Boycott Zara: outrage after Franchisee in "Israel" backs Ben Gvir

Palestinians launched a campaign to boycott the international fashion company, Zara, after its Franchise holder in "Israel", Joey Schwebel, met with members and head of the extremist Jewish Forces party Itamar Ben Gvir, to support him in the upcoming Israeli elections.

Palestinian activists considered that the best way to deal with companies that support the occupation and Israeli figures is to boycott the products and services of these companies.

The activists demanded to expand the boycott campaign against Zara to European countries, noting that this is not the first time that the firm supported the occupation, as one of its designers made anti-Palestinian statements last year.

At the time, the company's chief designer of women's fashion made statements during a conversation with a Palestinian model, in which she defended the Israeli crimes committed against the Palestinian people, blamed the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, whom she described as "terrorists", and launched an attack on the Islamic faith.

In turn, the boycott department of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine called for a boycott of the company, saying in a statement that "support for the occupation and extremist Zionist parties pushes them to commit more war crimes against the Palestinian people, their land and their national rights."

Yesterday, Palestinian activists circulated on social media videos showing Palestinians burning clothes produced by the international company Zara, after they launched the Boycott Zara hashtag to express their strong refusal to the support of extremist Knesset member Itamar Ben Gvir received from the company.

دعوات عربية وفلسطينية لمقاطعة شركة الألبسة الشهيرة "زارا" بسبب دعمها عضو الكنيست المتطرف إيتمار بن غفير #زارا #فلسطين #ايتمار_بن_غفير #الميادين_Go pic.twitter.com/kQzvE00As2
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) October 23, 2022

Losses amounting to tens of millions of shekels

According to the Safa agency, the international clothing company Zara in "Israel" incurred significant financial losses after Palestinian calls to boycott it.

The agency quoted an auditor saying that "the losses incurred by the company are estimated at tens of millions of shekels within a very short period."

Read more: Boycott PUMA: Global day of action

According to the agency, dozens of members of the Palestinian community, through social platforms, appealed to Palestinians and Arabs residing in the United States of America to boycott its goods.

Yesterday, Saturday, the Palestinian Ministry of Economy announced its move to hold Zara accountable, explaining that it was in the process of sending a letter to the parent company to clarify its position.

Israeli news media outlet, Channel 12, reported that the local agent of Zara, which is the largest clothing company in the occupied Palestinian territories, had organized a meeting to support MK Itamar Ben Gvir at his home, which caused a great uproar in the Palestinian society, who called for a boycott of the company and not to visit its branches.

🎥شاهد #بالفيديو لحظة وصول المتطرف إيتمار بن غفير إلى #حي_الشيخ_جراح في #القدس المحتلة.#فلسطين pic.twitter.com/SBwxhUBBcF
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) October 13, 2022

It's noteworthy that Ben Gvir is one of the most notorious Israeli politicians, as he is infamous for constantly carrying out provocative incursions into Al-Aqsa mosque and rallying illegal Israeli settlers that call for the death of Arabs and Palestinians alike while chanting racist slogans and slurs against Muslims and Arabs.

Early in October, Ben Gvir initiated the storming of Sheikh Jarrah by settlers after arriving in the Palestinian neighborhood holding his pistol. The settlers, accompanied by Israeli occupation forces, vandalized Palestinian properties and hurled stones at them, while the occupation forces launched tear-gas grenades at the Palestinian residents which led to three children being transferred by the Red Crescent due to gas inhalation, including a 7-day-old baby, and two children aged six and 14, respectively.