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Muslim scholars urge economic boycott of Israel

Monday, 04 January 2021 6:26 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 04 January 2021 7:28 AM ]

Israeli Merkava battle tanks hold position near Moshav Kidmat Tzvi settelment in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on December 25, 2020. (Photo by AFP)

The International Union of Muslim Scholars has called for a mass boycott of Israel over its occupation of Arab territories, and attacks on Muslims in Palestine and Syria’s Golan Heights.

"We call for boycotting the Israeli regime, which is currently occupying the Al-Aqsa Mosque, attacking our brothers and sisters in Golan Heights in Syria, and in Palestine and destroying their lands and homes," it said in a statement published on the body's official Facebook page on Sunday.

The statement, signed by President Ahmed er-Raysuni and General Secretary Ali al-Qaradaghi, stressed that resisting occupation by legitimate means and ousting the occupiers is a moral obligation according to Islam, and is recognized by international law as well as United Nations resolutions.

Noting that occupation is a temporary situation, and hence does not allow the seizure of private property, the organization said, "Those who purchase or market the goods of occupiers are recognized as sinners who abetted in this crime."

"We, therefore, call upon all Muslims for a mass economic boycott of Israel until it withdraws from the all occupied territories."

The call comes as four new countries, namely the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco normalized ties with the Israeli regime in 2020, joining Egypt and Jordan as the only other Arab nations to do so.

The normalization deals have been condemned by all Palestinian factions as a betrayal of their cause.

Meanwhile, boycotting of Israeli products around the world has been growing rapidly in recent years and caused heavy losses to Israeli companies.

Last November, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the State Department’s decision to list the humanitarian anti-Israeli regime movement Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) as an anti-Semitic organization.

The BDS movement started over 15 years ago in protest against Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands. The movement has been campaigning for a boycott of all Israeli goods, and academic and cultural activities.

Israel and its allies in Washington have long rallied against the BDS, which was inspired by the South African anti-apartheid movement. The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement seeks to raise awareness about the decades-long Palestinian struggle for freedom and justice.

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