Israel Matzav

Oh my....

This is not a parody. You just knew this had to happen. The British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has decided that the Kotel (Western Wall) and the Temple Mount are not in Israel. Therefore, the ASA has stated that the Israeli Tourist Office cannot use ads in the UK which imply that the Kotel and the Temple Mount are in Israel.

The British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) criticized Israel for including pictures of the Western Wall in a tourism advertisement, claiming that the holy site is technically not located within the country's borders, the Independent reported Wednesday.

"We told the Israeli Tourist Office not to imply that places in the Occupied Territories were part of the state of Israel," ASA, which is a public organization but not government-funded, said in a statement.

...

The current case was also brought to ASA's attention by a "concerned citizen" who said the ad was misleading as it implies that east Jerusalem, under Israeli law since 1967, was a part of the state.

The poster, which is comprised mostly of a photo displaying a Tel Aviv beach, included a tiny picture of Temple Mount at the bottom.

"The ASA noted the itinerary image of Jerusalem used in the ad featured the Western Wall of the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock, which were both in East Jerusalem, a part of the Occupied Territories of the West Bank," ASA stated.

"We noted the ad stated 'You can travel the entire length of Israel in six hours – imagine what you can experience in four days', and 'Visit now for more itineraries in Israel', and considered that readers were likely to understand that the places featured in the itinerary were all within the state of Israel.

"We understood, however, that the status of the occupied territory of the West Bank was the subject of much international dispute, and, because we considered that the ad implied that the part of East Jerusalem featured in the image was part of the state of Israel, we concluded that the ad was likely to mislead."

But the Israeli Ministry of Tourism is fighting the edict.

Israel's Ministry of Tourism stated that the advert provided "basic, accurate information to a prospective UK traveller who wanted to know what to expect in Israel".

It said that it was "entirely accurate to assert that a visitor to Israel could visit Jerusalem as part of a short visit", adding: "Had the ad omitted a reference to a visit to the city of Jerusalem, it would have been incorrect and potentially misleading."

In response to the complaint, the ministry said that Israel "took responsibility to support the religious sites of all denominations, a commitment which also formed part of the obligations of an agreement with the Palestinian Authority signed in 1995". The ministry added that "the agreement placed the upkeep of holy sites and the determination of tourist visiting hours under Israeli jurisdiction".

The ministry also maintained that the present legal status of Jerusalem had nothing to do with the point at issue.

It said this was "only of relevance if there was an attempt to interpret the straightforward message of the ad in a manner that went beyond what consumers were likely to understand from the ad."

Aren't you British taxpayers glad that your money is being put to such good use?

Here's the poster in question:

Next thing you know they'll try to charge the Minister of Tourism with a 'war crime' for having the posters put up. Good grief!

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:23 AM