Tourists asked to boycott NZ over anti-Israel sign

Mustafa and Joanne Tekinkaya are making a personal protest. Photo / David Russell

Israelis are calling on tourists to boycott New Zealand after a second cafe owner said Israeli nationals were not welcome.

The owner of Invercargill's Mevlana Cafe caused a stir last week after refusing to serve two Israeli customers as a protest against Israel's bombing of Gaza.

Now Kaikoura cafe Strawberry Tree has put up a sign saying Israeli customers were not welcome.

Other Kaikoura business owners posted signs saying diners of any nationality were welcome.

Strawberry Tree owner Shane Cavanagh said while he would not ask Israelis to leave they were not welcome in his restaurant.

The sign was taken down last week and replaced by a death toll from the latest conflict, which has killed more than 1200 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.

Kaikoura Mayor Kevin Heays told the Dominion Post he was "extremely upset and angry" with the sign and leading Israeli website ynetnews.com had been inundated with messages calling for Israeli tourists to boycott New Zealand.

One message included the Strawberry Tree's address and phone number with the message: "Please call the owner and say `Hi from Israel'," the newspaper reported.

Mr Heays posted his own comment on the site, promising to "closely scrutinise" the bar owner's licence.

"I am taking legal and police steps to have the sign removed and I will be looking into making a complaint to the Human Rights Commission."

Mr Heays said he posted an apology to show the protest did not reflect the general view of the community.

"I've yet to speak to anyone who is in support of the public stand that he's making," he said.

- NZPA

How the Israeli media are reporting the story:
Ynet News
Jerusalem Post