In blatant defiance of international law, global e-commerce company Amazon is offering free shipping to illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, but not to Palestinians living in the same area, according to the Financial Times.
The investigative report reveals that Amazon’s free shipping offer extends to nearly all Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, considered illegal under international law.
FT Exclusive: Amazon is offering free shipping to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, but only to their Palestinian neighbours if they list their country as Israel, an FT investigation has found https://t.co/bVoxMakDfr pic.twitter.com/PikM4ZOfLj
— Financial Times (@FinancialTimes) February 14, 2020
Palestinian customers who list their address as “the Palestinian Territories” are forced to pay shipping and handling fees starting from $24.
Amazon spokesman Nick Caplin told the Financial Times that Palestinians can only circumvent the issue by selecting Israel as their country.
See Full List Below: #UN Blacklists 112 Businesses that Enable #IsraeliOccupation of Palestine https://t.co/dy9qE3hfjb via @PalestineChron #Bachelet #OHCHR #settlements pic.twitter.com/GlxxVGSbFr
— Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) February 15, 2020
“If a customer within the Palestinian Territories enters their address and selects Israel as the country, they can receive free shipping through the same promotion,” said Caplin.
Amazon was not included in the United Nations Human Rights Council’s database of companies operating in the illegal settlements released last week.
(The Palestine Chronicle, WAFA, Social Media)
