The story begins with a report released by the daily Maariv regarding the sale of chametz alcoholic products in duty free shops in Ben-Gurion International Airport on Pesach. Upon hearing of the report, Deputy Prime Minister (Shas) sharply reprimanded Ovadia Ali, who is responsible for the duty free shops in the airport demanding an explanation for the sale of treif and chametz in the duty free shops in Terminal 3.
For regular travelers who are kashrus conscious this is not news, and sadly, this situation has been ongoing for many years. Many non-kosher certified liqueurs are sold in the duty free shops as well. There is also the issue of chametz that is not sold before yomtov, making headlines in the frum communities every year after yomtov.
Maariv however points out the situation is even worse, documenting that liqueurs, scotch, vodka and other drinks are offered free to those entering the shop on Pesach, enticing them with the chametz drinks. While to most it is obvious the alcohol is chametz, many travelers were alarmed to learn they drank chametz, naively assuming the duty free shops in Israel’s airport would never push chametz products during yomtov.
After the release of the report there was much turmoil in the airport, but when Yishai became involved, he demanded that Ali offer an immediate explanation and solution since James Richardson is prohibited from selling such items as per the company’s agreement with the Chief Rabbinate.
Airport officials add that the Airport Authority did not take any action to compel the stores to sell their chametz.
Jerusalem Kosher News has published articles in the past addressing problems of chametz that was not sold by El Al and the duty free shops and one of the American kashrus certifiers, the cRc (Chicago Rabbinical Council) has addressed this issue for a number of years seeking to educate travelers to the alarming fact that one may not buy duty free in most of the shops in Ben-Gurion International Airport.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
Well its encouraging to know that “the Airport Authority did not take any action to compel the stores to sell the chametz” and the stores were doing so voluntarily, perhaps to increase sales during a time period where its hard to find a good bottle of schnaps outside the airport.
#1, ha ha, very funny. The Airport Authority should be enforcing the law and preventing the open sale of chametz on their property. They should also be insisting that the merchants sell all their chametz to a goy before Pesach, so that it will not be forbidden after Pesach. Israel is supposed to be a Jewish country, not one where all religions are equal; and the overwhelming majority of Israelis do keep Pesach.
what about the fact the the Duty Free shops at Ben Gurion are open Shabbos and Yom Tov, is Chilul Shabbos a lessor aveira than Chometz in Pesach, and to those travelers who naively assumed that the Vodka sold at the Duty Free shops are Kosher for Pesach, how could one consume anything on Pesach without knowing 1000% that’s Kosher L’Pesach
#3, commerce on Shabbos is only an issur derabonon; chometz on Pesach is an issur de’oraisa. And most people who keep Pesach are not so careful to check every hechsher on everything; they assume if it’s being openly served in a Jewish store on Pesach, especially in Israel where selling chometz in public is illegal, then it’s probably OK.
Remember that it’s very common, especially among American Jews, to keep Pesach but not Shabbos or Kashrus. I know many Jews who on Pesach eat their ham or lobster with matzoh, or remove the bun from their treife hot dog! I once helped some Reform friends with their bedikas chometz, which included reading the label on a can of pork and beans to see whether it contained any of the chameishes minei dogon. I kid you not. It seems bizarre to us, but if you think about it, chometz is an issur koress, while dovor acher is only a lav. (Though it’s probably more to do with the fact that Pesach is only once a year.)
The issue runs deeper than that. How can you buy 100 percent Kosher whiskey etc after Pesach if a proper mechira was not done?
To #2:
When will Yishai and all these theocratic clowns learn to butt out of trying to save other peoples’ souls? The selling of chametz whiskies is sinful, but it is not a crime, because no one’s rights (to person, property, or liberty) are being violated. Don’t freethinkers and non-jews also have rights? I would argue that theocratic, hate-filled politicians like Yishai turn people off to yiddishkeit, in the same way that the centuries-old union of religion and government turned most Christian Europeans away from serious religion, because religion is invariably corrupted by the sordid business of poitics.
#6, No, freethinkers don’t have rights. The Torah says we are each responsible for making sure that all our fellow Jews keep the Torah. If we are able to achieve that by legislation then we are obligated to do so. And the three oaths have nothing to do with it; we have the same chiyuv to enforce Torah law in Eretz Yisroel as we do in Nehardea or wherever we have the power to do so.
Beside which, in Israel selling chometz in public during Pesach IS a crime, whether you think it ought to be one or not.