We’re very excited and really proud to announce that Apartheid Free Zone campaign has recruited more than 500 small businesses, unions, civil society and community groups, artistic collectives, sporting organisations, and many other spaces and places across Ireland.
They join thousands of other Apartheid Free Zones (AFZs) around the world all engaged in active solidarity with the Palestinian freedom struggle.
An AFZ is a space, place, business, group or collective that publicly commits to supporting the principles of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestments and Sanctions (BDS) movement, to boycotting Israeli products and institutions, and international companies that are complicit in, or profit from, Israel’s international law violations and human rights abuses.
The list includes 400 local businesses, restaurants, and cafes, almost 100 civil society organisations and trade unions, and more than 50 cultural spaces or collectives. It also incorporates 20 municipal councils, and a number of students’ unions that have voted to become AFZs, or to support the BDS Movement.
You can see the full list of 523 AFZs on the Apartheid Free Zones Ireland website here.
From architects to artists’ studios, trade unions to theatres, and cafés to councils, the Apartheid Free Zone movement is growing every day – in towns, cities and communities across Ireland.
Together, these 500+ AFZs are answering the Palestinian call to escalate BDS until Palestinians enjoy freedom, justice and equality.
None of this would have been possible without the work of our incredible volunteers, who have been out in communities across Ireland explaining BDS and helping people become AFZs. This huge milestone belongs to every one of you – thank you!
AFZs almost double in 2026
In January, we officially launched our new interactive map, showcasing the then 280 shops, restaurants, businesses, community organisations, trade unions and local councils that had pledged to become Apartheid Free Zones.
In the eight months since, the Apartheid Free community across Ireland has almost doubled, now standing at 523 AFZs, with more signing up every day.
In choosing to become Apartheid Free Zones, businesses, groups, organisations, unions, local government bodies and others are asserting their collective power by stepping up and doing what the Irish government refuses to do: ending trade with Israel and companies complicit in war crimes, and refusing to normalise genocide and apartheid. They are standing with our Palestinian sisters and brothers in their struggle for freedom
Unfortunately it seems in the vast majority of cases where a local council has voted to support BDS, the democratic mandate has been ignored by bureaucrats happy to continue their complicity. We strongly urge all councils in Ireland, whether they already have a BDS mandate or otherwise to work to implement and enforce strong ethical procurement policies that will end any complicity.
We will continue growing the AFZ community around Ireland, building an Apartheid and Genocide-Free Ireland from the grassroots up. We look forward to welcoming more sports clubs, unions, city and county councils sign into the campaign – and encourage anyone who is interested to find out more and to sign up today!
Apartheid Free Zones is a joint initiative of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Trade Union Friends of Palestine, Academics for Palestine, Jews for Palestine – Ireland, Gaza Action Ireland, Comhlámh Justice for Palestine, Kairos Ireland, Praxis – The Artists’ Union of Ireland, Apartheid-Free Arts, and is supported by the Palestinian Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.