Netherlands to ban imports from Israel's Jewish settlements

THE HAGUE - The Dutch government has agreed to impose a ban on imports of goods produced in Jewish settlements in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten said on Friday.

• The ban is meant to prevent "any contribution through economic activities by the Netherlands to the unlawful occupation", Jetten said.

• The previous Dutch government last year said it was planning the ban, which is now expected to take effect in the second half of the year.

• The Netherlands is a leading global buyer of Israeli goods, but the government has never disclosed what volume of goods are currently imported from Jewish settlements.

• Most world powers deem Israel's settlements, on land it captured in a 1967 war, illegal. Numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions have called on Israel to halt all settlement activity.

• Israel disputes this, saying it has historical and biblical ties to the land.

-Reporting by Bart Meijer and Stephanie van den Berg; Editing Chiara Rodriquez/Reuters