Selfridges has pulled an alleged “antisemitic” illuminated globe from sale at its flagship Oxford Street store following a backlash over the so-called “silencing” of Israel.
The rotating world map, which had been on display at the luxury London retailer, showed Palestine in capital letters, while Israel appeared only as a number with a corresponding entry in a separate key.
Neighbouring nations, including Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, were clearly labelled with their names and capitals visible on the product.
The department store confirmed it removed the item from its shelves several weeks ago after customers raised concerns about the cartographic representation.
Max Radford, a pro-Israel activist who lodged a formal complaint with the retailer, accused Selfridges of “cancelling” the Jewish state.
He claimed the luxury brand received more than 700 complaints about the product.
“It’s clearly a political move by the makers to erase Israel, and for Selfridges to stock such an item is disgraceful,” he said.
Mr Radford shared footage on social media showing himself highlighting the missing country name to a store employee.
The rotating world map showed Palestine in capital letters, while Israel appeared only as a number with a corresponding entry in a separate key
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“When I complained, they initially said that Israel was indicated by a number with the country listed in the key,” he explained.
“In that case, why is ‘Palestine’ spelt out on the map at the expense of Israel?”
The globe’s labelling system appeared to use inconsistent methodologies across different nations, per The Telegraph.
Cyprus, for instance, was marked by name despite Israel being more than double its size.
The department store confirmed it removed the item from its shelves
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FLICKRJordan, which spans approximately 34,000 square miles, was also represented by a number rather than its name, while Palestine – covering up to 2,400 square miles, including Gaza – was prominently displayed.
Mr Radford argued that the core issue was Palestine being “added at Israel’s expense” on the product.
One customer expressed their dismay on social media, writing: “I am disgusted this was on the shelves of your store. It is factually incorrect, and all stock of it needs to be disposed of.”
Another customer wrote: “Now I know we’ve lost the UK. As a Jewish woman, this breaks my heart.”
In an email to Mr Radford, the Selfridges customer services team confirmed that the product had been withdrawn.
They explained that the supplier had verified that the globe used a cartographic method in which certain countries, including Israel, were numbered rather than named.
“It’s extremely important to us that we create an environment where everyone feels welcome, and our customers can shop with us in confidence,” the retailer stated.
“It would never be our intention to cause offence, which is why we made the decision to remove the item from sale.”