The decision marks the second such divestment since the fund’s Council on Ethics adopted stricter ethical guidelines in August 2023 for companies involved in Israel’s activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has sold all its shares in Israel’s Paz Retail and Energy, reportedly over the company’s involvement in the supply of fuel to illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
According to a press statement on the website of Norges Bank Investment Management, its Executive Board “decided to exclude the company Paz Retail and Energy Ltd due to an unacceptable risk that the company contributes to serious violations of the rights of individuals in war or conflict.”
“The decision is based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 19 December 2024,” it added.
Norway’s Norges Bank Investment Management, which is the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, has sold all of its shares in Israel’s Paz Retail and Energy because it owns and operates infrastructure for the supply of fuel to Israeli illegal settlements in the West Bank.
The… pic.twitter.com/cKRaH6BBnB
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) May 12, 2025
The decision, announced on Sunday, marks the second such divestment since the fund’s Council on Ethics adopted stricter ethical guidelines in August 2023 for companies involved in Israel’s activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.
“By operating infrastructure for the supply of fuel to the Israeli settlements on the West Bank, Paz is contributing to their perpetuation,” the fund’s Council on Ethics watchdog said, according to the Reuters news agency.
“The settlements have been established in violation of international law, and their perpetuation constitutes an ongoing violation thereof,” the fund reportedly added.
Second Divestment
Israel’s largest operator of petrol stations, Paz has nine stations in the West Bank.
The fund, the world’s largest, divested from Bezeq, the Israeli telecommunications firm, in December.
On the Logic of Boycott and Normalization: Towards Palestinian Liberation
The fund owns 1.5% of listed shares across 9,000 companies globally and operates under guidelines set by Norway’s parliament, according to Reuters.
The news agency reported, citing the fund’s own data, that it “held stocks worth 22 billion crowns ($2.10 billion) across 65 companies listed on the Tel Aviv stock exchange at the end of 2024. ”
Labor Union Votes for Boycott
On Friday, Norway’s largest labor federation, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), voted in favor of a comprehensive boycott of Israel, including a ban on trade and investment with Israeli companies.
The decision was passed with an overwhelming 88 percent majority during LO’s national congress, held in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, from May 8 to 9.
Overwhelming Majority – Norway’s Largest Trade Union Votes for Boycott of Israel
Palestinian resistance factions, including Hamas, welcomed the move by the labor federation.
In a statement, Hamas said it considers the move “a courageous step that aligns with truth and justice and a victory for the rights of the Palestinian people.”
The movement called on labor and trade unions worldwide “to emulate this ethical stance and isolate the fascist entity and expose its crimes against humanity.”
Ongoing Genocidal Assault
Since Israel’s reneging on the ceasefire on March 18, it has killed and wounded thousands of Palestinians throughout the Gaza Strip through a bloody and ongoing aerial bombardment.
On October 7, 2023, following a Palestinian Resistance operation in southern Israel, the Israeli military launched a genocidal war against the Palestinians, killing over 52,000, wounding more than 118,000, with over 14,000 still missing.
At least 15 Palestinians, including women and children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced people in Jabaliya.https://t.co/9eFafzxk7x pic.twitter.com/7Y1olSZ9Gq
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) May 12, 2025
Despite habitual condemnation by many countries around the world of the Israeli genocide, little has been done to hold Israel accountable.
Israel is currently under investigation for the crime of genocide by the International Court of Justice, while accused war criminals — including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — are now officially wanted by the International Criminal Court.
The Israeli genocide has been largely defended, supported, and financed by Washington and a few other Western powers.
(PC, Al Mayadeen, Agencies)
Be the first to comment