Israel vowed to fight the ice cream ban while the Palestinian Authority welcomed the decision

Israel in cold war over Ben & Jerry’s ice cream ban

Israeli Avi Zinger said the ice cream he makes usually brings joy, but Ben & Jerry’s decision to stop selling in occupied Palestinian territory has cast his factory into a political storm.

“We will continue to sell anywhere related to Israel,” a defiant Zinger told AFP at his plant in Beer-Tuvia south of Tel Aviv, where 160 workers churn out pints of the popular ice cream.

More than 670,000 Jewish settlers live in the two territories, in communities widely regarded as illegal under international law.

“The diet is going well,” he wrote, in a playful sign of support for Ben & Jerry’s move.

On Thursday Bennett said Israel “would use all tools at its disposal” to fight the decision.

Gilad Erdan, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, in a letter urged 35 of the 50 states that make up the United States to use anti-BDS laws they passed that ban boycotts of Israel.

But the Palestinian Authority said Herzog should thank Ben & Jerry’s for ringing “an alarm bell”.

“We cannot boycott Israeli citizens for political reasons,” Zinger said.

Meanwhile, the Beer-Tuvia factory continues to operate, but employees are worried.

Read the article in The Australian.