By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

The decision was passed with an overwhelming 88 percent majority during the labor federation’s national congress.

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), the country’s largest labor federation, has 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, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Al Jazeera reported that Norway’s largest trade union, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions, voted at its general conference to expand its boycott of Israel, including a ban on trade and investment with Israeli companies.

This is not the first time the union has… pic.twitter.com/XQK0iegBYF

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) May 9, 2025

The Palestine Committee of Norway also announced the move on its Instagram page, saying the LO “will introduce an economic boycott of Israel, with 240 votes for economic boycott, and 69 votes against.”

It said the resolution “means that LO now requires that the State Pension Fund abroad, Norwegian companies and financial institutions withdraw from companies that contribute to the Israeli occupation.”

“The resolution shows strong support among LO’s one million members to introduce boycott, divestment and sanctions,” it added.

Hamas Welcomes Decision

Palestinian resistance factions, including Hamas, welcomed the move by labor federation.

In a statement, Hamas said it “highly values the decision by the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions to boycott the zionist occupation and ban trade and investment with its companies.”

The movement said it considers the move “a courageous step that aligns with truth and justice and a victory for the rights of the Palestinian people.”

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“Hamas calls on labor and trade unions worldwide to emulate this ethical stance and isolate the fascist entity and expose its crimes against humanity,” the statement added.

The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) as well as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) also welcomed the decision and urged labor unions to escalate the boycott.

The DFLP called for “pension funds, companies, and financial institutions to refrain from investing in firms complicit in occupation,” while the PFLP said the move “confirms the zionist entity’s increasing international isolation after its genocidal crimes in Gaza and the West Bank.”

$1.8 Trillion Wealth Fund

The trade union is aligned with the country’s governing Labor Party, Reuters reported, and has influence beyond traditional workers’ rights issues.

In an earlier interview with the news agency, Steinar Krogstad, deputy leader at LO, said the union wants Norway’s $1.8 trillion wealth fund “to pull out of the companies that have activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.”

Norway’s largest trade union, comprising 1m members, vote to expand its boycott of the israelis and add a trade ban with all israeli companies pic.twitter.com/vPDy6Xvgog

— Sarah Wilkinson (@swilkinsonbc) May 9, 2025

Krogstad explained that LO’s general policy was that the fund, the world’s largest, should not invest in companies that breach international law.

“This question is more on the agenda now … because of Israel’s policy, attacks and war in Gaza and in the West Bank,” Krogstad reportedly said.

Appeal to Government

Reuters reported that LO, along with 47 other civil society organizations, urged Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg in a letter in April to pressure the central bank, which oversees the fund, to divest.

 

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According to Reuters, the fund “held stocks worth 22 billion crowns ($2.12 billion) across 65 companies listed on the Tel Aviv stock exchange as of the end of 2024, according to fund data. They represent 0.1 percent of the fund’s overall investments.”

Palestinian Statehood

In May last year, Norway announced its official recognition of the state of Palestine.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said in a statement that “Norway recognized the state of Palestine, underlining that Palestinians have a fundamental, independent right to self-determination, and that both Israelis and Palestinians have the right to live in peace and security in their respective states.”

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He added that there was “increased support today in Europe for a Palestinian state. Norway’s recognized Palestine at a time when other European countries — Spain and Ireland — have done the same.”

(PC, WAFA, Agencies)