Did Israeli businessman and industrialist Amir Gross Kabiri declare the territory of Aluminij d.d. Mostar company, in Bosnia and Herzegovina part of the "State of Israel"? No, that's not true: Kabiri, CEO of Aluminij Industries, only posted on Instagram a picture of the Israeli flag on the premises of the Aluminij company in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a sign of support for Israel in the ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict.
The claim appeared in a video on TikTok on November 5, 2023, that is no longer available but archived here with the title (translated from Croatian to English by Lead Stories staff): "THE STATE SHOULD IMMEDIATELY DO SOMETHING SO THAT WE DON'T BECOME A SECOND PALESTINE."
It opened:
Israeli territory declared in BiH (Bosnia and Herzegovina). Amir Gross Kabiri declared the area around Aluminija dd Mostar, majority-owned by the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as the 'STATE OF ISRAEL.' Now it has become clear what the barricades that were set up the other day on the public area/road and that guard's black house were for. Do we now need a passport or a visa to pass a public road or entrance or to go to work, since we have the STATE OF ISRAEL in the heart of Herzegovina?!
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Wed Nov 8 15:07:38 2023 UTC)
The TikTok video shows a screenshot of an article published on November 4, 2023, by the news outlet Otpor Media (Resistance Media, in English). The article begins (translated from Croatian to English by Lead Stories staff): "MAN OUT OF CONTROL!!!! Kabiri declares the Aluminij area as 'STATE OF ISRAEL' territory."
The article includes a screenshot of Kabiri's post on Instagram on October 16, 2023, (archived here) showing the Israeli flag hanging at the entrance of the Aluminij company. It also includes an alleged Instagram story by Kabiri, which shows a video of the company's premises with six Israeli flags, with a tag to the Instagram account @stateofisrael.
(Source: Otpor Media screenshot taken on Thu, Nov 9 11:08:33 2023 UTC)
Lead Stories searched Kabiri's official Instagram account on November 9, 2023, and found the same video recording saved in "Highlights," but without the @stateofisrael tag in it.
Aluminij d.d. Mostar (d.d. translates to English as a joint-stock company) is an aluminum manufacturing company headquartered in Mostar. The ownership structure of Aluminij d.d. Mostar is: 44 percent is owned by the government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 44 percent by small shareholders and 12 percent by the government of the Republic of Croatia. As of 2020, the company leased its production assets to the M.T. Abraham Group's subsidiary Aluminij Industries. Kabiri is the chairman of the M.T. Abraham Group and the CEO of Aluminij Industries. He is also the chairman of the board of HŠK Zrinjski football club and the owner of the museum space Hub of Fine Arts in Mostar.
As the head of the Jewish community in Mostar, Kabiri openly supports the State of Israel and fighting antisemitism.
Lead Stories conducted a Google search (archived here) with the terms "Mostar BiH proglašen državom Izrael," (as translated) "Mostar Bosnia and Herzegovina declared as the state of Israel." The search showed no results that corroborate the claim.
Under the Constitution, Bosnia and Herzegovina consists of two entities -- the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska. The entities have the right to establish special parallel relations with neighboring countries, but it is impossible for a person to violate territorial integrity and unilaterally secede their property to another country.
Lead Stories contacted a constitutional expert and a law professor asking why it's not possible for an individual to declare their property part of the State of Israel. He responded by email on December 9, 2023:
because it is against international law, the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and common sense. There can be one state on the same territory, and no individual (regardless of who it is specifically) can declare a part of the state territory exempt from its jurisdiction and declare on that territory (regardless of the area) the territory of another already existing state (Israel in the specific case ) or a new state.
