Coca Cola has donated millions to the anti-Israel group Oxfam International, which is currently backing a campaign to boycott an Israeli soda company that competes directly with Coke.
Oxfam has taken the lead in recent days in a campaign to boycott SodaStream, an Israeli-based beverage manufacturer that is under fire from supporters of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
The battle between SodaStream and BDS supporters has heated up in recent days after actress Scarlett Johansson severed her ties with Oxfam over its anti-Israel activism.
BDS supporters have also gone after Johansson, who is currently serving as SodaStream’s spokesperson.
One of SodaStream’s most prominent competitors—the Coca Cola company—has donated more than $2.5 million to Oxfam over the past several years, leading some to wonder if Coke is supporting Oxfam as a means to defeat the competition.
"In 2011, Coca Cola contributed $400,000 to a research project ‘analyzing the poverty footprint of beverage giant Coca Cola and multinational bottling company SABMiller in Zambia and El Salvador’ and, in addition, $2.5 million in 2008-2010 for humanitarian work," the website Israellycool.com reported on Friday.
"The question remains: Is Oxfam’s opposition to SodaStream and Scarlett Johansson’s role as brand ambassador due to their anti-Israel bias or pro-Coke bias?" the website asks.
Neither Coca-Cola nor Oxfam responded to requests for comment.
PepsiCo spokesperson Jeff Dahncke declined to comment when reached by the Washington Free Beacon.