Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Advocacy group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has successfully forced Kuwait Airways to “pay substantial damages plus costs to an Israeli National who was refused a ticket on a Kuwait Airways flight from London to Bangkok on the grounds of her nationality.” Last November, Mandy Blumenthal, who holds Israeli and UK citizenship, attempted to buy a ticket at Heathrow Airport, but the Kuwait Airways ticket counter denied her request, saying, “Israeli passport holders are not permitted to travel on Kuwait Airways.” UKLFI helped Blumenthal sue the airline after the incident, which was caught on video. Kuwaiti law prohibits the airline from engaging in any commercial transactions with “entities or persons residing in Israel, or with Israeli citizenship.” The Lawfare Project has also brought attention to this discriminatory practice, bringing legal actions against the airline in multiple countries. In 2015, US Department of Transportation demanded that it stop barring Israelis from their flights. Instead of allowing Israeli citizens on their planes, the airline terminated their New York-London route. In 2016, the airline canceled their intra-European flights after the Lawfare Project took them to court in Switzerland. Their lawsuit in Germany was unfortunately not successful, as the court ruled that the airline had a right to bar Israelis from their flights, as it was “not reasonable” to demand that they violate Kuwaiti law. An appeal hearing is scheduled to take place in September. According to British law, it is unlawful to refuse a public service to an individual because of their nationality. Blumenthal found it unacceptable that she was denied service while on UK soil. Attorney David Berens said, “The law is clear: direct discrimination on grounds of nationality in the provision of a service to the public is illegal. Ms. Blumenthal has done a service in showing up Kuwait Airways’ illegal policy. Kuwait Airways is now legally obliged to end this policy or end its services from the UK altogether.” While Kuwait Airways has agreed to pay Blumenthal, they have not admitted liability. Blumenthal said, “It is horrible to be singled out, to be told you are not allowed to do something because of who you are. Having someone telling me that he is following instructions, that it is a rule, a policy gave me a sinking feeling inside. In my mind it is an antisemitic policy to single out the only Jewish State to boycott.”