The McDonalds’s chief has blamed social media for running campaign, which he says, is hurting the company’s sales in the Middle East region.
“Misinformation about McDonald’s support for Israel is having a meaningful impact on its sales”, said Chris Kempczinski, the food chain’s chief executive, adding that boycott calls from pro-Palestinian groups over the Gaza conflict are harming the company’s operations.
There are several US and Israeli firms that have been targeted by pro-Palestine activists over their support for the Zionist regime that has been spilling the blood of innocent Palestinians in Gaza since October 7.
Starbucks was the first that sparked ire after suing a staff union in Iowa for expressing “solidarity with Palestine” on social media. It prompted Pro-Palestinian campaigners to call for a boycott of the coffee chain in response to the lawsuit.
The call to boycott McDonald’s came after images went viral on social media showing franchised stores in Israel giving free meals to the regime’s troopers engaged in bloodshed in Gaza. An international pro-Palestinian organization, the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement, urged people worldwide to shun McDonald’s, citing franchisees’ “open support” for the Zionist military.
McDonald’s claims it has taken no position on the war and its franchisees only pay the company for giving them brand license and recipe. The majority of McDonald’s restaurants around the world are run by franchisees but Kempczinski says there is a meaningful business impact, without giving the magnitude of losses the company has faced over the past months.
“Several markets in the Middle East and some outside the region are experiencing a meaningful business impact due to the war and associated misinformation”, he wrote in blog post on LinkedIn.
“This is disheartening and ill-founded. In every country where we operate, including in Muslim countries, McDonald’s is proudly represented by local owners who work tirelessly to serve and support their communities while employing thousands of their fellow citizens,” he added.
People in several countries including Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and Pakistan have heeded calls for boycotting McDonald’s despite operators in these countries distancing themselves from the actions of franchisees in Israel.
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