Israel To Allow Medical Marijuana Exports

Israel's Parliament has approved exports of medical marijuana, expanding the country's role in the cannabis industry.

What Happened

The Israeli Parliament, also called the Knesset, unanimously voted Tuesday for the law to allow marijuana exports. The vote comes years after the law was first proposed, but never voted on due to concerns from security officials that marijuana would also end up on the black market.

To alleviate the concerns, the law allows the police to supervise the licensing of exporting companies.

Why It's Important

Exports make Israel the third country in the world to take an international approach to cannabis. The other two are Canada and the Netherlands.

The latest news from Israel coincides with the legalization of medical marijuana in Thailand. In this way, Israel and Thailand are the only countries in the broader European and Middle Eastern region that legalized medical marijuana.

Both developments represent a nice wrap-up for 2018, a year that included many victories for the industry and is likely to be known as the year of cannabis.

What's Next 

The Israeli cabinet and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also must approve the law, but at this point it's seen as a formality. Exports are expected to begin in mid-2019.

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