VIDEO: Protest In Support Of Palestine Held Outside McDonald’s Outlet In Pune’s Katraj Area

As part of a coordinated nationwide protest, demonstrators gathered outside a McDonald’s outlet in Pune’s Katraj area on Tuesday, calling for a boycott of the fast-food chain in solidarity with Palestine. The protest was organized under the banner of Indian People in Solidarity with Palestine (IPSP), which is spearheading the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement in India.

Similar protests were held in cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Patna, Chandigarh, Vijayawada, Rohtak, and Visakhapatnam. The demonstrations were aimed at raising awareness about the alleged role of global corporations like McDonald’s in supporting the Israeli military, which activists accuse of carrying out war crimes and a genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza.

What do protestors say?

According to protestors, McDonald’s franchises in Israel have reportedly provided free and discounted meals to Israeli soldiers, making the company complicit in the violence. IPSP has previously led similar campaigns against other multinational companies such as Starbucks, Dominos, Tata’s Zudio, and Reliance Retail.

Twenty Palestinians were killed on Wednesday in a crowd crush at a food distribution site in Gaza run by an American organization supported by Israel — marking the first time the group has acknowledged fatalities at one of its operations. In addition to the incident, Israeli airstrikes claimed the lives of 41 more people, including 11 children, according to hospital authorities.

Talks between Israel and Hamas in Qatar’s capital have stalled, as the war nears 21 months since it began with a cross-border attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023. On that day, around 1,200 people—mostly civilians—were killed, and 251 were taken hostage. Most of the captives have since been released through ceasefire deals or negotiations, though around 50 remain in captivity, with fewer than half believed to be alive.

In response, Israel launched a large-scale military campaign that has killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, part of the Hamas-run administration, reports that women and children make up more than half of those killed. While it does not differentiate between civilians and militants in its figures, the United Nations and other international agencies regard its casualty data as the most credible available.

Published on: Wednesday, July 16, 2025, 06:58 PM IST