Apartheid echoes: Global boycotts push Israel toward South Africa’s path

According to CNN, Israel’s continued war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza have pushed it deeper into global isolation, with backlash now extending beyond diplomacy to economics, culture, and sports.

Since Israel announced its ground assault on Gaza City and carried out an unprecedented strike on Hamas leadership in Qatar, international condemnations have mounted.

This comes as a UN independent investigation last week, for the first time, concluded that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza — findings that echo reports by other genocide experts and human rights groups.

Last week, the European Union — Israel’s largest trading partner — proposed sanctions that, if approved by member states, would partially suspend its free-trade agreement with Israel. Several Western countries have already imposed targeted sanctions on specific Israelis, settler outposts, and organizations supporting violence in the occupied West Bank.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has divested part of its investments from Israel, while France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK have announced arms restrictions or embargoes. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself warned that Israel is facing “a form of isolation” and said the defense industry and economy must be strengthened to rely less on foreign trade — though he later downplayed these remarks.

Israel hated across all arenas

This global backlash has dealt blows to Israel’s economy in multiple ways. CNN noted that TV networks in Ireland, the Netherlands, and Spain have threatened to boycott Eurovision 2026 if Israel participates.

A Belgian festival canceled a concert led by an Israeli conductor. In Hollywood, thousands of artists — including Olivia Colman and Emma Stone — pledged to cut ties with Israeli film institutions. Sports have also been affected: the final stage of a major cycling tour was canceled amid protests, and Israeli chess players withdrew from a Spanish tournament due to a ban on displaying their national flag.

Concerns are rising that Israeli teams may be suspended from European football competitions, and even before the UEFA Super Cup final, a banner reading “Stop killing children” was displayed.

Israel as an apartheid regime

Many experts and observers compare this wave of protests and hostility toward Israel to the anti-apartheid movement against South Africa. Former Israeli diplomats have warned that economic, cultural, and sports pressures reminiscent of the global anti-apartheid sanctions are taking shape, putting Israel’s “special trade privileges with Europe” at risk.

Ilan Baruch, Israel’s former ambassador to South Africa, likened the current pressure to apartheid-era sanctions, saying that the popularity of cultural and sporting events could play the same symbolic role as global boycotts once did against apartheid. He stressed the need to push for an end to occupation and recognition of Palestinian rights.

Diplomatic isolation is also intensifying. CNN noted that during the UN General Assembly, several prominent Western countries — including Canada, France, and the UK — formally recognized the State of Palestine.

New research shows that countries which once supported Israel, or at least abstained in UN votes, are now shifting away from that stance.

The UN fact-finding commission has recommended that International Criminal Court prosecutors also investigate the charge of genocide in the Palestine case. Because of the ICC arrest warrant issued against the Israeli prime minister, his international travel has become restricted. On his most recent trip to New York for the UN meeting, his flight had to take a longer route to avoid French and Spanish airspace.