Iranian fruit exporters have the option to sue Emirati officials over recent rejection of their watermelon shipments amid false contamination claims, head of Iran’s Plant Protection Organization, Mohammad Ali Baghestani, was quoted by Eghtesad-News as saying. Referring to the Emirati move as “baseless and illegal”, the official said Iranian exporters could have legally refused to accept the rejected shipments at the time to avoid damages. Earlier, the UAE’s Albayan newspaper had reported that shipments of Iranian watermelons were stopped by inspectors for suspicious pores and blotches in the rinds. It was alleged that the melons had been injected with poison. The United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Environment and Water later put an end to the rumors, announcing that radon tests on the fruit imported from Iran revealed that it does not contain any chemical substances, insecticides, or other contaminants.
