Activists in Lebanon are calling for a boycott of Pepsi after a bottle cap redesign which they claim implies the company’s support for Israel.
Pepsi’s bottle caps – which used to carry a red, white, and blue design – now feature a blue background and a white stripe. This, Lebanese activists claim, is reminiscent of the Israeli flag, with Pepsi printed where the Star of David would be.
One Lebanese influencer, Amin Chaar, argued that soon the soft drinks company might drop Pepsi entirely and print a Star of David on their bottle caps instead. The two lines at the top and bottom of the logo, he continued, represent the Nile and the Euphrates river, to which he believes Israel wants to expand.
Anti-Pepsi activism has jumped from social media and onto the beaches, where men in southern Lebanon were seen pouring Pepsi into the sea in protest. Roads have also been blocked, as part of the call for a boycott of the company.
Sheikh KICKS OUT Pepsi distributor from Lebanon and calls for boycotting them
— Ryan Rozbiani (@RyanRozbiani) June 25, 2024
Do you agree with him? pic.twitter.com/KYQDcVHX0C
Lawyer Mohammed Ziad Jaafil has also launched a legal case against Pepsi’s representatives in Lebanon. The suit accuses Pepsi of failing to boycott Israel, normalising relations, and sowing civil strife. He called for the company to withdraw its products from the market, and fully prosecute those responsible.
Boycotts in Lebanon are state-sanctioned. The country is part of the Arab League boycott of Israel, and passed its own law forbidding direct relations with Israel in 1955.
