Latest news with #SteinarKrogstad
Business Recorder
05-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Occupied territories: Norway fund urged by union to divest from cos aiding Israel
OSLO: Norway's $1.8 trillion wealth fund should divest from all companies that aid Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories, a leader at Norway's powerful LO trade union told Reuters, intensifying an ongoing divestment campaign. LO, the biggest confederation of trade unions in Norway, is aligned with the governing Labour Party and often exerts influence on policy beyond traditional workers' rights issues. 'We want the fund to pull out of the companies that have activities in the occupied Palestinian territories,' Steinar Krogstad, deputy leader at LO, said in an interview. LO's general policy is that Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, should not invest in companies that breach international law, Krogstad said. 'This question is more on the agenda now ... because of Israel's policy, attacks and war in Gaza and in the West Bank,' he said, speaking on the margins of the union's congress, where the Palestinian flag flew alongside those of the United Nations and Norway. The Israeli embassy in Oslo did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The UN's highest court last year said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there were illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible, in a ruling that Tel Aviv rejected as 'fundamentally wrong' and one-sided.
See - Sada Elbalad
05-05-2025
- Business
- See - Sada Elbalad
Norway's Top Union Urges Israel Divestment
Israa Farhan Norway's most influential trade union has called for the country's $1.8 trillion sovereign wealth fund to withdraw investments from companies involved in activities supporting Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories. The demand comes as part of an intensifying divestment campaign aimed at aligning national financial practices with international law and human rights. The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), the largest labor organization in the country and a key ally of the ruling Labour Party, has a long history of influencing public policy beyond traditional labor issues. Its latest stance increases pressure on the government to take a firmer position regarding corporate complicity in the Israeli occupation. Speaking at a union conference where the Palestinian flag was raised alongside those of the United Nations and Norway, LO Deputy Leader Steinar Krogstad stated that companies operating in the occupied territories should no longer benefit from the fund's investments. He noted that the fund's general policy prohibits investing in entities that violate international law, and that companies supporting Israeli operations in these areas clearly fall under that category. The union's demand has gained urgency amid Israel's ongoing military operations in Gaza and the West Bank, which have drawn widespread international condemnation. Krogstad noted that these developments have pushed the issue higher on the political agenda, calling for stronger ethical guidelines in managing the world's largest sovereign wealth fund. The Israeli embassy in Oslo has not responded to requests for comment. The call for divestment follows a 2023 ruling by the United Nations' top court, which declared Israel's presence in the Palestinian territories and its settlement activities illegal under international law. The ruling urged Israel to withdraw as soon as possible, a directive that Israeli officials rejected, labeling the decision fundamentally flawed and biased. On April 10, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions, along with 47 other civil society organizations, sent a formal letter to Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg urging immediate action. The coalition seeks to ensure that Norway's investment practices do not support violations of international norms. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers Lifestyle Pistachio and Raspberry Cheesecake Domes Recipe News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Arts & Culture Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's $4.7M LA Home Burglarized Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Videos & Features Bouchra Dahlab Crowned Miss Arab World 2025 .. Reem Ganzoury Wins Miss Arab Africa Title (VIDEO) Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple
Straits Times
05-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Norway fund urged by union to divest from companies aiding Israel in occupied territories
Steinar Krogstad, deputy leader of Norway's LO trade union confederation, poses for a picture outside LO's congress in Oslo, Norway, May 5, 2025. REUTERS/Gwladys Fouche FILE PHOTO: A Palestinian man inspects the house where Palestinian newlywed Hala Zaarab was killed in an Israeli airstrike, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, May 3, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo Norway fund urged by union to divest from companies aiding Israel in occupied territories OSLO - Norway's $1.8 trillion wealth fund should divest from all companies that aid Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories, a leader at Norway's powerful LO trade union told Reuters, intensifying an ongoing divestment campaign. LO, the biggest confederation of trade unions in Norway, is aligned with the governing Labour Party and often exerts influence on policy beyond traditional workers' rights issues. "We want the fund to pull out of the companies that have activities in the occupied Palestinian territories," Steinar Krogstad, deputy leader at LO, said in an interview. LO's general policy is that Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, should not invest in companies that breach international law, Krogstad said. "This question is more on the agenda now ... because of Israel's policy, attacks and war in Gaza and in the West Bank," he said, speaking on the margins of the union's congress, where the Palestinian flag flew alongside those of the United Nations and Norway. The Israeli embassy in Oslo did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The U.N.'s highest court last year said Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there were illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible, in a ruling that Tel Aviv rejected as "fundamentally wrong" and one-sided. LO and 47 other civil society organisations sent Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg a letter, dated April 10 and seen by Reuters, to push for such a move. The letter asks Stoltenberg - an LO member - to instruct the central bank, which operates the fund, to divest from companies "where there is an unacceptable risk of complicity in violating international law in the occupied Palestinian territories". It also asks Stoltenberg take the initiative to give more precise guidelines for the observation and exclusion of companies from the oil fund "in such a way that they are in accordance with international law". Daily VG first reported on the letter. Krogstad said LO would also request a meeting with Stoltenberg to discuss the issue. No date had yet been set, he said. The finance ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. It has said it is important for the fund not to be perceived as a tool of foreign policy and that it follows the fund's ethical guidelines that have been decided by parliament. The fund has faced pressure to divest from companies active in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip since the start of the war in October 2023. Since then, it has divested from telecoms company Bezeq, and another unnamed company is under consideration for exclusion by the central bank's board. Most other companies active in the occupied Palestinian territories have been cleared in a review by the fund's ethical watchdog, which operates the fund's ethical guidelines. 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% of the fund's overall investments. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
