Time to put principles above profit

Arab News

4 hours ago

https://arab.news/rtesq
Francesca Albanese is such a threat to world peace and security, according to the US, that she joins four International Criminal Court judges and the court's chief prosecutor on its sanctions list. She is the first UN expert in history to be the subject of sanctions. The US has also written to the UN secretary-general to demand she is sacked.
Albanese has not killed anyone. She has not stolen anything. She has not committed any crime. Her mortal sin is to stand up for international law and human rights, and demand that this applies to Israel.
Albanese will not be deterred. She has been labeled a terrorist, a Marxist and an antisemite by those wishing to smear her and get her fired. She has not blinked.
What is the report she has published that the US dislikes? It is entitled 'From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide,' an examination of the economic underpinnings of Israel's genocide.
Much of the media and political focus of those determined to ensure accountability for Israel's crimes has understandably focused on states. The campaign for an arms trade ban has been supercharged in major weapons-exporting states, with some results. Others want states to rip up free trade agreements with Israel.
But one of the core foundations of Israel's occupation and genocide has been corporate complicity. This underpins the scaffolding of the regime of occupation and apartheid. For years, this has been a central feature of global civil society's efforts to hold Israel to account.
This is what Albanese examines in this groundbreaking report. To what extent have major corporate actors become sponsors of these crimes? To what extent can they do what states, for legal or public relations reasons, cannot? She cites more than 60 international companies involved in 'the transformation of Israel's economy of occupation to an economy of genocide.' She called on the International Criminal Court to look to prosecute the chief executives of these companies.
One of the most incredible aspects of Israel's 58-year-old occupation is how profitable it is. These companies are not generally motivated by ideology, but by good old-fashioned corporate greed. They make money. Given that, as the report points out, the Israeli defense budget has doubled since October 2023, they make considerable quantities of money.
Albanese is clear that the report is not a mere list of such companies but an attempt to expose the system and how it enables genocide. The UN already has a database of companies that trade and do business in settlements, though many member states oppose or ignore this. This should change.
This corporate network is vital for Israel not just to maintain its occupation, but to expand it. The arms companies are well known, but less so is the fact the Occupied Territories are a testing ground for weapons and artificial intelligence systems. But there are also civilian businesses, banks, insurance companies and major tourism companies that, for example, rent properties in illegal Israeli settlements. One 2025 survey found 760 rooms in illegal settlements were available for rent on just two platforms. When you examine the entries for these properties, the unknowing tourist would have no idea they would be holidaying in occupied territory.
Banks and financial institutions are also in Albanese's crosshairs. The report points out that 'major global banks have underwritten Israeli treasury bonds, which have bankrolled the devastation, and the largest sovereign wealth and pension funds invested public and private savings in the genocidal economy, all the while claiming to respect ethical guidelines.'
Major tech firms also stand accused. Many have offered their cloud services for use by the Israeli authorities, including the country's military. Israel's genocide in Gaza has seen the military deploy facial recognition software, target-selection algorithms and automated targeting systems such as Lavender, all provided and tested by tech giants.
One of the core foundations of Israel's occupation and genocide has been corporate complicity.
Chris Doyle
Heavy machinery firms have provided bulldozers and other equipment that have destroyed huge parts of Gaza and the West Bank. Israeli authorities are recruiting drivers for such bulldozers, reportedly paying them per property destroyed. They get about 2,500 Israeli shekels ($744) for demolishing a small building and 5,000 shekels for a large one.
How will this corporate complicity end? Consumer pressure will matter, as it did with the anti-South African apartheid campaign. Already, consumer pressure has hit businesses and pension funds. Options for strategic litigation for those who are seriously complicit are being examined.
Ultimately, however, states need to do more. Trade with settlements should have been terminated decades ago. And why are states selling arms to Israel?
Given their role in the global system, private corporations need to be held to account just as much as political leaders. It is a legal duty for states, under the UN's Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, to ensure businesses in their territory and jurisdiction adhere to international law and punish such abuses. It is time to put principles above profit.