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Last update - 00:00 06/10/2008
Lebanese union to sue Israel for 'claiming ownership' of falafel
By DPA
Tags: Lebanon, israel news, food 

A new war between Israel and Lebanon has erupted, but this time the war is not geopolitical, but rather an issue of cuisine-who has sovereignty over traditional Arab dishes and sandwiches.

The president of the Lebanese Industrialists Association Fadi Abboud, said he is preparing to file an international lawsuit against Israel for allegedly "taking the identity of some Lebanese foods" and thus violating a food copyright.

"In a way the Jewish state is trying to claim ownership of traditional Lebanese delicacies like falafel, tabouleh and hummus" Abboud said.
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According to Abboud, the Lebanese are losing "tens of millions of dollars annually" because Israel is selling and marketing traditional Lebanese dishes.

"The Israelis are marketing our main food dishes as if they were Israeli dishes," he charged.

"We are working on registering all the foods and ingredients which will be submitted to the Lebanese government so it can appeal to the international courts against Israel," Abboud said.

"The Israelis are marketing such Lebanese delicacies under the same names and ingredients around the world," he added. "This is harming and causing great losses to Lebanon."

Abboud said he prepared his memo on the subject, based on the case of the Greek "feta cheese precedent" that occurred six years ago.

At the time, Greece managed to prove in international institutions that it was the "originator" of feta cheese and won the case.

According to Abboud, while Lebanon never registered the names and ingredients of its own delicacies, "it can refer to the Greece precedent since these foods are historically known as traditional Lebanese foods.

