EU Jewish Congress Could Sue Iceland Capital over Israel Boycott

The city council in Iceland’s capital Reykjavík voted Tuesday by a 9-5 majority to bar Israeli products from official purchases as long as Israel’s occupation of Palestinian regions continues.

Lauder expressed dissatisfaction over “the silence of Iceland’s political leadership on this important matter”.

Some Icelanders are also critical of the boycott.

According to The Times of Israel, the boycott has drawn sharp criticism from Israel’s foreign ministry, which said “a volcano of hatred spews forth from the Reykjavik city council building”, an apparent reference to Iceland’s status as a hotbed for volcanic activity. “It is unfair, and it could have negative repercussions for Iceland’s good name on the global stage”.

With one frivolous decision, the Reykjevik city council has damaged Iceland’s expensive multi-year marketing campaign.

“This is clearly a discriminatory move and we have already sought advice that it might break global law and treaties”, he said.

“The boycott, divestment and sanctions movement all over the world is becoming stronger because we know how boycotting goods has influenced other states like South Africa”, Björk Vilhelmsdóttir, a member of the left-leaning Social Democratic Alliance party in Iceland who sponsored the motion told The Electronic Intifada.

The Reykjavik City Council explained that the move was a symbolic one to show that the North Atlantic island condemns the “Israeli policy of apartheid” in Palestine’s territory, and supports the Palestinians’ right to independence.

“Many have stated that they will start with Israel and then explore other situations, and none has ever gone beyond Israel”, he continued, calling the decision a “case of discrimination, warped hatred and singling out of one nation in the world for opprobrium”.

The World Jewish Congress (WJC) is the global organization representing Jewish communities in 100 countries to governments, parliaments and worldwide organizations.