OSLO (Dispatches) – Norway’s largest pension fund announced it has divested assets in 16 companies for their links to Zionist settlements in the occupied West Bank, including telecom equipment giant Motorola.
“In KLP’s assessment, there is an unacceptable risk that the excluded companies are contributing to the abuse of human rights in situations of war and conflict through their links with the Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank,” KLP, which manages some $95bn worth of assets, said in a statement on Monday.
The companies, which span telecoms, banking, energy and construction, all help facilitate the Zionist regime’s presence and therefore risk being complicit in breaches of international law, and against KLP’s ethical guidelines, it said.
Divesting from Motorola Solutions is “a very straightforward decision over its surveillance role in the occupied territories”, KLP said.
“Motorola and other companies risk complicity in international law violations in occupied Palestine,” KLP added, arguing the company provides software used in surveillance.
The divestment follows the February 2020 UN publication of a list of 112 companies with activities linked to the settlements, considered illegal under international law.
The publication of the list – which included companies like Airbnb, Expedia, and Tripadvisor – has angered the Zionist regime.
KLP also divested telecom operators offering services within the occupied West Bank as they contributed to making “the settlements attractive residential areas”.
These included Altice Europe, Bezeq, Cellcom Israel and Partner Communications.
Also included are five banks that facilitated or financed the construction of housing and infrastructure in occupied territories, as well as engineering and construction groups, including the French multinational Alstom.
Ashtrom and Electra were responsible for building the infrastructure, while Paz Oil helped power them.