“The Israelis love Ben and Jerry’s.” An American company stops selling ice cream “in the occupied territories of Palestine”

The company explained in a statement published today, Monday, that it considers it “contrary to its values” for selling its products “in the occupied Palestinian territories.” Watchman. Ben & Jerry’s has been selling in Israel since 1987 and the current contract expires in 2022.

Several Israeli politicians criticized the decision, including Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. “There are many ice creams, we only have one country. Ben & Jerry’s has decided to label itself as anti-Israel. This is a morally wrong decision and I think it would ultimately be a commercial mistake,” he wrote in Twitter. In turn, Israeli President Isaac Herzog declared the ice cream company’s decision a “new type of terrorism.”

However, the Israelis in these areas are not particularly upset. In Efrat, south of Bethlehem, Los Angeles’ Renae Hirsch gives her opinion. “It is a pro-Palestinian movement, an anti-Israel movement,” he said on the door of a supermarket. “Why should we give up? It’s just cold,” he shouted.

Asher Goodman, 29, took over the family business, a restaurant, when his father died four years ago. My father came from New York and bought Ben & Jerry’s for Gush Etzion [um aglomerado de assentamentos] For 30 years, he said, “It’s a great seller for us, it’s American style.”

“The Israelis love Ben and Jerry. This is a national problem that does not only concern Judea and Samaria. We will continue to sell,” he said.

However, Ben & Jerry’s isn’t the only one taking a stand in these areas. Earlier this month, telecom equipment giant Motorola and Israeli franchisee McDonald’s refused to set up businesses in the settlement communities.

Although common, the government has been fighting these cases. When Airbnb took similar action in 2018, the company was hit with lawsuits in the US and Israel alleging discrimination – which led to a reversal of the decision five months later.

“If one company says it will not do business in the settlements, another company will come in to replace it. But the Ben & Jerry case is interesting because it is so popular: this decision touches every family in Israel,” said Hagit Ofran, director of the company. of Peace Now.