The pro-Palestine Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement appears to be working, with Israel ranking bottom in a recent global brands index list, according to reports.
Israel came in last place in the 2024 Nation Brands Index (NBI) published recently, based on surveys gathered from 40,000 respondents in 70 countries last year by the Anholt Nation Brands Index.
Japan topped the poll, which assessed countries’ brand power based on six indicators: governance, culture, people and society, exports, immigration and investment, and tourism.
Israel was dead bottom in the “forces of chaos” list – alongside Russia, Ukraine, and Kenya – which was blamed by Israeli media on Generation Z avoiding ‘Made in Israel’ products. Among this age group – considered to be people born between 1997 and 2012 – Israel came last in all parameters.
Israel also came below Palestine, which “enjoys sympathy in the Muslim world, China, and among younger generations”, the survey said.
It follows a global campaign by BDS for consumers to boycott Israeli businesses and companies linked to Israel, due to its occupation of the Palestinian Territory and was on Gaza, which has killed at least 61,709 Palestinians and 14,222 missing.
Israeli media interpreted the results of the poll as a result of the BDS campaign, while Brand IL has launched a $100 million rebranding effort to reverse the negative global reputation of Israeli companies.
Motti Scherf, founder of Brands Israel, aimed at promoting Israeli businesses, appeared to acknowledge the effects the war on Gaza has had on Israeli goods and services, which is widely considered to be a genocide against the Palestinian people.
“Israel has lost its legitimacy in the international community and has been cast into the backyard of global affairs,” Scherf told Globes, the Israeli financial newspaper.
It is time to acknowledge the failure of traditional public diplomacy and adopt innovative nation-branding models.”
Last year, pro-Palestine activists launched the Watermelon Index, a live database exposing over 400 UK companies allegedly linked to Israel’s war on Gaza and the occupation of Palestinian territories.
