RIYADH, 9 May — A campaign to boycott US products in the Kingdom is affecting local businesses, with sales dropping drastically.
The campaign, to protest US support for Israel, is being conducted from mosques, schools and universities, and through newspapers, the Internet and mobile phone text messages urging consumers to shun products originating from the United States.
The Saudi "boycott US" drive mirrors a similar campaign which gathered momentum in several parts of the Arab world at the peak of Israel’s invasion of Palestinian lands that began March 29.
Imams at mosques have been urging worshipers to drop US consumer goods in favor of other products, saying that supporting the US economy amounts to killing Palestinians and other Muslims under attack.
Young Saudi boys stand in front of major shopping malls to distribute flyers and leaflets containing a long list of brand names that must be boycotted "in support of our Palestinian brothers."
"I have never seen such an organized anti-US campaign in the Kingdom. It looks as if everyone is involved, from school students to religious scholars," a Saudi businessman said.
"Two days ago, a carefully prepared 20-page file was thrown into my house, containing all the information about US products that we should stop buying. They are well organized," the businessman added.
Mobile phone owners have received millions of messages exhorting them to join the boycott. "The least you can do is boycott US products," reads one message. "Don’t be a partner in crime ... With each dollar you pay (to buy US goods) you kill a Palestinian," says another in reference to US arms supplies to Israel.
People have also been bombarded with e-mails explaining which companies they should boycott and giving a background on many of those firms and their links with Israel.
The campaign is especially hurting business at fast food franchises, sales of soft drinks, and a wide range of consumer goods, including US-made vehicles.
Al-Watan newspaper quoted traders in Riyadh as reporting a drop of 20 to 30 percent in the sales of US products. An operations manager at a fast-food chain in Riyadh said many of the US chains were facing difficult times after their sales dropped by more than 40 percent.
"They are trying to cope with the crisis by offering unprecedented huge promotions, and trying to dissociate themselves from the American connection," the manager, requesting anonymity, said.
Burger King, McDonald’s and other fast-food chains have a total of more than 300 outlets across the Kingdom, concentrated mainly in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam.
The Saudi franchise of Burger King has published a huge color advertisement in the local press saying that all its products are entirely Saudi, and combined that with a lucrative promotion.
A Saudi food company that imports US rice splashed posters across the capital saying it would donate one riyal to the Palestinians for each bag it sells. Other firms have been actively advertising their huge donations for the Palestinians during a fund-raising campaign last month which collected some $160 million.
Saudi Arabia is the United States’ main trading partner in the Middle East with US exports valued at $6.2 billion and imports at $14.2 billion in 2000, according to official figures.
The Kingdom is the second largest importer of American goods after Israel in the Middle East, but tops the list of exporters.
