World’s largest wealth fund divests from Caterpillar, 'Israeli' banks over Gaza
Norway’s $2-trillion sovereign wealth fund, the largest in the world, has divested from US construction equipment giant Caterpillar over the company’s alleged involvement in rights violations by 'Israel' in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
The Norwegian central bank said on Monday it decided to exclude Caterpillar from the fund, which it manages, “due to an unacceptable risk that the companies contribute to serious violations of the rights of individuals in situations of war and conflict.”
The fund also announced it had divested from five 'Israeli' banks, following recommendations by its council on ethics.
In a statement, the ethics council said “bulldozers manufactured by Caterpillar are being used by 'Israeli' authorities in the widespread unlawful destruction of Palestinian property.”
“There is no doubt that Caterpillar’s products are being used to commit extensive and systematic violations of international humanitarian law,” the council added, noting that the company had “not implemented any measures to prevent such use” by 'Israeli' authorities.
Prior to its divestment, the fund held a 1.17 percent stake in Caterpillar valued at $2.1bn as of June 30, according to fund data.
The five banks named were Hapoalim, Bank Leumi, Mizrahi Tefahot Bank, First International Bank of 'Israel', and FIBI Holdings.
The ethics council said the excluded banks had “by providing financial services that are a necessary prerequisite for construction activity in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem … contributed to the maintenance of Israeli settlements.”
“The settlements have been established in violation of international law, and their continued existence constitutes an ongoing breach of international law,” it added.
Last year, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that 'Israeli' settlements built on Palestinian territory seized in 1967 should end “as rapidly as possible,” as they “have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law.”
Just last week, 21 countries signed a joint statement condemning 'Israel’s' plans to build a new settlement on a 12 sq km (4.6 sq-mile) tract of land east of Jerusalem, known as “East 1” or “E1.” The project, which envisions 3,400 new settler homes, would sever much of the occupied West Bank from occupied East Jerusalem.
'Israel’s' far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich praised the plan, saying it would bury the possibility of a future Palestinian state “because there is nothing to recognise and no one to recognise.”
The Norwegian fund’s stakes in the five 'Israeli' banks were valued at a combined $661m, according to its data.
Caterpillar, Hapoalim, First International Bank of 'Israel', and Bank Leumi did not immediately respond to requests for comment by the Reuters news agency.
The fund announced on August 18 that it would divest from six companies as part of an ongoing ethics review over the war in Gaza and the situation in the occupied West Bank, but declined to name them until its stakes had been sold.
The fund is invested in about 8,400 companies worldwide.
