73% back motion to ban Israeli products at UK supermarket chain

Members of the Co-operative Group, one of the largest supermarket chains in the UK, have voted in favour of banning Israeli products from stores, Middle East Eye reported on May 19th.

Approximately 73% of members of the group backed a non-binding motion which urges the board to remove Israeli products in response to Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza. They referred to a former decision to boycott Russian goods after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

“We urge the board to show moral courage and leadership, apply the same ethical principles and values it did to Russia, and take all Israeli products off the shelves,” the motion stated.

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Although the Co-op board is not required to act on member motions, a spokesperson confirmed the issue would be reviewed as part of a broader reassessment of the chain’s sourcing policy.

“We expect our review on the sourcing policy to complete towards the end of the summer,” the spokesperson said.

The vote aligns with the demands of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which has since 2005 called for international pressure on Israel through urging for economic boycotts on the country until it complies with international law.

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The movement has renewed its calls following Israel’s military operations in Gaza that began in late 2023, which it describes as a genocide. The group recently launched a new Palestine Solidarity Campaign, known as the Don’t Buy Apartheid campaign, which asks consumers to boycott companies linked to Israel’s purported apartheid regime, The New Arab reported on March 24th.

This comes as the UK faced a new legal challenge on May 13th as rights groups and NGO’s claimed it has gone against international law, Middle East Eye reported.

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The NGOs argue that the UK continuing to provide fighter jet parts to Israel amid the ongoing Gaza conflict amounts to criminality. Al-Haq, which is a Palestinian rights group, had led the case and has been supported by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam, and others.

“The United Kingdom is not a bystander. It is complicit, and that complicity must be confronted, exposed and brought to account,” said Shawan Jabarin, the Al-Haq general director.

Middle East Eye, The New Arab