#BDS New comprehensive BDS booklet

Corporate Watch has just published a new, comprehensive booklet for those who are partcipating in the Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) movement. Titled "Targeting Israeli Apartheid," the publication details who is profiting from the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian and Syrian territories as well as Israel's inhumane blockade of the Gaza Strip.  

 

"Targeting Israeli Apartheid" gives a run down of Israel's economy and exports and details how BDS has an impact on both. The handbook is useful for both internationals and Israelis involved in BDS as it  illuminates which Israeli businesses are tied to the occupation and how they encourage growth on Palestinian lands, noting, for example, that all Israeli banks offer mortgages for homes located in illegal settlements. 

offering housing


loans to Israelis wishing to live on settlements. Not only does this allow

them to collect profits in the form of interest, it also gives them a direct stake in the

26

http://www.whoprofits.org/Company per cent20Info.php?id=682, [accessed 04/03/2011].

27Who Profits (October 2010), Financing the Israeli occupations, Idem.

Bank Hapoalim's branch in Bnei Yehuda settlement, occupied Syrian

Golan (Corporate Watch 2010)11 A BDS Handbook

settlementsAll major Israeli banks, as well as the Bank of Jerusalem, have mortgage subsidiaries offering housing loans to Israelis wishing to live on settlements. Not only does this allow them to collect profits in the form of interest, it also gives them a direct stake in the settlements.

The handbook also discusses the havoc Israel has wreaked on the Palestinian economy, turning the Palestinians into a captive market that are essentially forced to hand money to the businesses that profit from their continued disposession. "Targeting Israeli Apartheid" also lists companies that are located in settlements as well as those that build on Palestinian land so conscientious consumers know what products to boycott. 

Taken as a whole, the handbook reminds readers that the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands isn't about security as the Israeli government and right-wingers often claim. "Targeting Israeli Apartheid" helps individuals can put sticks in the spokes of the machine that turns a profit from occupation. Via the Alternative Information Center.

Download the full booklet here

#BDS A personal appeal– PennBDS needs your help

...The organizers could really use some additional donations as they gear up to pay for a bunch of big expenses. The registration fee for this conference is so cheap (seriously, I was aghast when I went to register online, it's like the cost of 2 movie tickets for the friggin' weekend!), but unfortunately the overhead isn't. So if everyone and anyone who can afford it can just head on over to PennBDS website and make an extra donation that would be simply splendiferous and very much appreciated. Read more here.