in: Sabeel-Kairos News and BDS News

Israeli Companies Leaving West Bank in Apparent Response to Boycott Pressure

 

“Responding to international boycott pressures and other constraints, a growing number of Israeli companies operating in the West Bank are moving their facilities to locations within the country’s internationally recognised borders.”

So says a report prepared by Gush Shalom, an anti-occupation organization that monitors such activities…
The report, obtained by Haaretz, shows that aside from the recent high-profile cases of Ahava, the Dead Sea skin care product company, and SodaStream, the seltzer-machine manufacturer, other prominent Israeli companies have also been part of this trend, even if they have managed to evade publicity.
The so-called “anti-boycott law,” passed by the Knesset in 2011, penalizes individuals or organizations that call for a boycott of Israel or the settlements. Concerned that it might be sued for heavy damages under this law, Gush Shalom had removed from its website the original list of companies operating over the Green Line.

Anticipating possible legal challenges with the publication of its latest findings, the organization notes the following in its report:

“Considering the legal situation, Gush Shalom clarifies, in order to cast away any doubt, that in gathering information on factories and businesses in the settlements and in publishing it in the ‘Wiki Settlements Product’ project, there is no intent to call for a boycott of settlement products. The purpose of gathering this information and publishing it is to provide reliable and precise consumer information, to the best of our ability, in order to allow consumers – each by him or herself – to make a wise and knowledgeable decision based on personal considerations.”

Read about Gush Shalom report

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