Three Palestinians killed in Israeli attack on Gaza City's Shujaya
Their deaths bring today's toll of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces to 24 people, including 13 aid seekers.
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Middle East Eye
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- Middle East Eye
Largest sovereign wealth fund in the world to review investments in Israel
The Norwegian government said on Tuesday it would review its sovereign wealth fund's investments in Israel after the country's leading newspaper revealed it had a stake in an Israeli company that provides services to Israel's armed forces, leading to a public outcry. The move came after Aftenposten published an investigation on Monday saying that the $1.9 trillion fund, the largest in the world, had invested in the Israeli company, Bet Shemesh Engines, which provides jet engine parts to Israeli fighter jets that are being used in its war on Gaza. Finance minister and former head of Nato, Jens Stoltenberg, who oversees the fund, said in a statement it was understandable that questions are being raised about the fund's investments in the Israeli company, given that the fund is not supposed to invest in companies which enable states to violate international law, Verdens Gang reported on Tuesday. 'The war in Gaza is contrary to international law and is causing terrible suffering, so it is understandable that questions are being raised about the fund's investments in Bet Shemesh Engines,' Stoltenberg said. Stoltenberg's statement went on to say that Norges Bank is responsible for assessing individual companies based on advice from an external ethics watchdog and guidelines set by the finance ministry. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters 'In light of…the deteriorating situation in Gaza and the West Bank, I will today ask Norges Bank and the Council on Ethics to conduct a renewed review of the fund's investments in Israeli companies and Norges Bank's work on responsible management," Stoltenberg said. Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store told public broadcaster NRK that the fund's investment in the Israeli company was 'worrying'. "We must get clarification on this because reading about it makes me uneasy," he added. Pressure from pro-Palestinian activists has increased on the fund since the start of Israel's war on Gaza in October 2023. The Labour Party-led government spent months resisting pressure, with Norway's parliament in June rejecting a proposal to divest from all Israeli military companies operating in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Meanwhile, the ethics watchdog recommended the fund divest from Israeli companies Paz Retail and Energy - because it owns and operates infrastructure that provides fuel to Israeli settlements - and Bezeq, which provides telecoms services to Israeli settlements. Officially known as the Norges Bank Investment Management, the fund holds about 1.5 percent of all listed equities globally. According to the Norges Bank Investment Management website, the aim of the fund is 'to ensure a long-term management of revenue from Norway's oil and gas resources, so that this wealth benefits both current and future generations'.
Al Etihad
2 hours ago
- Al Etihad
UAE strongly condemns, denounces storming of Al-Aqsa Courtyard; warns against escalation
6 Aug 2025 00:16 ABU DHABI (WAM) The United Arab Emirates strongly condemned the storming of Al-Aqsa Courtyard by Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israeli Minister of National Security, alongside settlers, under the protection of the Israeli police, considering it a provocative escalation and an unacceptable act of a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) called on the Israeli government to assume full responsibility, condemn these hostile acts, and hold all those involved accountable, particularly ministers and officials within the Israeli UAE affirmed that the continued attacks by Israeli extremists and their incitement to hatred and violence constitute a systematic extremist campaign that not only targets the brotherly Palestinian people but also threatens social peace, and risks further escalation. Furthermore, the UAE emphasised the need to respect the historical and legal status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque, ensure the protection of all holy sites, and uphold the custodial role of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in overseeing the endowments and managing the affairs of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Middle East Eye
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US speaker Mike Johnson visits Ariel settlement as violence against Palestinians soars
Republican House speaker Mike Johnson visited an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank on Monday, just weeks after the Israeli Knesset passed a resolution supporting the annexation of the region amid an escalation in state and settler violence towards the Palestinians. Johnson's visit to the settlement of Ariel, near Ramallah, was part of a private trip to Israel organised by the pro-Israel advocacy group, the US Israel Education Association, according to Axios, which cited Israeli officials. His visit makes him the most senior US politician to visit an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank. Settlements are illegal under international law. During Johnson's visit to Ariel, The Jerusalem Post quoted him as saying, 'Judea and Samaria are the front lines of the state of Israel and must remain an integral part of it.' Johnson used a biblical name for the West Bank and reportedly said he would work to promote the use of the term "Judea and Samaria" at the federal level. Johnson's visit comes as two million people are facing starvation in the Gaza Strip under Israel's control. After partially lifting a devastating blockade, Israel is now allowing a minimal amount of food, medicine, water, and fuel into the enclave. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Meanwhile, more than 1,000 people have been killed while seeking aid at the controversial Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's (GHF) distribution sites, according to the United Nations. Axios reported that Johnson and his delegation were expected to visit GHF distribution centres in Gaza. The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned Johnson's 'inflammatory' comments endorsing annexation as a 'blatant violation of international law' on Monday. The ministry also characterised his statements as 'provocative incitement that encourages settler crimes and land confiscation', saying his visit undermines Arab and US efforts to stop the war. In a statement on X, it said the speaker's stance is an 'encouragement of settler crimes, settlers' actions, and the confiscation of Palestinian lands, in clear contradiction with the declared US position regarding settlements and settlers' attacks'. Reaffirming that 'all settlement activity is illegal', the ministry said that Israel's settlement expansion 'destroys any remaining chance for a two-state solution' and peace. Johnson's trip was hailed as evidence of 'unwavering support and moral clarity in standing with Israel against its enemies' in a post on X by Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz. The US State Department referred Middle East Eye to Johnson's office for comment on the US's position on Israeli settlement building and expansion. Johnson's office had not provided comment by the time of publication. Support for settlement expansion Johnson is visiting Israel with fellow Republican representatives Michael McCaul, Nathaniel Moran, Michael Cloud, and Claudia Tenney. Tenney introduced in January the "Recognizing Judea and Samaria Act" to require that all official US documents and materials use the terms "Judea and Samaria" instead of the "West Bank". She also founded the Friends of Judea and Samaria caucus. Palestinian activist who worked on Oscar-winning film 'No Other Land' killed in occupied West Bank Read More » The caucus is a group of Congress members 'committed to raising awareness and support for the historical, strategic, and cultural importance of Judea and Samaria', according to a statement on Tenney's website. Settlers have long harboured ambitions of emptying the occupied West Bank of its Palestinian population. For years, this aspiration was broadly understood, even among settlers themselves, as an unattainable fantasy. However, the near-total destruction of Gaza and the growing perception that the ethnic cleansing of the Gaza Strip has, at least semi-explicitly, become one of the war aims of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have emboldened settler groups to believe that such a scenario might now be possible. Ethnic cleansing in the occupied West Bank would, however, present far greater logistical and political challenges than in Gaza. Unlike Gaza, it features a more intertwined population of Palestinians and settlers. Some of the methods currently employed by the Israeli military in Gaza appear to be gradually making their way to the occupied West Bank, albeit on a smaller scale. In recent months, large sections of the Tulkarm and Jenin refugee camps, along with other areas, have been bulldozed, and hundreds of homes have been demolished by Israeli forces. The images emerging from these sites increasingly resemble those coming out of Gaza. Even if the occupied West Bank is not yet experiencing a full replication of the Gaza campaign, what is unfolding may well be seen as preparation for a more extensive effort by settler militias and their backers in government to 'clear' key areas of Palestinians, critics say. The Israeli human rights group B'Tselem and the United Nations office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs documented more than 1,200 incidents of violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in 2024 alone, an average of three attacks per day, according to a UN report published in December 2024.
