Iraqi dates were once considered the best in the world and constituted the country’s second largest export after oil. In the late 1970s, the Iraqi date industry listed over 30 million date palms in the country. By the end of the 2003 Iraq War, only 3 million remained.
To circumvent the 1990 U.N. embargo and reach a Western market, Iraqi manufacturers shipped date syrup to Syria to be packed in unmarked cans. The cans then went to Lebanon, where they received a label identifying them as “Product of Lebanon” and were exported worldwide as a veiled commodity. Today, post-sanctions, only one brand among dozens lists Iraq as its country of origin due to the exorbitant security-related charges levied by U.S. government agencies on imports indicating Iraqi origin.
Lamassu maquette
Lamassu unveiling
