990820 Burger King Seeks Peace In West Bank SpatAugust 12, 1999Miami - Fast food giant Burger King said it was trying urgently to resolve a conflict over its opening of a hamburger restaurant in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Arab and Muslim groups have called for a worldwide boycott of Burger King after it opened the restaurant in the Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim on land seized by Israel in the 1967 Middle East War. “The Burger King Corporation confirms that it is fully aware of the sensitivities surrounding the opening of the Burger King restaurant in Maale Adumim on the West Bank,” Burger King said. “Burger King takes this matter extremely seriously and is working diligently with its Israeli franchisee to resolve the situation with the utmost sense of urgency.” Miami-based Burger King Corp is a unit of the British food and drinks giant Diageo Plc. The West Bank restaurant is operated by Israeli franchisee Rikamor Ltd. Jewish settlers, among them Maale Adumim mayor Benny Kashriel, have flocked to the restaurant since it opened. It is closed on Saturdays, the Jewish Sabbath, and conforms to Jewish, not Muslim, dietary laws. Khalid Turaani, executive director of American Muslims for Jerusalem (AMJ), said his group supported the boycott because the restaurant was situated on “stolen land.” Nine groups, including the Arab American Institute and the Palestinian American Congress, joined AMJ in calling for the boycott. Turaani said the boycott was necessary because of Burger King's disappointing response to letters, several hundred e-mail messages and phone calls explaining the Muslim community's concerns and calling for the closing of the new restaurant. A Burger King spokeswoman in Miami said it was too early to say if the boycott was having any effect. No other comment was available. Burger King, which has outlets in the Arab nations of Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, said in an earlier statement it was sensitive to all nationalities, cultures and religions but it did not intend to enter into political debate.
|
