* Celebrities Javier Bardem, Susan Abulhawa, Fatima Bhutto, others back sanction of sportswear giant
Turkish Palestine solidarity group condemns campaign featuring former Israeli soldier as thousands of Palestinians face amputations and life changing injuries in Gaza.
The ANFİDAP Boycott Working Group has joined calls for a boycott of Adidas after the sportswear giant featured a former Israeli army soldier in a campaign promoting its single shoe service for people who have lost limbs.
The campaign features Shalev Biton, a former Israeli soldier who lost his leg after being wounded during the 2021 Israel Gaza conflict. He is shown trying on a shoe at an Adidas store in Israel before wearing it while running outdoors.
The campaign has triggered criticism from pro-Palestine activists and boycott campaigners, who say the decision to feature a former Israeli soldier is particularly insensitive while thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have lost limbs during Israel’s attacks.
ANFİDAP condemned the decision, saying it ignored the suffering of Palestinians, including children and civilians who have been left with severe injuries and amputations.
“Adidas’ decision is an indication of a double standard that ignores the indescribable pain experienced by Palestinians who have lost their limbs in Gaza and disregards the tragedy they have endured,” the group said.
The organisation said the controversy went beyond an advertising campaign, arguing that it raised questions about whose suffering is made visible and whose pain is considered worthy of recognition.
It questioned why Palestinians who lost their limbs during the attacks were not represented in a campaign centred on limb loss, while a former Israeli army soldier was placed at its centre.
Gaza’s amputee crisis
The criticism comes against the backdrop of a major amputation crisis in Gaza. The World Health Organisation estimated that between 5,000 and 6,000 people in Gaza had undergone amputations by early October 2025.
They were among about 42,000 Palestinians who had sustained life changing injuries during the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza, according to figures cited by Al Jazeera.
UNICEF has also reported that 42,000 Palestinians have suffered life altering injuries since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October 2023, including about 11,000 children.
Children accounted for about a quarter of all amputations in Gaza over the two year period, according to the International Rescue Committee.
The crisis has been compounded by the destruction of medical facilities and shortages of medical supplies, including prosthetics and rehabilitation services.
Campaigners have also highlighted the difficulties facing Palestinian amputees trying to regain mobility and rebuild their lives amid the destruction of Gaza’s health system.
Activists condemn campaign
Stephanie Westbrook, a sports boycott campaigns coordinator for the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, described the Adidas campaign as an affront to Palestinians who have lost loved ones and limbs during Israeli attacks.
Westbrook said the campaign risked normalising Israel’s actions against Palestinians.
She also pointed to the contrast between the advertisement, which shows Biton returning to exercise and running, and the reality facing Palestinian amputees who struggle to access prosthetics and rehabilitation.
Hundreds of Palestinian footballers and aspiring athletes have lost limbs and formed amputee football teams, using the sport to cope with their injuries and recover aspects of their former lives.
More than 1,000 Palestinian athletes have also been killed during Israel’s war on Gaza, according to Al Jazeera.
Wider boycott calls
The controversy has prompted boycott calls beyond ANFİDAP.
Spanish actor Javier Bardem has backed the boycott campaign, while US Palestinian author Susan Abulhawa, Pakistani author Fatima Bhutto and Palestinians on social media have also called for a boycott of Adidas products.
ANFİDAP said Adidas’ decision was particularly troubling because of the scale of Palestinian limb loss and the continuing difficulties faced by amputees in Gaza.
The group also questioned how the company could place a former Israeli army soldier at the centre of an amputee campaign while Palestinians injured during the conflict remained without adequate medical care and prosthetic support.
Adidas apologises
Adidas has apologised following the backlash over the campaign.
The company said it did not intend to cause offence and that its single shoe service was designed to support people with limb differences.
However, ANFİDAP said the apology did not remove what it described as the company’s moral and ethical responsibility.
“An apology does not eliminate the moral and ethical responsibility that has arisen. It is not enough to dismiss the public reaction with only an apology,” the group said.
The boycott group said it would not consider the matter resolved without satisfactory answers to the questions raised over the campaign.
ANFİDAP calls for boycott
ANFİDAP subsequently announced that it would boycott Adidas and called on the Turkish public and others to stop purchasing the company’s products.
“As the ANFİDAP Boycott Working Group, we protest Adidas’ attitude and announce to the public that we have decided to boycott the Adidas brand,” it said.
The group urged members of the public to share the boycott call, saying the loss of a limb or a life in Gaza should not be treated as a Palestinian issue alone.
“Because we believe that a torn off arm, a lost leg or a life extinguished in Gaza is not only the suffering of a Palestinian. That suffering is the shared suffering of humanity,” ANFİDAP said.
“We will not remain silent. We will not forget. We will not normalise it.
“We are boycotting Adidas. We call on the public to boycott Adidas as well.”
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