Operational Friction: Israelis Report Quiet Discrimination Across Global Services

In recent months, Israelis have reported a growing pattern of operational friction with Western businesses—issues that stop short of formal sanctions yet create a palpable sense of exclusion. Author Rachel Fishman Feddersen chronicles encounters with a leading UK bank, a U.S. e‑commerce giant, a British airline, and several academic institutions.

The first incident unfolded with NatWest, one of Britain’s largest banks. In spring 2025, the bank ceased sending authentication texts to Israeli phone numbers. When Fishman’s mobile app failed to recognize her Israeli number, customer‑service representatives offered contradictory explanations. A promised physical card reader for secure logins was repeatedly delayed, and a representative finally admitted that NatWest was not mailing card readers to Israel. When she asked whether other countries were affected, the bank declined to answer. A later spokesperson said the restrictions were part of broader fraud‑prevention measures, not a political boycott.

A second case involved Amazon. In early 2024, Fishman ordered a novel that arrived damaged and clearly used, despite being listed as new. Amazon’s customer service agreed to replace the book but then told her the address was “not on the map” and only saw “Palestine.” The line was disconnected. Fishman reached out to Amazon’s press office multiple times but never received a clear explanation of the representative’s remarks. The issue was later ignored.

British Airways’ experience was more overt. After the airline cancelled flights between Tel Aviv and London in 2025 following a Houthi missile strike near Ben‑Gurion Airport, Fishman and her wife had to re‑book at significant personal cost. The airline’s response involved contradictory replies, partial refunds, and compensation offers that were far below the ticket value. Only after Fishman identified herself as a journalist did the airline’s press office respond. The airline offered a third of the ticket price and did not issue an apology.

These commercial cases mirror a similar climate in academia. A report by the Technion notes that the academic boycott of Israel, once a visible protest, has shifted to a more diffuse atmosphere of exclusion. Jewish students in Sweden reported hiding their identities in academic settings. A British survey found that roughly one in five students would not want to live with a Jewish roommate. In Canada, campus activism moved from symbolic rhetoric to demands that universities sever ties with Israeli institutions and withdraw investments.

Fishman’s friend, Bar Harel, experienced harassment at the University of Coimbra in Portugal. After reporting antisemitic graffiti and pro‑Hamas slogans, Harel was threatened online, publicly vilified, physically assaulted near campus, and told his family to “burn in a second Holocaust.” University authorities largely deflected responsibility. Only after Harel fled Portugal, following advice from Israeli and American diplomats, did the state ombudsman issue a report stating the university had a “posture of fundamental passivity” and failed to investigate the harassment.

None of these incidents alone prove anti‑Israel discrimination. Banks can mishandle customers; airlines can fail passengers; customer‑service departments can malfunction. Together, however, they illustrate a new atmosphere in which Israeli customers encounter operational obstacles without clear explanations.

The broader context includes the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to pressure Israel to meet its obligations under international law. Critics of BDS argue that it is antisemitic, a claim the movement rejects. Many Western governments have enacted anti‑BDS laws that penalise organisations engaging in boycotts of Israel. The Arab League historically maintained a boycott of Israel, but most member states ended it in the 1990s, with only Syria and Lebanon still enforcing it.

Fishman does not offer definitive answers about the causes of the reported friction. Possible factors include antisemitism, protest against Israel’s actions in recent wars, or reactions to the current right‑wing government. She notes that Israelis are losing the global narrative at a rapid pace, and that formal boycotts could follow if the trend continues.

In sum, Israelis are encountering a pattern of operational friction across banking, e‑commerce, aviation, and academia. While no formal sanctions have been announced, the cumulative effect creates a sense of exclusion that could influence future diplomatic and economic relations.