LONDON (WJC) — Anti-Israel demonstrators in Britain attacked police and threw food products on the floor while calling on a local supermarket to stop selling Israeli goods. The protest occurred on Saturday at a Tesco supermarket in Birmingham, the newspaper ‘Daily Telegraph’ reported. A day later, a London outlet of the supermarket chain Sainsbury’s removed kosher products from its shelves, allegedly to prevent similar protests.
About 100 demonstrators had gathered for a protest against Israeli products outside the store. Produce was thrown to the ground and disorder broke out when a group of men waving Palestinian flags burst into the store, which was forced to close for a few minutes. A man was later arrested by police.
The demonstration followed other protests outside Tesco stores which were staged all over the UK, including Halifax, Cork, Belfast, Oldham and Liverpool.
Tesco, the largest supermarket chain in Britain, announced in July that it would stop selling products sourced in the West Bank by September. It also has stores in Europe, North America and Asia. The company, which was founded by Jewish businessman Jack Cohen, has been at the center of a number of controversies concerning its policies on Israel-related products.
In 2009, pro-Israel groups criticized the chain for setting up a special helpline at its customer service phone line to field complaints about stocking Israeli products. In 2013, protesters from the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement placed yellow stickers on Israeli products in the chain’s stores in Ireland.
Meanwhile, a Sainsbury’s supermarket in central London temporarily emptied its kosher food shelf as a precaution against possible violence. Meats, cheeses and sauces were removed from a Sainsbury’s branch in Holborn, central London, as it was picketed by demonstrators who were calling on the grocer to boycott Israeli goods. The actor Colin Appleby took a photo of the empty shelf, prompting uproar online as hundreds condemned the supermarket for appearing to succumb to the demands of the protesters. People also pointed out that many of the goods were not from Israel but locally sourced.
According to the ‘Daily Mail’ newspaper, Appleby wrote that a staff member had defended the decision by stating: ‘We support Free Gaza’. When he then pointed out the distinction between Israeli and kosher goods, that employee had simply walked away, he wrote.
Sainsbury’s insisted the decision was taken in case protesters hurled food from the shelves, which would then have to be thrown away.
But Facebook user Gavin Platman made a formal complaint about the incident, which happened half a mile from the company’s headquarters at London’s Holborn Circus. He wrote to Sainsbury’s: “I presume you are aware that Kosher food is produced in countries other than Israel? You are therefore not making a political statement against Israel but instead are targeting a group based on race – i.e. Jews.”
On Monday, the kosher products were on the shelves again.
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Preceding provided by World Jewish Congress