Bangladeshi protesters are turning their wrath over onto international brands like Bata, KFC, Pizza Hut, Dominos, and Puma.
Recent reports have come out about protesters in Bangladesh vandalising and plundering several outlets of these brands. The reason for this, though, is to protest against Israel’s recent strike that killed almost 25 people.
Most of these protests are against establishments that Bangladeshi protesters believe to be Israeli brands or in support of the country.
Why Are Bangladeshis Protesting?
Several protests have broken out across regions in Bangladesh, including the capital Dhaka, with demonstrators demanding a boycott of products linked to Israel. Many of them took to the streets in protest of Israel’s recent strike that they carried out over Gaza at night and ended up in the death of almost 25 people.
However, while the protests have been in solidarity with the people of Gaza, things took a violent turn when some attacked outlets of international brands that they consider to be associated with the country.
According to the Dhaka Tribune, some of the protesters in several areas vandalised stores, disrupted traffic, and caused extensive property damage. Among the brands targeted were outlets of KFC, Bata, Puma, Dominos, Pizza Hut, and more.
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As per reports, during a protest in Bogra city where people walked in solidarity with the people of Gaza, carrying placards with slogans such as ‘genocide in Gaza’ and asking to boycott Israeli products, a crowd turning violent attacked a Bata showroom.
The glass walls of the outlet were broken when some of them threw bricks at it. Officer-in-Charge (OC) SM Moinuddin of Bogra Sadar police station, speaking about the incident, said, “Although protestors threw bricks and broke the glass, no major untoward incident occurred.”
These protests are said to be against Israel for killing several people in an overnight strike on Tuesday.
Even despite talks about a ceasefire, Israel has still been carrying out airstrikes in Gaza that have, since March 18, led to almost 1,391 deaths and 3,434 injuries. As per Al Jazeera data, the total death toll and injuries since October 7, 2023, have reached 50,752 deaths and 115,475.
However, reports have also clarified that these brands don’t have any Israeli links or are associated with the country in any manner. Bata further clarified their origins in a statement and condemned the attacks.
In their statement, the brand stated, “We are aware of inaccurate claims suggesting that Bata is an Israeli-owned company or has political affiliations in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.”
It also added that “Bata globally is a privately held, family-owned company founded in the Czech Republic, with no political ties to the conflict. It is deeply regrettable that some of our retail locations in Bangladesh have recently been subjected to vandalism, apparently triggered by these false narratives.”
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Firstpost, Business Standard, Livemint
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This post is tagged under: Bangladesh, Bangladesh protest, Bangladesh protesters, Bangladesh bata, Bangladesh kfc, Bangladesh dominos, Bangladesh pizza hut, Bangladesh anti israel, Bangladesh anti israel prtoest, gaza, israel, israel gaza strike
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