Israeli ministers harangue Kerry over boycott remark

US Secretary of State John Kerry came under further attack today by Israeli hawks who accuse him of manipulating the threat of an economic boycott to pressure Israel into peace concessions.
The latest war of words between the two allies erupted Saturday after Kerry warned that Israel was facing a growing campaign of legitimisation which would likely worsen if peace talks with the Palestinians collapsed.
Washington's top diplomat also referred to "talk of boycotts" of Israel.
A growing number of governments and businesses have recently said they will not trade with Israeli firms with ties to Jewish settlements, highlighting the creeping success of a Palestinian-led boycott campaign.

The so-called BDS movement- boycott, divestment and sanctions- works to convince governments, businesses and celebrities to cut ties with Israeli companies active in the occupied Palestinian territories, in a bid to repeat the success of the boycott which ended apartheid in South Africa.
Hardliners in the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were quick to lash out at Kerry.

One described his remarks as "offensive" and another accused him of working "to amplify" the boycott threat, prompting a terse statement from Washington urging Kerry's critics to get their facts straight.
But there was no sign they were backing down today.

"It is sad to see that the US administration does not understand the reality of the Middle East and exerts pressure on the wrong side in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," said Gilad Erdan, Minister for Home Front Defence and a close associate of Netanyahu.
"I would have liked John Kerry to explain to (Palestinian president) Mahmud Abbas what is likely to happen if he continues to refuse to make peace," he told public radio.
Housing Minister Uri Ariel of the far-right Jewish Home party, which opposes a two-state solution to the conflict, told army radio that in raising the threat of a boycott, Kerry was not being "an honest broker" in the negotiations.

Since January 1, the European Union has blocked all grants and funding to Israeli entities operating beyond the pre-1967 war lines, sparking growing alarm in Israel.
Netanyahu has called "hypocritical" the EU's firm position against Israeli settlements, which are illegal under international law.
Yesterday the prime minister took an indirect swipe at Kerry, saying attempts to boycott Israel were "immoral and unjust" and that he would not bow to pressure in the negotiations.