Friends of Al Aqsa, a UK-based Pro-Palestine group, distributed more than 20,000 leaflets urging Muslims to #CheckTheLabel and boycott Israeli dates at mosques across the UK, coinciding with the fasting holy month of Ramadan.
The initiative is part of a large campaign launched by Friends of Al-Aqsa — concerned with defending the human rights of Palestinians and protecting the Al-Aqsa sanctuary — to “Check The Label,” and is calling on Muslims in the UK and Europe not to break their fasts with the “taste of apartheid.”
“Running since the early 2010s, #CheckTheLabel has had an unprecedented impact on the British public’s understanding of the connection between the products they buy and Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine (and) many individuals have become ethical consumers who avoid buying Israeli produce as a result of this campaign,” FOA said.
“This Ramadan, it’s more important than ever that we boycott Israel,” said Shamiul Joarder, head of public affairs at FOA. “By checking the label and avoiding Israeli dates, we can send a clear message: We won’t give our money to an apartheid state that breaks international law and kills Palestinian children.”
“The first 3 months of 2023 have seen some of the worst Israeli violence against Palestinians in decades and there are concerns about Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa mosque during Ramadan,” the statement said.
“As a community we are powerful. By choosing not to buy Israeli dates we can send a clear message of condemnation for Israel’s illegal occupation and apartheid in Palestine” said Shamiul Joarder at FOA.
“Let’s make our voices heard this Ramadan. Wherever you are, all you need to do is #CheckTheLabel and not buy dates from Israel, the West Bank, or the Jordan Valley – it’s that simple” Joarder added.
50% of Israeli dates are exported to Europe, where the UK, Netherlands, France, Spain, and Italy import huge quantities of dried fruit. In 2020 the UK imported over 3000 tonnes of dates from Israel, worth roughly 7.5 million pounds.
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