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February 10, 2014 1:26 pm
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Disturbed Frontman David Draiman Blasts BDS ‘Harassment,’ Rips Emma Thompson for Siding With ‘BDS Nazis’

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avatar by Shiryn Ghermezian

David Draiman's Twitter graphic announcing support for Scarlett Johansson. Photo: Twitter/ David Draiman.

Jewish heavy metal rocker David Draiman took to Twitter Sunday, Feb. 9, to  condemn the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement for harassing one actress and then called out another star for siding with the global campaign.

“I support Scarlett Johansson’s endorsement of @SodaStreamUSA and condemn the BDS’ harassment of her,” he tweeted. He also uploaded a photo of himself that included text saying he supports the Her actress “against the haters.”

The musician’s tweet came in response to backlash Johansson received after starring in a commercial for SodaStream, an Israeli carbonated drinks maker. The company has a factory in an Israeli settlement, deemed objectionable by BDS activists.

The ad was featured during Super Bowl XLVIII on Sunday, Feb. 2 but was released online prior to the broadcast. Explaining her endorsement, the 29-year-old actress said the soda factory in the West Bank worked to bring peace between Israelis and Arabs by employing both on equal terms.

“SodaStream is a company that is not only committed to the environment but to building a bridge to peace between Israel and Palestine, supporting neighbors working alongside each other, receiving equal pay, equal benefits and equal rights,” Johansson said in a statement.

BDS brought international attention to her role as a spokesperson for SodaStream and the controversy ended her partnership with Oxfam, an anti-poverty organization opposed to any trade with Israeli companies in the West Bank.

Earlier on Sunday, Draiman called British actress Emma Thompson a “boycotter of Israel” via Twitter and accused her of siding with “BDS Nazis.” The Saving Mr. Banks star and other British actors said, in a letter published by Britain’s Guardian newspaper, that they are seeking to boycott Israel’s Habima Theater troupe from performing later this year in a theatrical festival at Shakespeare’s Globe Theater in London.

In the letter, Thompson and her colleagues accused Habima of having “a shameful record of involvement with illegal Israeli settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

Draiman also tweeted on Sunday an open letter to Thompson written by New Jersey attorney Stephen M. Flatow in opposition of her views.

“Yes, there are evil regimes that deserve to be boycotted. The apartheid regime of South Africa deserved it. So do the terrorists who rule Gaza. But democratic, peaceful, egalitarian Israel does not,” Flatow wrote.

Last July, Draiman took on fellow rocker Roger Waters after The Algemeiner reported on his use of an inflatable pig emblazoned with a Star of David at his concerts.

“I URGE ALL MY FOLLOWERS COLLEAGUES AND FRIENDS TO CONDEMN ROGER WATERS’ FLAGRANT DISPLAY OF ANTI-SEMITISM. RT,” he tweeted at the time. He also wrote: “ROGER WATERS…ANTI SEMITE.”

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