Green headbands resembling those seen being worn by Hamas terrorists are being sold on Etsy, the online marketplace that bills itself as a platform for "handmade pieces" and "vintage treasures", the JC can reveal.
The distinctive headbands, which feature white Arabic lettering, are being sold on the ecommerce platform for £12 by a US-based vendor and have been labelled a "bestseller", indicating a high volume of sales over the past six months.
The "distressing" discovery comes after numerous examples of anti-Israel merchandise were spotted for sale on Etsy, and its multinational rival Amazon in the wake of the October 7 terror attacks.
The distinctive Hamas headband has been replicated and is being sold online (Photo: Getty)
On 11 November, two individuals were seen wearing similar headbands during an anti-Israel demonstration in London. The Metropolitan Police said they were seeking "two people in relation to a hate crime".
Expressing support for Hamas, a proscribed terrorist organisation, is a criminal offence in the UK.
Caroline Turner, director of UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), said: "At a time of rising antisemitism, it is extremely distressing to see these Hamas-style terrorist headbands openly being sold on Etsy.
“Selling the Hamas-style headband on Etsy promotes the illegal activity of wearing Hamas military paraphernalia. There is no reason why these items should remain on sale on Etsy's website given that they are in breach of [Etsy's] own policy guidelines and that selling such items and wearing the items in public can be a criminal offence."
Etsy's "prohibited items policy" states that the platform has a “zero tolerance policy for prohibited items, particularly those that promote, support or glorify hatred, those that promote, support or glorify violence, or are unlawful".
Sellers who violate these rules can see their Etsy accounts immediately suspended or terminated.
Elsewhere on Etsy, sweatshirts featuring the words "Make Israel Palestine again" are available while on Amazon customers can buy items including T-shirts, mugs and posters that bear the slogan "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" - which is broadly understood to be a call for the destruction of Israel.
Amazon said it did not plan to remove the products from sale. Etsy did not respond to requests for comment.
