From Reuters
OSLO, Sept 3 (Reuters) – Norway’s $400 billion-plus wealth fund has excluded Israeli company Elbit Systems (ESLT.TA) for supplying surveillance equipment for the separation barrier in the West Bank, the government said on Thursday.
“We do not wish to fund companies that so directly contribute to violations of international humanitarian law,” Finance Minister Kristin Halvorsen said in a statement.
“The freedom of movement of the people living in the occupied territory has been unacceptably restricted,” she said.
Halvorsen said the International Court of Justice has said the barrier construction breaches the Fourth Geneva Convention and that “Norwegian authorities act in accordance with this.”
Norway says that the surveillance system supplied by Elbit to the Israeli authorities “is one of the main components in the separation barrier and its associated control regime.”
“The surveillance system has been specially designed in close collaboration with the buyer and has no other applications. Furthermore Elbit is clearly aware of exactly where and how the system is intended to be used,” she said.
The central bank-managed fund follows ethical guidelines issued by the finance ministry, and in the past it has excluded companies that produce nuclear arms or cluster munitions, damage the environment or abuse human rights or worker rights.
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Elbit also manufactures the Hermes drone, which is used in Gaza and elsewhere.
Posted by Abu Banda | September 3, 2009, 9:40 pmGo Norway! War will only end when it's no longer profitable.
Posted by andybody | September 3, 2009, 11:58 pmwooooooohoooooooooooooooooo Norway!!
Posted by hijazi | September 4, 2009, 12:25 amWonder why they don't act on the international crime of violating a UN 'law' creating Israel What about boycotting the products of the Arab states? What is there to boycott?
Posted by cynic8 | September 4, 2009, 12:59 amAre you trying to be sarcastic?
The US of A can Boycott Arab oil if it wills…
Posted by HUh | September 4, 2009, 4:28 pmI don't know what's wrong with the liberals in Europe.
You would think with all the anti-semitism in the past, they would've grown up by now.
Do they really think the Jews are worse than Muslims?
If they do, they're doomed.
Posted by Fuck Muhammad | November 18, 2009, 4:05 pm