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Israel’s meltdown

Israel’s economy minister made a video of herself binning the container of B&J chocolate ice cream that she had in her freezer – tossing the tub! An outraged article condemning the move in Time Magazine was entitled “Double scoops and double standards” under the Twitter hashtag #BenAndJerrys Bigotry. One of the many organisations that welcomed the move issued a statement entitled: “Justice tastes better than complicity.”
Israel’s new prime minister, Naftali Bennett, warned that the decision will have “serious consequences” for the Vermont-based ice-cream maker and its parent company, Unilever. He expressed grave concern at their decision to “boycott Israel,” despite the fact that the company clearly stated that it was not doing so. "There are many brands of ice cream," Bennett said. "But we only have one country."
The announcement from Ben & Jerry’s, which has taken political stances on climate change and social justice issues such as Black Lives Matter, is one of the highest-profile rebukes of Israeli settlement building to date by a well-known brand.
Around 700,000 Israelis now live in settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. which were captured by Israel during the 1967 war, and are regarded by most of the international community as illegal and a major barrier to a lasting peace with the Palestinians.
The fear of Bennett’s government is that other international companies might follow Ben & Jerry’s lead under mounting pressure from the BDS movement – a Palestinian-led initiative advocating boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israeli institutions and businesses.
Still, the ice-cream company is not alone in taking a principled stand. Norway’s largest pension fund announced this month it had divested assets in 16 companies that work in the West Bank, including the telecom equipment giant Motorola, while the owner of the McDonald’s Israeli franchise has refused to venture into settlement communities.
Israel’s foreign minister, Yair Lapid, called the decision “a shameful capitulation to antisemitism” and pledged to raise the issue with the more than 30 states that have legislation against BDS. Israel’s former prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, tweeted cheekily: “Now we Israelis know which ice cream NOT to buy.”
BDS itself applauded the move as “a decisive step towards ending the company’s complicity in Israel’s occupation and violations of Palestinian rights”, but still called on it to do more. “We hope that Ben & Jerry’s has understood that, in harnsmony with its social justice commitments, there can be no business as usual with apartheid Israel,” it added.
Ben & Jerry’s decision, however, was only about the occupied territories, not Israel within its pre-1967 borders, suggesting the company supports a two-state solution – which, in theory at least, is still the only achievable outcome. Otherwise it remains business as usual – for the moment at least.
Reactions to such a sensitive and controversial issue were very strong, not to say hysterical. But there was no parallel anger amongst Israelis about another, sensationally bigger story last week – about the role of the Israel cyber company NSO in surveilling journalists, as part of an international investigation led by Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International and covered by multiple western news organizations.
It revealed 180 cases around the world in which NSO’s clients wanted to target journalists, political opponents and human rights activists with Pegasus spyware, which allows law enforcement authorities to hack into cellphones, copy their contents and sometimes to control their camera and audio recording capabilities.
The company’s customers include the governments of Azerbaijan, Hungary, India , Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia and the UAE – all countries which have improved their relations with Israel in recent times, especially during Netanyahu’s 12 years in office.
Israel’s expertise in cybertechnology has long been source of pride in what the country’s admirers call the “start-up nation.” But these latest revelations have damaged that positive image by portraying their achievements as in the service of what one newspaper headline described as the “world’s bad guys.” An important additional factor is that most cyber-experts are graduates of the Israel army’s elite intelligence units.
In reality, Israel’s security establishment is often an active partner in making these lucrative deals with foreign governments and has an obvious interest in making sure they succeed, often serving as the initial contact between the parties. What remains unclear is whether the government was asked to approve NSO’s client list or even specific targets “Such actions,” as one Israeli commentator warned, “cast a shadow over all the country’s citizens.”
Cyberwarfare is part of the landscape of the 21st century. Many people reacted dismissively to the NSO revelations, arguing that any state would act similarly. But attitudes to Israel – in the Middle East and beyond - are only likely to improve if Bennett’s government focuses on the Palestinians, who are certainly not going to disappear. And Ben & Jerry’s decision was both a sweet and sour reminder of that inescapable fact. levant
by: IAN BLACK levant

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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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