McDonalds Malaysia says pursuing legal action against BDS for defamation

KUALA LUMPUR: Legal action for defamation is being pursued against Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Malaysia says McDonalds Malaysia.

It said in a statement issued on Friday (Dec 29) that it has been transparent and consistent in its stance that it does not support or condone the current conflict in Gaza.

"Like all Malaysians, our utmost sympathies go out to the innocent victims in Gaza. We have contributed RM1mil to the Palestinian Humanitarian Fund launched by the government and will continue to pray for the end of the conflict and continued peace in Gaza, " it added.

McDonald's Malaysia further reiterated that they do not channel any sales, profits, royalties or franchise fees from restaurant operations to support any political cause or conflict in any part of the world.

"While we understand and respect that the act of boycotting is an individual decision, we believe that it should be based on true facts and not false allegations," they said.

The pro-Palestine BDS Malaysia said that Gerbang Alaf Restaurants Sdn Bhd, the licensee of the chain in Malaysia, had issued a writ of summons to the group in November.

"They (McDonald’s Malaysia) claim their business has suffered lately and are blaming us. We categorically deny this and have therefore decided to let the court decide on the matter,” it said in a statement shared on the movement’s X (formerly Twitter) account.

McDonald’s along with other US-linked fast food chains and brands have been subjected to massive boycotts by locals over the past few months since Israel began its attack on Gaza earlier this year.