World
Has Israel changed the barcode number on its products due to boycotts?
On social media, calls have been increasing to stop buying goods and services from Israel. But are they based on facts?
Multiple social media posts claim to show how to identify products coming from Israel.
These posts explain that if the barcode starts with the number 729, 841, or 871, these products have been manufactured in Israel.
Many of these posts ask their followers to avoid buying any of these items to show support for Palestine.
Another campaign on the social media platforms TikTok and also X, claims the boycott of products starting with the number 729 has caused Israel to change its barcode prefix to 871 and 841.
A prefix number does not indicate where a product has been manufactured
But GS1, a nonprofit standards organisation that provides the numbers, says on its website the prefixes cannot be used to determine a product’s country of origin.
“The GS1 Prefix does not indicate that the product was manufactured in a specific country or by a specific manufacturer; it may have been produced anywhere in the world.”
That means the code only indicates the country from which the barcode was allocated.
And while it’s true the prefix 729 shows that a company is registered in Israel, that doesn’t mean a specific item was produced there.
When it comes to claims that Israel has changed its barcode to 871 and 841, that’s simply not true.
Barcodes starting with 841 are allocated from Spain and 871 from the Netherlands, according to GS1.
In an interview with AFP, a GS1 spokesperson explained that “Companies around the world can choose any of the 116 GS1 Member Organisations they want to work with, regardless of where they are based or where they produce their products.”
“This means that any company no matter where it’s based can work with GS1 Israel or any of the 116 GS1 Member Organisations,” said the spokesperson.
Calls to boycott Israeli products with a barcode prefix 729 have been circulating online for several years.
They tend to resurface when there is an escalation between Israel and Palestine, according to Logically, a UK-based company specialising in fighting disinformation.
The Israel-Hamas war has sparked numerous calls for boycotts on social media, many involving misinformation.
The Cube has previously debunked false claims related to brands such as Starbucks and Zara, that have faced boycotts for allegedly supporting Israel.
World
Hantavirus-stricken cruise ship arrives at Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands
TENERIFE, Spain (AP) — A hantavirus-stricken cruise ship with more than 140 people on board has arrived at Tenerife, the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands, off the coast of West Africa, where the passengers and some of the crew are to disembark.
The World Health Organization, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expeditions have said that nobody on board the MV Hondius is currently showing symptoms of the virus. Three people have died since the outbreak, and five passengers who left the ship are infected with hantavirus, which can cause life-threatening illness.
As a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship is set to arrive at Granadilla port in Tenerife, Spain on Sunday morning, the WHO, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expedition are coordinating the disembarkation of passengers and some crew on ground.
The ship will not dock but will remain at anchor, with people ferried off in small boats. Everyone disembarking will be checked for symptoms, and will only be taken off the ship once evacuation flights are ready to fly them to their destinations.
There are currently people of more than 20 different nationalities on board.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, along with Spain’s health and interior ministers, were to be supervising the evacuation of the ship. Authorities have said the passengers and crew members who will disembark will have no contact with the local population.
Hantavirus usually spreads when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings and isn’t easily transmitted between people. But the Andes virus detected in the cruise ship outbreak may be able to spread between people in rare cases. Symptoms usually show between one and eight weeks after exposure.
World
North Korea updates constitution to require automatic nuclear strike if Kim Jong Un is assassinated: report
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North Korea has updated its constitution to require a retaliatory nuclear strike if leader Kim Jong Un is assassinated, according to a report.
The Telegraph reported the change comes amid heightened global tensions following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other officials during a recent conflict.
Khamenei was killed in an Israeli strike in Tehran as part of a coordinated U.S.-Israeli military operation earlier this year, Fox News Digital previously reported.
The constitutional revision was approved during a session of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly, which opened March 22 in Pyongyang, the outlet said.
ISRAEL TARGETS IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER IN SWEEPING STRIKES AS US JOINS ‘OPERATION EPIC FURY’
North Korea launched two cruise missiles and three anti-ship missiles from the destroyer Choe Hyon on Sunday, April 12, 2026, according to North Korean state media. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP)
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) briefed senior government officials this week on the update, according to the report.
The revised policy outlines procedures for retaliatory action if North Korea’s leadership is incapacitated or killed.
“If the command-and-control system over the state’s nuclear forces is placed in danger by hostile forces’ attacks … a nuclear strike shall be launched automatically and immediately,” the updated provision states.
KIM JONG UN CALLS SOUTH KOREA ‘MOST HOSTILE ENEMY,’ SAYS NORTH COULD ‘COMPLETELY DESTROY’ IT
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech at the inauguration ceremony of Saeppyol Street in Pyongyang on Feb. 15, 2026. (KCNA via KNS/AFP)
Reuters previously reported that North Korea revised its constitution to define its territory as bordering South Korea and remove references to reunification, reflecting Kim’s push to formally treat the two Koreas as separate states.
That marked the first time North Korea included a territorial clause in its constitution.
Last month, Kim pledged to further strengthen the country’s nuclear capabilities while maintaining a hard-line stance toward South Korea, which he has called the “most hostile” state.
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Kim Jong Un reportedly observed missile test launches in North Korea on Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service)
Kim has also accused the United States of “state terrorism and aggression,” and signaled North Korea could take a more active role in opposition to Washington amid rising global tensions.
Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
World
Iran warns US against attacks on tankers; Israel kills dozens in Lebanon
US-Iran ceasefire holds as Tehran warns Washington against attacks on tankers and Israel kills 24 people in Lebanon.
Published On 10 May 2026
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