"By doing so, we are preventing Israel from stealing our main food trademarks and selling them around the world," Abboud added
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  1.   Sue Islam for using biblical stories (and the Temple Mount) 20:47  |  Phil 06/10/08
  2.   Palestinians claim falafel too 20:53  |  azazel 06/10/08
  3.   very cool idea 21:34  |  Dr Noam 06/10/08
  4.   The Jews invented the Falafel 21:41  |  Avi 06/10/08
  5.   Copyright? 21:43  |  Brad 06/10/08
  6.   what is israeli food? 21:52  |  yezmar 06/10/08
  7.   Problem With His Claims 22:01  |  Eitan P. Sommer 06/10/08
  8.   Lebanese union should do like the French and adopt an `A.O.C`. 22:02  |  JustMe 06/10/08
  9.   ridiculous 01:05  |  observer 07/10/08
  10.   I feel awful about their falafel! 01:14  |  william 07/10/08
  11.   How about a cook-off? 01:19  |  Aphemia 07/10/08
  12.   Jews should sue for right to everything Islam stole 01:41  |  Jimmy 07/10/08
  13.   Third Lebanon War 01:49  |  antoine 07/10/08
  14.   I`m Sure Nasrallah Will Salivate At The Opportunity To Make This 01:53  |  Lavi 07/10/08
  15.   Let them all sue 01:57  |  Arie 07/10/08
  16.   Sue them on Theory of Relativity - to solve the nuke problem 02:15  |  Mike 07/10/08
  17.   #2 Azazel-Palestinians make the best Falafels 02:16  |  Steve 07/10/08
  18.   Patent chicken soup immediately 02:43  |  Believeitornot 07/10/08
  19.   Do the Lebanese make gefilte fish? 02:57  |  Murray of Montreal 07/10/08
  20.   Time for China to sue Italy over pasta! 03:02  |  Itzik 07/10/08
  21.   Hummus and Pita mentioned in the Torah! 03:10  |  HS 07/10/08
  22.   falafel 03:20  |  robert nebb 07/10/08
  23.   The first batch of Hummus! 03:31  |  Ben 07/10/08
  24.   Falafel is originally a Bedouin dish period! 03:37  |  Sheikh Massoud 07/10/08
  25.   Food 04:34  |  Sonia 07/10/08
  26.   Do you guys have any idea 04:44  |  Ofir 07/10/08
  27.   Lawyers Full Employment Act 05:18  |  Mike 07/10/08
  28.   Sonia 06:16  |  Connie 07/10/08
  29.   # 23 since the olive tree outdates the existence of 06:29  |  Kris Lazar 07/10/08
  30.   # 26 would you please be so kind as to name a few? 06:34  |  Kris Lazar 07/10/08
  31.   connie 06:48  |  Kevin 07/10/08
  32.   They definitelyhave a copyright on ball-bearing Katyushas 06:51  |  Dan 07/10/08
  33.   They should patent their monopoly on stupidity 06:53  |  Dan 07/10/08
  34.   the prooffff 06:54  |  kEVIN MoOre 07/10/08
  35.   Our falafel has more parsely and therfore unique 06:54  |  Dan 07/10/08
  36.   What about chicken soup? Jewish to the soul 06:55  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 07/10/08
  37.   #30 mayas invented the zero 07:22  |  x 07/10/08
  38.   Food Fight 07:56  |  Brendan 07/10/08
  39.   Margie #36 07:59  |  Esther 07/10/08
  40.   Criminal culinary preferences... 08:03  |  Esther 07/10/08
  41.   #William. There is only one Felafel - Lebanese! 08:05  |  Maureen Ann 07/10/08
  42.   Lebanon and the falafel ball 08:29  |  Connie 07/10/08
  43.   Falafel is Egyptian too. Stupidity 08:33  |  Semsem 07/10/08
  44.   Well another good reason for continuing jihad 08:53  |  Daniela 07/10/08
  45.   #4 The jews invented falafel 09:47  |  Daz 07/10/08
  46.   Rockets 09:50  |  Joe 07/10/08
  47.   Lebanese union to sue Israel for `claiming ownership` of falafel 09:51  |  Nathan Szajnberg 07/10/08
  48.   marco polo.... 09:54  |  giggggggi 07/10/08
  49.   How abt a cook-ing competetion? 09:57  |  Sarah M. 07/10/08
  50.   Its Mediteranean! 10:00  |  Zev Davis 07/10/08
