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Reuters
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
In pictures: Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Adha
[1/24] A Palestinian girl in traditional attire poses for a picture, on the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha on the Al-Aqsa compound, also known to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem's Old City June 6, 2025. REUTERS/Ammar Awad Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Norway lawmakers oppose blanket ban by wealth fund on companies in Israeli-occupied areas
FILE PHOTO: A Jewish settler walks past Israeli settlement construction sites around Givat Zeev and Ramat Givat Zeev in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, near Jerusalem June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo FILE PHOTO: A view of the Israeli settlement Ofra near Palestinian town of Turmus Ayya where Israeli settlers torched houses, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Svein Richard Brandtzaeg, head of the Council on Ethics for the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, poses for a picture in Oslo, Norway, on March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Gwladys Fouche/File Photo FILE PHOTO: A view of new buildings around the Israeli settlement Talmon B near the Palestinian town of Mazraa Al-Qibleyeh near Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, November 20, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Torokman/File Photo OSLO - Norway's parliament on Wednesday rejected a proposal to have the country's $1.9 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, divest from all companies with activities in the occupied Palestinian territories. The minority Labour government has for months been resisting pressure from pro-Palestinian campaigners to instruct the fund to divest from all firms with ties to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and parliament had been expected to vote against. "We have an established ethical regime for the fund," Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg told the chamber earlier in the day, during a debate on several aspects of the way the fund is run. "We divest from the companies that contribute to Israel's breach of international law, but we do not divest from all companies that are present on the ground." Lawmaker Ingrid Fiskaa from the small Socialist Left opposition party told the chamber: "Without Norwegian oil fund money, it would be more difficult for Israeli authorities to demolish the homes of Palestinian families." The United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, wrote to Stoltenberg to alert him to what she called the "structural entanglement of Israeli corporations ... in the machinery of the occupation both in the West Bank, including east Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, and the violence that sustains it". "International corporations benefiting from (the Norwegian fund's) investments are critical components of the infrastructure sustaining the economy of the occupation," she wrote, in a letter dated May 20. Stoltenberg replied that the government was "confident that the investments do not violate Norway's obligations under international law". He noted that the fund follows ethical guidelines set by parliament, and that compliance is monitored by a separate body. That watchdog has over the past year recommended divestments from Israeli petrol station chain Paz and telecoms company Bezeq and is looking at more potential divestments in Israel. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Norway lawmakers to oppose blocking wealth fund investment in firms in Israeli-occupied areas
FILE PHOTO: A Jewish settler walks past Israeli settlement construction sites around Givat Zeev and Ramat Givat Zeev in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, near Jerusalem June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo FILE PHOTO: A view of the Israeli settlement Ofra near Palestinian town of Turmus Ayya where Israeli settlers torched houses, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo FILE PHOTO: Svein Richard Brandtzaeg, head of the Council on Ethics for the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, poses for a picture in Oslo, Norway, on March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Gwladys Fouche/File Photo FILE PHOTO: A view of new buildings around the Israeli settlement Talmon B near the Palestinian town of Mazraa Al-Qibleyeh near Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, November 20, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed Torokman/File Photo OSLO - Lawmakers were on Wednesday debating whether Norway's $1.9 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, should divest from all companies with activities in the occupied Palestinian territories. A formal vote was expected around 3 p.m. Parliament was expected to reject a wholesale boycott. The minority Labour government has for months been resisting pressure from pro-Palestinian campaigners to instruct the fund to divest from all firms with ties to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. "We have an established ethical regime for the fund," Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg told the chamber in a debate on several aspects of the way the fund is run. "We divest from the companies that