The products of six of the biggest Israeli companies will now be absolutely barred in the territories currently under Palestinian control, a senior Palestinian Authority official declared on Monday, Feb. 9.
Mahmoud al-Aloul, who is a high-ranking member of the PA as well as a member of Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party Central Committee made the announcement at a press conference Monday evening, according to the Palestinian Arab news source Ma’an.
The Israeli companies banned under the latest dictate are the chocolate and candy company Elite, which is part of another banned Israeli company, the Strauss food and beverage company; Tnuva, which produces cheese and other dairy products; the beverage companies Prigat and Jafora (which includes Shweppes and RC Cola, in Israel); and Osem, which produces snacks and soups, as well as other food products. All of the companies are located within Green Line Israel.
The Arab retailers will be given two weeks to remove all the banned Israeli products from their shelves. Al-Aloul said special inspectors will be touring the markets to ensure compliance with the ruling. He said the decision to ban the Israeli products was a response to Israeli attempts to pressure the Palestinian Arabs “who are demanding their freedom and rights and have been punished collectively after they resorted to the U.N.”
Few people believe the boycott has any chance of success.