The Chinese clothing company "Shein," a strong competitor to Amazon, surprised its customers by ceasing the sale of Israeli flags in solidarity with Palestine. Amid ongoing violent Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, the popular Chinese brand faced criticism from its Israeli customers for featuring Palestinian flags for sale, while searches for the Israeli flag yielded no results.
Many Israelis expressed their anger at this move and called for a boycott of the popular e-commerce platform. It seems that "Shein" has also recently removed Palestinian flags from its website. Reports indicated that "Shein" began terminating its professional partnerships with Israeli influencers on Instagram due to the continuous shelling in Gaza.
Influencers across Israel received an email stating: "Thank you for your support and love for Shein. Due to some adjustments, the launch date of the advertising campaign has been postponed, please refrain from posting about Shein. We will provide an update with more details and a new release date shortly."
Additionally, local media in Israel reported that all free shipping to Israel has been canceled, although the company's website still offers free shipping options. An Israeli influencer with 12,000 followers posted a story on Instagram last Wednesday, showing a package that arrived wrapped in red and green tape, which she claimed referenced the colors of the Palestinian flag.
Israeli media reported similar recent cases where many people received packages from "Shein" containing red and green tape. Israelis expressed their outrage at "Shein's" stance towards them, noting that this is the first time a major brand has shown solidarity with Palestinians. There has been no official comment from the Chinese company regarding Israeli criticisms, while Israeli media suggested that this move by the company is "punishment for Israel for the war it is waging on Gaza."