contribute to Israel's breach of international law, but we do not divest from all companies that are present on the ground." Lawmaker Ingrid Fiskaa from the small Socialist Left opposition party told the chamber: "Without Norwegian oil fund money, it would be more difficult for Israeli authorities to demolish the homes of Palestinian families." The United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, wrote to Stoltenberg to alert him to what she called the "structural entanglement of Israeli corporations ... in the machinery of the occupation both in the West Bank, including east Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, and the violence that sustains it". "International corporations benefiting from (the Norwegian fund's) investments are critical components of the infrastructure sustaining the economy of the occupation," she wrote, in a letter dated May 20. Stoltenberg replied that the government was "confident that the investments do not violate Norway's obligations under international law". He noted that the fund follows ethical guidelines set by parliament, and that compliance is monitored by a separate body. That watchdog has over the past year recommended divestments from Israeli petrol station chain Paz and telecoms company Bezeq and is looking at more potential divestments in Israel. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
GMA Network
26-05-2025
- Politics
- GMA Network
Hamas agrees to US proposal on Gaza ceasefire, Palestinian official says
A view shows Israeli military vehicles near the Israel-Gaza border, in Israel, May 16, 2025. REUTERS/ Ammar Awad CAIRO — Hamas has agreed to a proposal by US special envoy Steve Witkoff for a Gaza ceasefire, a Palestinian official close to the group told Reuters on Monday, paving the way for a possible end to the war. The new proposal, which sees the release of ten hostages and 70 days of truce, was received by Hamas through mediators. "The proposal includes the release of ten living Israeli hostages held by Hamas in two groups in return for a 70-day ceasefire and a partial withdrawal from the Gaza Strip," the source said. The proposal also sees the release of a number of Palestinian prisoners by Israel, including hundreds of those serving lengthy prison terms. There was no immediate comment from Israel. — Reuters
Straits Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Israeli far-right police minister visits Al-Aqsa mosque site ahead of Jerusalem rally
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visits the Al-Aqsa compound, also known to Jews as the Temple Mount, during Jerusalem's Day, in Jerusalem's Old City May 26, 2025 REUTERS/Ammar Awad Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visits the Al-Aqsa compound, also known to Jews as the Temple Mount, during Jerusalem's Day, in Jerusalem's Old City May 26, 2025 REUTERS/Ammar Awad JERUSALEM - Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa mosque compound on Monday, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, ahead of an annual rally marking Israel's capture of East Jerusalem in a 1967 war. 'Many Jews flooding the Temple Mount, what a joy to see it. Today, thank God, it is already possible to pray on the Temple Mount,' Ben Gvir said. Ben Gvir has long pushed for Jewish prayer rights at the flashpoint site, which is sacred to both Muslims and Jews. Under a decades-old arrangement, the compound is administered by a Jordanian Islamic trust. Jews are allowed to visit but not pray there. The Al-Aqsa mosque is Islam's third holiest site. Tens of thousands of Jewish Israelis were expected to participate in the Flag March, an annual rally through Jerusalem that attracts many Israeli ultranationalists. The march frequently stokes tension as ultranationalists stream into Palestinian areas of Jerusalem's walled Old City en route to the Western Wall, one of Judaism's holiest sites. Ahead of the rally, Palestinian shopkeepers shuttered their stores. Those who stayed past noon were harassed by marchers before having to close, a Reuters witness said, adding that in one case, Israeli police pushed marchers away from a storefront. The marchers, mostly young Israelis who live in settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, were also seen harassing and assaulting some Palestinians, journalists and left-wing Israeli activists, the Reuters witness said. Israel captured East Jerusalem, including the Old City, from Jordan in the 1967 Middle East war. Palestinians seek East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state that would include the West Bank and Gaza. Most countries consider East Jerusalem to be occupied territory and do not recognise Israeli sovereignty over it. Israel deems Jerusalem as its eternal, indivisible capital. In 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump recognised all of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and moved the U.S. embassy there from Tel Aviv. On Sunday, U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee, an evangelical Christian, congratulated Israel on what he called the reunification of the city 58 years ago. This year's rally again coincides with continued war in Gaza, now in its 20th month, and an escalating Israeli military campaign against Palestinian militants in the West Bank, where violent settler attacks targeting Palestinians are on the rise. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
