From streets to supermarkets, global boycotts for Gaza have grown as a fragile ceasefire holds for now.
Protests to end Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians are getting louder and larger.
Seeing the livestreamed genocide Israel perpetrated in Gaza has had an effect globally, with the call to boycott Israel at an all-time high.
Quiet boycotts, which started in supermarkets nearly two decades ago, have turned into widely used apps that help millions make choices about purchases.
Campus protests and encampments in the US and Canada have led some major education institutions to cut ties with Israeli counterparts, while investments into Israel have dipped, and some of the world’s largest economies have recognised Palestine as a state.
Dr Mohammed Mustafa is a Palestinian Australian doctor whose parents left their native Deir el-Balah in central Gaza decades ago in search of a better life.
He volunteered in Gaza’s hospitals over the past two years and has shared it all on social media, including his visits to Gaza, attending conferences and advocating for Palestinians.
He says the experience of watching a genocide livestreamed has changed many people.
In recent months, pro-Palestine protests have seen a noticeable uptick – between May and September 2025, they increased by 43 percent compared with the five months prior.
Over the past two years, there have been at least 49,000 pro-Palestinian protests across 133 countries and territories, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
The highest number of pro-Palestine demonstrations was recorded in Yemen (15,266), followed by Morocco (5,482), the US (5,346), Turkiye (2,349), Iran (1,919), Pakistan (1,539), France (1,397), Italy (1,390), Spain (1,102) and Australia (967).
The map below shows the locations of the 49,000 pro-Palestinian protests held between October 7, 2023, and October 3, 2025.
Israel has grown increasingly isolated, the founder of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, Omar Barghouti, told media.
Nearly 50,000 pro-Palestine protests in two years
BDS launched in 2005 to advocate for Palestinian rights and end Israel’s occupation and apartheid through targeting complicity, not individuals, he said.
Barghouti is from a Palestinian family that is deeply involved in politics and culture. Among the famous Barghoutis is Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, who is serving out several life sentences in an Israeli prison.
Balashnikov, at the Mind the Tech Conference 2024, said: “Economic boycotts and BDS organisations present major challenges, and in some countries, we are forced to operate under the radar.”
“BDS has achieved this impact by channelling the immense grief, rage and solidarity expressed by tens of millions worldwide into strategic, nonviolent, and very effective boycott and divestment campaigns,” Barghouti adds.
The BDS movement has identified numerous companies that are considered complicit in Israel’s occupation, human rights violations, or apartheid policies.
Their campaigns are divided into three main groups:
Sumayya Rashid*, a 45-year-old expat mother living in the United Arab Emirates, has been teaching her 11-year-old daughter about what Palestinian children are experiencing and explaining to her how buying certain brands indirectly supports the genocide.
“We no longer buy anything from McDonald’s, KFC, Pizza Hut or Carrefour. These were brands that we would consume before the boycott,” says Rashid, adding that they have found local replacements where possible.
Rashid says her daughter is immersed in Palestinian culture because of school and the community around it.
“She may not understand the extent of the genocide, but she does know we can’t be supporting Israel as they are the instigators of the violence.”
Rashid has found that it is easy to find alternatives in the UAE, but she relies on the Boycat app to double-check any items she is not sure about.
Boycat is one of several mobile apps launched over the past years to help consumers identify products targeted for boycott – it has partnered with the BDS movement, which helps keep its list up to date and ensure it follows BDS goals.
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