LONDON: Delta Air Lines has sparked controversy by appearing to support a post on X claiming that Palestine flag pins worn by two of its cabin crew members were “Hamas badges.”

In a now-deleted response, the US carrier’s account seemed to validate a user’s accusation that its staff were allowed to wear “Hamas badges in the air.”

The company wrote: “I hear you and I’d be terrified as well, personally. Our employees reflect our culture and we do not take it lightly when our policy is not being followed.”

It added in another reply: “Nothing to worry, this is being investigated already, particularly the involved parties.”

The incident reportedly occurred during a flight last Friday between Boston and West Palm Beach in Florida.

The photo showing crew members wearing Palestine flag pins initially surfaced on the social media platform and was subsequently shared by several pro-Israel advocacy groups, including StopAntisemitism, which humorously suggested that Delta was opening “a new summer route” to Palestine.

The account also shared images from one of the flight attendant’s personal Instagram pages.

Delta Air Line’s response triggered an outcry on X, with users calling for a boycott of the airline over its handling of the situation.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations urged Delta to apologize for the post, describing it as a “racist anti-Palestinian tweet.”

CAIR Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said in a statement on Thursday: “Whether this racist post on Delta’s X account was approved or unauthorized, Delta must apologize and take steps to educate its employees about this type of dangerous anti-Palestinian racism.”

The incident adds to a series of controversies involving the American carrier, including previous criticism over alleged discrimination, particularly against Muslims.

In a reported incident in May, media outlets revealed that Delta staff had asked a Jewish activist to cover up a T-shirt reading “Jews say ceasefire now” during a flight.

LONDON: The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, said that it’s accepting the commitments that Apple offered earlier this year and will make them legally binding.
The commission had accused Apple in 2022 of abusing its dominant position by limiting access to its mobile payment technology.
Apple responded by proposing in January to allow third-party mobile wallet and payment service providers access to the contactless payment function in its iOS operating system. After Apple tweaked its proposals following testing and feedback, the commission said those “final commitments” would address its competition concerns.
“Today’s commitments end our Apple Pay investigation,” Margrethe Vestager, the commission’s executive vice president for competition policy, told a press briefing in Brussels. “The commitments bring important changes to how Apple operates in Europe to the benefit of competitors and customers.”
The deal promises more choice for Europeans. iPhone users will be able to set a default wallet of their choice while mobile wallet developers will be able to use important iPhone verification functions like Face ID, Vestager said.
Mobile wallets rely on near-field communication, or NFC, which uses a chip to wirelessly communicate with a merchant’s payment terminal.
The commission had charged the company with denying others access to Apple Pay, which it said is the biggest NFC-based mobile wallet on the market.
The changes that Apple is making are to remain in force for a decade, will apply throughout the bloc’s 27 countries plus Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, and will be monitored by a trustee.
Apple must make the changes in the EU by July 25.
“As of this date, developers will be able to offer a mobile wallet on the iPhone with the same “tap and go” experience that so far has been reserved for Apple Pay,” Vestager said.
Apple said in a prepared statement that it is “providing developers in the European Economic Area with an option to enable NFC contactless payments and contactless transactions” for uses like car keys, corporate badges, hotel keys, and concert tickets.
Breaches of EU competition law can draw fines worth up to 10 percent of a company’s annual global revenue, which in Apple’s case, could have amounted to tens of billions of dollars.