Foreign countries are increasingly demanding that products made in the settlements be labeled accordingly

JERUSALEM (AP) — For decades, Israel has marketed an array of cosmetics and food products manufactured in the occupied West Bank as “Made in Israel,” blurring their true origins in Jewish settlements opposed by virtually the entire international community.

Now that practice is being challenged with demands that products made in the settlements be labeled accordingly.

Swiss food giant Migros differentiates between products made in Israel and in occupied Palestine.

Recent criticism, coming most prominently from South Africa, is putting Israel in a bind over the muddle it has created in the West Bank: Despite 45 years of control and a massive and costly effort to settle it with Jews, Israel has never annexed the territory — and the Palestinians claim it for a future state.

The limbo yields some bewildering results, such as Jewish settlers casting ballots in home communities not in Israel proper despite there being no provision for absentee voting.

Asked to explain the “Made in Israel” label for products made outside Israeli territory, Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor reached for an unorthodox defense, arguing that it is not intended as a geographical indication.