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Last update - 23:38 10/01/2009
Syria protests Israel's gift of Golan wine to UN staff
By Reuters
Tags: Syria, Israel News 

Syria has protested to UN leaders that Israel distributed wine from the contested Golan Heights as year-end holiday gifts to UN staff and asked that they be told not to accept it.

Israel's UN mission confirmed it had sent out the wine but said this was perfectly appropriate.

"The Golan Heights is an integral part of the state of Israel and the wine produced in that region is some of the best in the country. As such, we were pleased to share it with our colleagues," Israeli mission spokeswoman Mirit Cohen said on Friday.
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Israel captured the strategic territory from Syria in the 1967 Six Day War and annexed it in 1981 in a move rejected by the United Nations. The future of the heights is a key issue in any future Israeli-Syrian peace deal.

In letters to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and General Assembly President Miguel D'Escoto, Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari condemned the Israeli mission's "provocative and irresponsible behavior" in distributing wine from grapes harvested, and in bottles made, on the Golan.

"I would appreciate it if you would request all United Nations staff to refrain from accepting these Israeli gifts produced illegally in occupied Syrian territory," he said.

The letters, dated Dec. 31, were made public on Friday.

Ja'afari said the building of the winery where the bottles were produced violated Security Council resolutions calling on Israel to protect private and public land, property and water resources on occupied territory.

Ban's spokeswoman, Michele Montas, said she had no immediate comment on Ja'afari's letter.

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      1.   Maybe Syria should have thought 02:43  |  Alan Sip 10/01/09
      2.   Maybe if Syria had built wineyards 12:59  |  Ben 10/01/09
      3.   Syria too is an occupied territory 13:05  |  Tarek 10/01/09
      4.   What can be said other than.........L`Chaim 13:52  |  Joe Moer 10/01/09
      5.   How About All Those Factories In Arab Lands 19:17  |  Brad 10/01/09
      6.   A little cheese with your whine? 20:41  |  mea 10/01/09
      7.   wine 20:56  |  doron 10/01/09
      8.   HA HA HA HA!!! Petty 21:25  |  Lynn 10/01/09
      9.   I thought Muslims were not supposed to imbibe 04:36  |  Jasper 11/01/09
      10.   Syria correct: Israeli gift in bad taste, provocative 05:41  |  Ivar 11/01/09
      11.   Answer to # 1 20:22  |  Col [Res] Cohen 02/02/09
      12.   Col [Res] Cohen. irony?? 02:35  |  Jennifer 18/02/09
      13.   Send to Assad too 13:21  |  Enrico 18/02/09
      14.   To Brad from Canada 08:05  |  captain grumpy 29/10/09
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