  51.   #6 10:09  |  ed 07/10/08
  52.   A NATION OF THIEVES 10:13  |  indrajaya 07/10/08
  53.   Daylight robbery 10:18  |  Abu Firas Al Qudsi 07/10/08
  54.   Yezmar, I pit my grandmother`s gefilte fish . . . 10:19  |  Zev Davis 07/10/08
  55.   Is this a joke ? 10:24  |  Serge 07/10/08
  56.   Aussie Meat Pies 10:26  |  Tania 07/10/08
  57.   Arie (#15) Who made the first French Fry well Belgium 10:40  |  Gil 07/10/08
  58.   Lebanon didn`t exist 100 years ago 10:43  |  Ilan 07/10/08
  59.   #53 THANK U 10:43  |  hariri lebanon 07/10/08
  60.   food fight 10:47  |  soggy liberal 07/10/08
  61.   Total silliness. Here`s how food "ownership" is protected... 10:47  |  Dr. L. Brnd 07/10/08
  62.   sushi and Shabbat 10:52  |  soggy liberal 07/10/08
  63.   Kevin 31 11:19  |  ChanahS 07/10/08
  64.   Falafel 11:22  |  Al Misri 07/10/08
  65.   Esther 11:24  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 07/10/08
  66.   INDRAJAYA"A nation of thieves" Ask Timorese&Papuans who that is 11:31  |  PETER SM 07/10/08
  67.   FIRAS are Arabs going to stop making ice cream? 11:38  |  PETER SM 07/10/08
  68.   Ha`Aretz Talkbackers to sue Clickfool, indrajaya & others 11:40  |  Ari ben Yisrael 07/10/08
  69.   more stupidity by the lebanese !! 11:43  |  victor hardman 07/10/08
  70.   HARIRI So why are you writing here instead of honest Arab media 11:54  |  PETER SM 07/10/08
  71.   Lebanese food. 12:12  |  David Nigel Braham 07/10/08
  72.   Will the Lebanese patent the matzot also? 12:22  |  Hastaroth 07/10/08
  73.   Coming next at a court near you 12:34  |  Mark Lincoln 07/10/08
  74.   It is a European case 12:39  |  Jean-Paul DOGUET 07/10/08
  75.   Falafel 12:45  |  ANDY 07/10/08
  76.   kris lazar 30 12:53  |  potobac 07/10/08
  77.   New classification: Stupid, more stupid, and Lebanese 12:54  |  x-ray 07/10/08
  78.   This Is Worse Than The Sudeten Crisis 12:54  |  dyinglikeflies 07/10/08
  79.   The falafel war 12:56  |  ScotGuy 07/10/08
  80.   Burgers 13:02  |  Dany 07/10/08
  81.   all these foods... 13:20  |  Rob of melbourne 07/10/08
  82.   Utter rubbish ! 13:48  |  Benjamina 07/10/08
  83.   Falafel restaurants in Europe have Israeli names, run by Turks 13:55  |  Benjamina 07/10/08
  84.   Lebanese union to sue Israel for falafel 14:06  |  Ralph 07/10/08
  85.   Humus and falafel.... 14:06  |  Che 07/10/08
  86.   Falafel and hummus as pioneers of a just political solution 14:07  |  Ben Alofs 07/10/08
  87.   Arab Preoccupation 14:09  |  Daniel King 07/10/08
  88.   @Kris Lazar 14:11  |  Ralph 07/10/08
  89.   Falafel and hummus are addicting and make people violent! it .... 14:16  |  Idiot 07/10/08
  90.   No CASE! 14:19  |  Hava 07/10/08
  91.   Sue Islam for using biblical stories (and the Temple Mount) 14:21  |  Fábio César 07/10/08
  92.   FALAFEL what next!!!!! 14:24  |  moe ham 07/10/08
  93.   You say faLAfel, I say falaFEL 14:29  |  Jack 07/10/08
  94.   wrong Semsem 14:37  |  Goldenberg 07/10/08
  95.   A Dish Named Sue 14:38  |  utagawa 07/10/08
  96.   We should sue Lebanon for terror 15:04  |  Harvey 07/10/08
  97.   *95 Goldenberg knows nothing about falafel 15:12  |  Abu Firas Al Qudsi 07/10/08
  98.   google say that falafel originated in india 15:53  |  victor hardman 07/10/08
  99.   Wait minute not so fast fools! 16:07  |  Stupidity allergic 07/10/08
  100.   Hamas plus Idf becomes Humous a new israeli dish with same name 16:10  |  Big Sur 07/10/08
  101.   Crazy Food Fight 16:32  |  Jeff Northridge 07/10/08
  102.   Like Champagne in France 16:37  |  ARTH 07/10/08
