The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund said it had withdrawn its investments from the Israeli company Bezeq due to its provision of telecommunications services to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
A more stringent interpretation
The decision by the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund comes late Tuesday after its ethics board adopted a new, stricter interpretation of ethics standards for companies that assist Israel’s operations in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The $1.8 trillion fund is a global leader in environmental, social and corporate governance investing, owning 1.5% of the world’s listed stocks across 8,700 companies, and its size gives it influence.
Bezeq is the largest telecommunications group in Israel.
“By Bezeq’s physical presence in Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the provision of communications services to them, the company helps facilitate the maintenance and even expansion of these settlements, illegal under international law,” the Norwegian fund’s ethics board said in its divestment recommendation.
“By doing so, the company itself contributes to violating international law,” he added.
The Council said that it noted that the company said that it also provides communications services to the Palestinian areas in the West Bank, but this does not negate the fact that it also provides services to Israeli settlements.
The Council makes its recommendations to the Board of Directors of the Norwegian Central Bank, which has the final say on divestment.
Tight policy
The Norwegian sovereign fund sold all its shares in the company.
Before that, he had reduced his stake in the first half of 2024, as he now owned 0.76% of the company’s shares, worth $23.7 million at the end of last June, down from the 2.2% stake indicated in the company’s data at the beginning of the year.
A letter sent by the Council to the Ministry of Finance dated August 30 indicated that one of the foundations of its new definition of moral violations was the conclusion of the International Court of Justice last July that “the occupation itself, the Israeli settlement policy, and the manner in which Israel uses natural resources in the territories are inconsistent with With international law.”
Since the start of the war on Gaza in October 2023, the Council has been investigating the existence of any other companies in violation of the guidelines permitted for investment.
Before announcing the withdrawal of investments, the Fund withdrew its investments from 9 companies with activities in the occupied West Bank.
Its operations include building roads and homes in Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank and providing surveillance systems for the Israeli wall around the West Bank.
