
Members of the Iraqi parliament told Al Jazeera that they were unaware of the decision to remove the clause.
Nasar al-Rubei, a spokesperson for the al-Sadr parliamentary bloc, vowed to launch a campaign to restore article 45.
"It is not up to the government to take any action when it comes to Israel," he said.
"We live in a society that looks at Israel as an entity built on stolen land. We know that Iraq's foreign policy has not been defined yet, we know Iraq's foreign policy is the government's responsibility, but the relation with Israel is a special case. They must not touch it without people's approval.
"From our side, we will fight to restore article 45, we will launch a campaign to collect signatures for a petition asking the government to review its decision and to promise not to change anything related to Israel without the parliament's approval."
Laila al-Khafaji, a member of parliament from the Unified Iraqi Coalition, said: "We were completely unaware of that issue. I hold the ministry of foreign affairs and [the] foreign relations committee in the parliament [responsible] for making the parliament the last to know."
More
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/10/2009102712157981279.html
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