  103.   Let`s compromise! 16:52  |  Alicia 07/10/08
  104.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1KHVKFAmew 17:15  |  Gil 07/10/08
  105.   # 29 Arabic numbers 17:19  |  Rav 07/10/08
  106.   Connie #28, Israeli salad and hummus 17:33  |  John 07/10/08
  107.   This just might be the most ridiculous argument we`ve ever had 18:15  |  Nechama 07/10/08
  108.   Since when has Israel claimed ownership? 18:23  |  Gee 07/10/08
  109.   # 103 Rav -correction 18:38  |  David 07/10/08
  110.   No Kris Lazer, thats not correct 18:55  |  Not a Dhimmi no more 07/10/08
  111.   Thick sweet coffee..... 19:03  |  Palestinian Brit 07/10/08
  112.   Copyright the most important 19:06  |  Dr D 07/10/08
  113.   Borshch, latke, blintzes, herrings, gefilte fish, etc. 19:16  |  hala 07/10/08
  114.   Origins-Reality Check-NOW SHUT UP AND EAT 19:27  |  Arie 07/10/08
  115.   Avi from Denver 4 19:35  |  Anthony 07/10/08
  116.   HS 21 19:41  |  Anthony 07/10/08
  117.   #30, Here is a very small part of the List of Great Jews 19:42  |  Zombie Woof 07/10/08
  118.   Dan 35 19:43  |  Anthony 07/10/08
  119.   Now That`s a spicey Meatball! 19:48  |  FOX 07/10/08
  120.   Observer 19:51  |  n°1 Admits Error 07/10/08
  121.   LEBA-NON! 19:53  |  FOX 07/10/08
  122.   hala 20:03  |  Danite 07/10/08
  123.   Falafel and Hummus are Egyptian 20:53  |  Josef 07/10/08
  124.   if lebanese were to stick to the production of 20:54  |  judah 07/10/08
  125.   seems like Lebanon 21:30  |  alan 07/10/08
  126.   #116 here is a very small part of the list of Jewish war crimina 21:45  |  Labhras 07/10/08
  127.   ireland is a nation of terrorists 22:03  |  papalbull 07/10/08
  128.   LEBANESE NOW SUING MCDONALDS 22:14  |  RONALD 07/10/08
  129.   when will Nat. Americans rise up & claim they own the the potato? 22:22  |  ivo 07/10/08
  130.   #123, it comes as a consequence of getting overly boozed up 22:49  |  Alex 07/10/08
  131.   The falafel with `love` 23:28  |  TonyL 07/10/08
  132.   #110 hey you forget the turks.turn your brain around PB 23:32  |  israeli 07/10/08
  133.   #110 hey you forget the turks.turn your brain around PB 23:32  |  israeli 07/10/08
  134.   to indraya: and muslins are a bunch of liers and hatred 23:48  |  JP 07/10/08
  135.   Palestinian Brit #110: you may be right about the coffee - 23:54  |  ivo 07/10/08
  136.   # hey everyone anthony has khazaria stuck in his humus brain 00:10  |  israeli 08/10/08
  137.   Correction, my post #129 was directed at #126 00:18  |  Alex 08/10/08
  138.   It is neither Lebanese NOR Israeli 00:59  |  Sharif Hafez 08/10/08
  139.   137 01:03  |  Anthony 08/10/08
  140.   Let`s humor them 03:32  |  utagawa 08/10/08
  141.   the lebanese are desperate for money since hizbullah took them 05:14  |  glenna 08/10/08
  142.   #127 Labrasserie this forum talks about Falafel 05:25  |  Bg Sur 08/10/08
  143.   Lebanese ownership? 05:27  |  geoff 08/10/08
  144.   Lebanese ownership 05:30  |  geoff 08/10/08
  145.   what`s in a NAME 06:19  |  BamBoo 08/10/08
  146.   THE Lebanese union will present their global patents for falafel? 06:31  |  PETER SM 08/10/08
  147.   God 07:55  |  GOD 08/10/08
  148.   would that the only war is between falafel and schnitzel 08:04  |  S 08/10/08
  149.   #2 azazel (of Asimov) 08:11  |  S 08/10/08
  150.   #39 Esther 08:14  |  S 08/10/08
  151.   LOL `intellectual property` of felafel 08:26  |  Ilan 08/10/08
  152.   Geoff from sydney 08:33  |  shvini 08/10/08
  153.   A thief is a thief is a thief 08:49  |  Steve the Pals. 08/10/08
