British Supermarket Chain’s Anti-Israel Boycott Vote: A Disturbing Triumph of Anti-Semitism Disguised as Social Justice Activism

By: Fern Sidman

In a deeply troubling development that has sparked alarm across Jewish communities and human rights observers alike, Co-op, one of the United Kingdom’s most prominent supermarket chains, has taken a decisive step toward severing all trade ties with the State of Israel. As NewArab.com reported on Sunday, an overwhelming 73% of Co-op members voted in favor of a motion urging the chain to remove all Israeli products from its shelves, claiming solidarity with Palestinians and support for the radical Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Though cloaked in the rhetoric of “ethical values” and “human rights,” this move is the latest — and arguably most egregious — manifestation of contemporary anti-Semitism masquerading as political activism. What NewArab.com and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) describe as a victory for “justice” is in fact a discriminatory act targeting the world’s only Jewish state, and by extension, Jews around the world who see such boycotts for what they truly are: ideological warfare waged against Jewish self-determination.

According to the information provided in the report at NewArab.com, the motion, passed at Co-op’s Annual General Meeting on May 17, called for a complete boycott of Israeli goods, including products made not only in disputed territories but across Israel proper. Brands such as Coca-Cola — which has bottling partnerships in Israel — were singled out, alongside popular beverages like Sprite, Fanta, and Schweppes. The PSC justifies this sweeping move by alleging that these brands “support Israel’s land theft and ethnic cleansing,” inflammatory accusations that not only lack factual basis but echo centuries-old libels against the Jewish people.

Such rhetoric has become increasingly common in far-left activist circles, where the BDS movement has successfully marketed itself as a civil rights campaign. But as the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) has pointed out, singling out Israel for criticism while ignoring or downplaying human rights abuses elsewhere is a key indicator of modern antisemitism. That same double standard is now on full display.

As many have noted, the Co-op was quick to ban Russian products in 2022 after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine — a move widely praised at the time. Yet its decision to apply those same “ethical principles” to a democratic ally like Israel, which is acting in self-defense against terrorist groups such as Hamas, is both morally incoherent and deeply offensive.

NewArab.com and pro-Hamas activists have framed the Co-op vote as a moral reckoning, linking it to the ongoing conflict in Gaza, where over 53,000 Palestinians have reportedly been killed. However, they omit critical context — such as the October 7, 2023 Hamas massacre, in which over 1,200 Israelis were slaughtered, and 250 others taken hostage — which sparked Israel’s military response.

Israel’s actions in Gaza, however tragic their consequences, are not rooted in conquest or racism, but in self-defense against a jihadist regime that uses civilians as human shields and has openly vowed to repeat the October 7 massacre “again and again.” That distinction matters — morally, legally, and historically — yet it is absent from the narrative promoted by NewArab.com, PSC, and BDS advocates.

What the Co-op vote represents is not solidarity with human rights, but collusion with a campaign that seeks to delegitimize and isolate Israel, while offering no meaningful path to peace or coexistence. By focusing exclusively on Israel — and not, for example, on regimes like Iran, China, or Syria — the Co-op’s members have betrayed not only a deeply biased moral calculus, but a fundamental failure to recognize the Jewish people’s right to self-defense and statehood.

Activists such as Paul Neill, celebrated in NewArab.com’s coverage, have hailed the vote as a “historic moment.” It is indeed historic — not for advancing justice, but for normalizing economic discrimination against the Jewish state. In a chilling echo of past boycotts targeting Jews under the pretense of morality, Co-op’s decision threatens to set a precedent whereby institutional antisemitism becomes publicly acceptable if framed as ‘progressive.’

Lewis Backon, PSC’s campaigns officer, went so far as to accuse Israel of “genocide” in Gaza and “ethnic cleansing” in the West Bank — terms which have been widely debunked by international legal scholars, yet are now used routinely by BDS activists and reported without skepticism by outlets like NewArab.com. These grotesque distortions not only inflame tensions but demonize the Jewish state, sowing division and hate far from the Middle East battlefield.

Jewish organizations in the UK and abroad have responded with concern. “This isn’t about criticism of Israeli policy — which is fair and necessary in any democracy,” said one UK Jewish communal leader. “This is about denying Israel’s legitimacy and holding it to a standard no other nation faces. It’s discriminatory, plain and simple.”

Many have also pointed out the dangerous message this vote sends to Jewish employees, shoppers, and stakeholders within the Co-op network. When a company chooses to punish Israel in such sweeping terms, it sends a signal that Jewish concerns — including those related to safety and historical memory — are less valid than the ideological preferences of the loudest activist blocs.

In a statement quoted by NewArab.com, Co-op acknowledged that while the vote is advisory, it has launched a formal review of its sourcing policy, expected to conclude later this summer. The outcome of that review will reveal whether the Co-op’s leadership intends to capitulate fully to a politicized, divisive agenda, or whether it will exercise its responsibility to uphold pluralism, equality, and nondiscrimination — values it claims to hold dear.

If the boycott is fully enforced, it will be a dangerous precedent — legitimizing the idea that the Jewish state can be economically isolated for daring to defend itself against terror. It would also further embolden BDS activists across Europe, who see every institutional capitulation as another milestone in their campaign of delegitimization.

As NewArab.com continues to champion the vote as a grassroots moral victory, it’s critical to ask: Why is Israel, alone among the nations, subjected to this level of targeted economic warfare? Why do calls for peace and justice so often come with an asterisk when the Jewish state is involved?

The Co-op boycott is not a blow for peace, but a victory for selective outrage and deeply embedded prejudice. It is the latest chapter in the long, painful story of anti-Semitism adapting itself to modern progressive language, and it must be called out for what it is.

If history has taught us anything, it’s that boycotts of Jews — whether by nation, business, or identity — always start with slogans of justice, and end in injustice. The Co-op now stands at a crossroads: it can either be remembered for standing with peace and integrity — or for lending legitimacy to a campaign steeped in bias, bigotry, and blind hatred.