The Ben & Jerry’s company slammed Unilever’s announcement on Wednesday that it reached a deal for its Israeli franchisee to continue selling ice cream in Yehudah and Shomron.
“While our parent company has taken this decision, we do not agree with it,” a company statement said. “We continue to believe it is inconsistent with Ben & Jerry’s values for our ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
The response is not surprising considering who serves as the chairwoman of Ben & Jerry’s board, a pro-terror anti-Israel activist who has been accused of financial improprieties.
For some reason, the Jewish owners of Ben & Jerry’s have not changed their view of the boycott, despite admitting that they’re unsure themselves why they chose to boycott the only Jewish state out of all the counties in the world.
As Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan said at the time: “The ignorance and hypocrisy of Ben and his partner Jerry cries out to the heavens. Part of the definition of anti-Semitism is precisely to demand from Israel what isn’t demanded of any other country in the world, and Misters Ben and Jerry have no problem with their ice cream being sold to supporters of terrorism but they are boycotting Israel.”
In an absolutely absurd statement, Omar Shakir, the director of Human Rights Watch for Israel and the Palestinian territories, claimed that although Unilever undermined Ben & Jerry’s “principled decision,” the ice cream sold in Yehudah and Shomron won’t taste like real Ben & Jerry’s.
“It won’t succeed: Ben & Jerry’s won’t be doing business in illegal settlements,” Shakir said. “What comes next may look and taste similar, but, without Ben & Jerry’s recognized social justice values, it’s just a pint of ice cream.”
Avi, Zinger, the CEO of Ben & Jerry’s Israel, told Army Radio on Wednesday that he was overwhelmed with messages of encouragement from thousands of people during his battle to revoke the boycott.
He added that following the announcement, he gathered his workers, Jews and Arabs, to tell them the news, and the happiness on their faces made the whole battle worthwhile.
Source: (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)