Belgian airline backtracks, decides to serve West Bank-made halva
Brussels Airlines said it would resume serving the sesame treat from its flights following complaints by boycott group.
Belgium’s biggest airline said it would resume serving a West Bank-produced halva snack, one week after pulling the sesame treat from its flights following complaints by a group that supports the boycott movement against Israel.
While Brussels Airlines said last week it did not order the halva and the snack was served on its flight by mistake, the airline now called the food manufacturer Achva “one of our trustful suppliers” in a statement to the Israeli Foreign Ministry quoted by The Times of Israel.
“It is clear that Achva remains one of our trustful suppliers and without any distinction related to the origin of the product, and therefore we will continue to accept Achva’s products on board our flights, especially given its positive role in the community,” the Brussels Airlines statement read.
Achva is located in the Barkan Industrial Park near the city of Ariel in the northern West Bank.
The change came about through “the quick work of the Foreign Ministry, at the direction of Dore Gold, the deputy head of public advocacy and the advocacy unit, and our embassies in Brussels and Berlin,” according to a Foreign Ministry statement.
Last week, Brussels Airlines stopped serving its passengers the halva snack following complaints by the Palestine Solidarity Movement, a proponent of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. A passenger had alerted the group about the snack.
“We’re an airline catering to a large international audience, it’s our responsibility to offer products that please all,” the airline said in its earlier statement on pulling the halva. “Therefore, we decided to take the halva bars off the menu and replace it with another product.”
Last year, the European Union adopted rules that require clear labeling for products made in West Bank settlements.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
