PA reduces price of shisha tobacco

The Palestinian Authority ministry of finance said Tuesday that import duties on tobacco used for shisha water pipes have been reduced two months after they skyrocketed. Director of the ministry’s custom and tobacco department Bandi Dahdah told Ma’an that import tariffs for a kilogram of shisha tobacco was reduced from 286 NIS to 115. Thus, he added, the consumer price will become 180-200 NIS after it reached 380 in the last two months. Dahdah highlighted that the main supply of shisha tobacco in Palestine comes from Egypt, then Jordan. However, prices skyrocketed only in the West Bank, while in the neighboring countries they haven’t changed. Economic agreements signed by both Israel and the Palestinian Authority bind the PA to stick to Israel’s import duties. Over the past two years Israel increased tobacco prices and the minimum price of a pack of cigarettes became 14 NIS. \'Red Gold\' The sudden rise in the prices of tobacco in the West Bank allured smugglers and forgers to smuggle large quantities of what neighboring countries call “Red Gold”. Meanwhile, black market distributors started to produce counterfeit shisha tobacco regardless of safety regulations. The main source for tobacco plants for that came from Jenin area. Dahdah warned Palestinian smokers of the dangers of the counterfeit mixtures and highlighted that the materials used in it should have expiration dates. Local tobacco companies, added Dahdah, have produced two new brands of cigarettes depending on tobacco cultivated in Jenin area. Victory and Landou are available in Palestinian markets for 10 NIS per pack.