FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New York, NY, May 7 – On the day before Mother’s Day, 30 New Yorkers protested outside Lev Leviev’s Madison Avenue jewelry store against the illegal settlement construction by the Israeli billionaire and diamond mogul. The protesters called on shoppers to boycott Leviev even as residents from the West Bank village of Jayyous reported that a Leviev company, Leader Management and Development, continues to build settlement homes on Jayyous’ agricultural land. Following boycott pressure, one Leviev company, Africa Israel, stated in November 2010 that it had no plans to build additional Israeli settlements.

Riham Barghouti of Adalah-NY explained, “No diamond is worth the destruction of people’s lives. Millions of Palestinian mothers are unable to celebrate Mother’s Day because their children or husbands have been jailed or killed for opposing Israeli occupation, their farmland has been stolen for Israeli settlements or they have been forced to live as refugees in exile. As part of the global movement to boycott businesses that profit from Israeli apartheid, this protest aims to send a message of hope to Palestinian mothers.”