In a landmark victory for the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, the Turkish operator of fast-food giants KFC and Pizza Hut has been declared bankrupt, succumbing to massive financial losses driven by a widespread consumer boycott over its parent company's ties to Israel.

The collapse of İş Gıda AŞ, which operated 537 outlets across Tütkiye, was finalized when the Istanbul Anadolu 1st Commercial Court of First Instance rejected the company's request for debt restructuring. The ruling seals the fate of the franchise, resulting in the layoffs of nearly 7,000 workers and the complete erasure of the Pizza Hut brand from the Turkish market.

The primary driver of this corporate collapse was a sustained and powerful grassroots boycott led by pro-Palestine activists and consumers across Türkiye. The campaign targeted the franchises due to the complicity of their parent company, Yum! Brands, in Israel’s apartheid regime and its ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Despite attempts by the corporation to downplay the impact, the boycott slashed sales by up to 30% in major cities, delivering a fatal blow to İş Gıda's already strained finances. The movement turned KFC and Pizza Hut into national symbols of the cost of complicity with a state accused of committing atrocity crimes.

“Yum! Brands bet on profiting from our markets while standing by a regime committing genocide. Today, the people have shown that complicity with Israel carries a heavy price,” activists declared.

The downfall of Yum! Brands' Turkish empire is part of a growing pattern of corporate accountability. It follows the recent withdrawals of major sportswear brands like Adidas, PUMA, and Italy’s Erreà from sponsorships with the Israel Football Association under similar BDS pressure.

This victory is grounded in international law. In 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued two landmark rulings, finding it plausible that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and declaring its decades-long occupation and settlement enterprise illegal. These rulings affirm the legal obligation for corporations not to contribute to such crimes.

The bankruptcy of a major franchise operator serves as a stark warning to other international companies: aligning with Israeli apartheid and genocide is not only morally indefensible but is also financially catastrophic. The power of organized consumer solidarity can dismantle even the most entrenched global brands.

This triumph belongs to the millions of conscious consumers who, armed with moral conviction, have proven that people power can shake corporate giants. As the remnants of İş Gıda are cleared from the Turkish market, the global boycott of Israel and its complicit partners is poised to intensify until justice is achieved, apartheid is dismantled, and Palestine is free. (ILKHA)