  154.   The Lebanese Have Nothing More Important To Do? 09:20  |  Baruch Gold 08/10/08
  155.   Lebanon Pre-PLO Invasion Was Advanced Nation 09:27  |  Baruch Gold 08/10/08
  156.   The miserable Palestinians 12:21  |  x-ray 08/10/08
  157.   Bolivia and Peru should sue the world for potatoes 14:00  |  Realist 08/10/08
  158.   baruch 147 14:23  |  Anthony 08/10/08
  159.   Reply to Arth 10:07  |  Jean-Paul DOGUET 09/10/08
  160.   red leb 10:55  |  wounded 09/10/08
  161.   Nasi goreng is not Nazi Georing & Falafel is not solely Lebanese 12:48  |  Michael J 09/10/08
  162.   It`s obvious.. 17:25  |  American 09/10/08
  163.   Ehum 19:28  |  Chicklet 09/10/08
  164.   re: Connie (Lebanon and the falafel ball) 19:30  |  Chicklet 09/10/08
  165.   International Food Court 20:36  |  Josh 09/10/08
  166.   To Elan # 59 Lebanon Existed Before B4 Israel 22:40  |  Monitor 09/10/08
  167.   The big question should? 23:50  |  Samer 09/10/08
  168.   #4 Avi sitting on Occupied Land 00:32  |  Jonathan 10/10/08
  169.   Felafels 02:06  |  Michael Jeffers 10/10/08
  170.   an obstacle to european union membership 03:23  |  yonah 10/10/08
  171.   `Lebanese Industrialists Association` I can`t stop laughing 05:22  |  Dan 10/10/08
  172.   to #6 06:26  |  Jacob 10/10/08
  173.   Four FACTS that we will use to defend our claim. 06:26  |  Maronite 10/10/08
  174.   is there anything we haven`t stolen 08:30  |  steinburg 10/10/08
  175.   Arabs didn`t contribute the numerals 08:46  |  Nathan 10/10/08
  176.   So will Arabs stop using Western Gyro machines 08:54  |  Nathan 10/10/08
  177.   To Kris Lazar, re. numerals 09:46  |  Nathan 10/10/08
  178.   Falafel 12:47  |  Abu Falafel 10/10/08
  179.   Falafel Balls 14:52  |  Cy 10/10/08
  180.   Please root up all cedar trees that are not in Lebanon 15:08  |  x-ray 10/10/08
  181.   PalBrit talks about Israel having `no cultural history` 15:14  |  x-ray 10/10/08
  182.   Maronite: "Israel didn`t exist" 17:22  |  SDHD 10/10/08
  183.   Who cares? 17:34  |  Shai 10/10/08
  184.   Maronite #172 using your facts 18:14  |  Gee 10/10/08
  185.   This is an argument of fools 19:38  |  Richard S 10/10/08
  186.   Lebanese Food 00:05  |  Johnny_Ceader 11/10/08
  187.   Lebanon existed for the last 6,000 years 12:00  |  Michael 11/10/08
  188.   Lebanese humus firm in New England 21:59  |  Vijay 11/10/08
  189.   falafel 21:47  |  dan 12/10/08
  190.   FALAFEL 22:57  |  Nechama 12/10/08
  191.   Assyrians and Egyptians are the origin 05:50  |  Motomania 13/10/08
  192.   who cares 09:35  |  Rab Burns 13/10/08
  193.   #54 Abu Firas Al Qudsi 13:52  |  Marcin 13/10/08
  194.   Yes, please do! 00:04  |  Dena Silver 14/10/08
  195.   polish ham 03:30  |  wh 14/10/08
  196.   polish ham 03:32  |  wh 14/10/08
  197.   A private trial is possible in Luxemburg 12:14  |  Jean-Paul DOGUET 14/10/08
  198.   Felafel 15:44  |  Albert 14/10/08
  199.   Israel has stolen land, why not food? 21:58  |  Tanya Kordahi 14/10/08
  200.   #30 Kris - "Arabic Numerals" 20:08  |  Dani Renan 20/10/08
  201.   #31 Kevin - Language 20:09  |  Dani Renan 20/10/08
  202.   #31 Kevin - Language 20:21  |  Dani Renan 20/10/08
  203.   Agree fully with the Lebanese 07:29  |  A Proud Lebanese 21/10/08
  204.   is it really about Falafel ? 13:32  |  Base 22/10/08
  205.   #158 Peru did try to sue Chile 11:48  |  MrNice 28/10/08
  206.   Israel`s Falafel Paraphernalia! 08:35  |  Mike 30/10/08
  207.   RE: Lebanese union to sue Israel for `claiming ownership` of fala 02:30  |  Welaa Elrafie 04/06/09
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