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Johnson expected to introduce law banning councils from BDS
Former Tory MP and special envoy for post-holocaust issues Eric Pickles said the ‘Boycott, divestment and sanctions’ movement is ‘anti-semitic and should be treated as such’
An Israeli soldier aims his weapon at Palestinian demonstrators during a protest in the West Bank city of Hebron

BORIS JOHNSON is expected to unveil legislation banning local councils from boycotting products from foreign countries including Israel in the Queen’s speech on Thursday. 

Announcing the plans in Jerusalem on Sunday, former Tory MP and special envoy for post-holocaust issues Eric Pickles claimed: “Boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) is anti-semitic and should be treated as such." 

But campaigners have hit out at the new law, arguing that it kowtows to Israel’s global campaign to shut down BDS, which “seeks to hold Israel accountable for its violations of Palestinian rights and of international law.”

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