Bangladesh–Israel relations

Bangladesh–Israel relations

Bangladesh
Israel

Bangladesh and Israel do not maintain any diplomatic or trade link.

Diplomacy

The Bangladeshi passport is valid for all countries except Israel

Bangladesh is one of 29 UN member states which does not recognize the state of Israel. It is one of several countries which officially bans its citizens from traveling to Israel and does not accept Israeli passports.[1][2][3]

In November 2003, the pro-Zionist Bangladeshi journalist Salah Choudhury was arrested for attempting to fly to Tel Aviv, arraigned for "sedition, treason, and blasphemy", and sentenced to a seven-year prison term.[4][5][6]

Bangladesh supports a sovereign Palestinian state and an end to Israel's "illegal occupation of Palestine".[2]

In a statement published on Jerusalem Post, an Israeli government spokesperson said, "We have no conflict with Bangladesh. We want dialogue. We want people-to-people relations. We welcome the religious-minded people of Bangladesh to visit the holy land of Jerusalem".[7]

Trade

Bangladesh maintains a complete economic boycott of the State of Israel, even though both countries are members of the WTO.[8][9] In 2014, it was found from the official statistics of the Export Promotion Bureau that Bangladesh had exported a small amount of merchandise goods worth about $2,577 to Israel in 2013–14 fiscal year.[10][11]

Bangladesh liberation war

Israel was one of the first nations to recognize Bangladesh.[12] Both the Israeli government and general public supported the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. After the independence of Bangladesh, the newly minted country was recognized by Israel on 4 February 1972; however, the Bangladesh Government officially rejected the recognition.[7][13][14] On behalf of the Bangladeshi government, the then foreign minister of Bangladesh Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad sent a letter to the Israeli Government saying that they could not accept the Israeli recognition.[7]

2006 Lebanon War

In the immediate aftermath of the 2006 Lebanon War, Bangladesh offered to send battalions of its infantrymen to help with the UN peacekeeping force, but Israel rejected it, stating Bangladesh does not recognise Israel.[15] Although Israel rejected the country's participation, Bangladesh and Nepal were the first countries whose troops reached the shores of South Lebanon, whereas Western nations, such as the original leader and top contributor, France, delayed their deployment. Immediately after other UN peacekeepers arrived, Bangladeshi forces had to leave immediately, as they were considered not neutral in the conflict, based on Bangladesh's refusal to recognise Israel and a comment made by Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Morshed Khan, who described Israeli attacks on Lebanon as "state terrorism".[16]

References

  1. ↑ "Moving Israel from Europe to Asia". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Statement by Her Excellency Ms. Dipu Moni, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh". Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dhaka.
  3. ↑ "Grant: I'll have no issue with my Israeli passport". ghanaweb.com. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  4. ↑ http://www.timesofisrael.com/the-unfathomable-life-of-salah-uddin-shoaib-choudhury/
  5. ↑ "The unfathomable life of Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury". Times of Israel. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  6. ↑ Winer, Stuart (9 January 2014). "Bangladesh editor gets 7 years for attempted Israel trip". Times of Israel. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Nasir, Khaled (2 September 2011). "Time for a quiet revolution in Bangladesh-Israeli relations". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
  8. ↑ Ohad Shpak. "Elections in Bangladesh – Why do we care?". Times of Israel. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  9. ↑ "Bangladesh Trade Boycott On Israel Impacts U.S. Firm And Garment Sector". Wikileaks. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  10. ↑ "Bangladesh exports unknown goods to Israel". Prothom Alo. 11 August 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  11. ↑ "No diplomatic ties but B’desh earns from export in Israel". The New Age. 20 May 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  12. ↑ "Israel Recognizes Bangladesh". The Jerusalem Post. 7 February 1972. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  13. ↑ Verinder Grover (1 January 2000). Bangladesh: Government and Politics. Deep & Deep Publications. p. 674. ISBN 978-81-7100-928-2.
  14. ↑ Habib, Mohshin (5 December 2011). "A Story of Israel Hatred". Gatestone Institute. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  15. ↑ "Israeli troops shoot Hezbollah militants". CNN. Retrieved 2 April 2010.
  16. ↑ "Dhaka terms Israeli attack on Lebanon as state and religious terrorism". bdnews24.com. 19 July 2006. Retrieved 1 January 2015.