Who are the 8 companies that Ireland invests in that have links to illegal Israeli settlements?

The Journal

21 hours ago

INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES WERE made when Michael McGrath, Ireland's then Minister for Finance,
announced
the State's divestment from six companies with ties to illegal Israeli settlements.
The decision, made in April 2024, was soon followed up by the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF).
Up until that point, Ireland directly invested in 11 companies with ties to settlements in occupied Palestinian territories, and the State's divestment from six of these brought the total down to five.
But through involvements in those five companies, the ISIF may still be investing millions in businesses with links to settlements that are considered illegal under international law.
It also recently emerged through Parliamentary Questions that the State is also investing in another three more companies with ties to settlements indirectly, through its shares in hedge funds and other similar vehicles.
It means that, according to the latest annual report by the fund (which was published at the end of 2023), the ISIF has possible holdings in eight companies linked to illegal Israeli settlements.
Who are these companies and why are they linked to settler activity in occupied Palestine territory?
Israeli buildings and apartments in the Jewish settlement Tzofim last month
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
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The UN database
The 2024 decision by the ISIF to divest from six companies was informed by one key document:
a United Nations database
that names businesses and parent companies whose subsidiaries enable the continued existence of Israeli settlements.
The UN list was first compiled in 2020 by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and named 112 (mostly Israeli) companies that it deemed were involved in 'certain specified activities related to the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem'.
Companies on this list are deemed to be involved in any of 10 different activities that are deemed to facilitate the existence of Israeli settlements.
This includes things like providing equipment and materials to help build settlements, the supply of equipment to demolish property, farmland and crops belonging to Palestinians, or providing surveillance technology to be used in settlements.
The vast majority of companies on the list are listed for three reasons:
The provision of services or utilities that support the ongoing existence of settlements, including transport;
The provision of banking and financial services to support the development, expansion or maintenance of settlements (such as loans for housing and business);
The use of natural resources within the occupied territories for business purposes, especially water and land.
The database was updated in 2023 after 15 companies provided sufficient information to the UN to show that they had ceased involvement in the activity that got them on the list in 2020, or had changed their structure so that they were no longer linked to settlements.
The database is broken down into four sections comprising: a list of the 15 companies that are no longer deemed to be linked to settlements; a list of 79 companies deemed to directly support Israeli settlements; a list of 17 businesses linked to settlements as parent companies; one company deemed to support settlements through its activity as a licensor or franchisor.
Until 2024, Ireland directly invested €4.2 million in 11 of these companies before divesting from six of them, with that divestment comprising a total value of €2.95 million worth of holdings.
The divestments were from five Israeli banks (Bank Hapoalim BM; Bank Leumi-le Israel BM; Israel Discount Bank Ltd; Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd; First International Bank Ltd) and an Israeli supermarket chain called Rami Levi Chain Stores Ltd.
At the time that the planned divestment was flagged in late 2023,
Michael McGrath responded to criticism
by Sinn Féin that the Government should divest from all companies with links to settlements by saying that the Government wanted to take a comprehensive approach to examining the issue.
He explained that the UN has said its list is not complete, and thus suggested that it would require careful research by the ISIF to ensure that divestments were being made for the right reasons.
There have been no divestment announcements regarding any of the other five companies since.
Asked to confirm whether the investments in the five are still active, a spokesperson for the ISIF told
The Journal Investigates
that its 2023 annual report is the most up-to-date list of investments by the fund, and added that the fund's 2024 annual report will be published shortly.
In April, it emerged in response to a Parliamentary Question by Sinn Féin's Matt Carthy that the ISIF also indirectly held investments – which are usually made via hedge funds or mutual funds – in three other companies on the UN database in 2023.
It brought the overall number of investments held by the fund in companies on the database that year to eight (comprising five companies with direct investments and three with indirect investments only).
By the end of 2023, the total value of these investments was more than €10 million.
Airbnb – Accommodation
Investments:
~€310,000 (direct)
One of the few household names on the UN's list, Airbnb is also one of the better-known companies on the ISIF's portfolio.
It is one of just eight non-Israeli companies that appear on the UN database for its direct involvement in a listed activity relating to settlements.
Five of those businesses are online accommodation companies (more on the others below), all of which are deemed to provide 'services or utilities' because they list properties to rent in occupied Palestinian and Syrian territories.
The only one of the five platforms that feature on the UN database which the ISIF did not invest in was the UK-based Opodo.
The other four
have been criticised
by groups including Amnesty Intertnational for facilitating the normalisation of illegal settlements by advertising them as tourist destinations, and allowing settlers – and by extension, the websites themselves – to earn an income from land that was stolen from Palestinians.
A sign advertises Israeli tourism near the Jewish settlement Psagot in the West Bank
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
Using these websites to find accommodation in illegal settlements is not particularly difficult.
The Journal Investigates
searched Airbnb and found a number of current listings for properties that are based in settlements in the West Bank, occupied East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.
As well as causing the company to feature on the UN's database, these properties – and Airbnb's former attempts to stop featuring them – have prompted a number of legal actions against the company.
In Ireland, the pro-Palestine campaign group Sadaka
(unsuccessfully) complained
to Gardaí that Airbnb Ireland is guilty of money-laundering, because it argued that Israeli settlers are profiting from properties located in settlements that are deemed illegal under international law.
Airbnb Ireland denies accusations of money laundering and gardaí made the decision not to investigate the complaint. Sadaka has since launched judicial review proceedings against that decision in the High Court.
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In the US and Israel, Airbnb also found itself at the centre of a different legal challenge over its decision to
remove around 200 listings
for accommodation in West Bank settlements that it said 'are at the core of the dispute between Israelis and Palestinians'.
It settled four of those legal challenges and reversed its decision to remove the properties the following year.
The company said at the time
that it would instead donate all profits from its listings in the occupied West Bank to 'non-profit organisations dedicated to humanitarian aid that serve people in different parts of the world'.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Airbnb Inc for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication.
Recent statements given by the company to other news outlets have pointed to its donation of profits from host activity in the West Bank to an international charity.
Alstom SA – Transport
Investments: ~€210,000 (direct) & ~€75,000 (indirect)
Among the lesser-known names on the list, Alstom is a French multinational that is one of the world's largest rail companies.
It manufactures rolling stock and other forms of rail infrastructure, including high-speed trains, metros, monorails and trams, as well as signalling.
Among its most famous products are trains for France's high-speed intercity rail service, the TGV.
The company previously worked in the energy and shipbuilding sectors, until
it was given a €3.4 billion bailout
by the French government in 2003 and sold its power and grid divisions to General Electric in 2014.
In 2021, the company also acquired Bombardier Transportation, a rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer that was a subsidiary of Canadian aerospace manufacturer Bombardier.
As a result of that acquisition, Alstom is listed as a parent company on Section C of the UN database for two reasons: for providing transport infrastructure that supports the existence of Israeli settlements, and because of its use of natural resources in occupied territories for business purposes.
A tram on Jerusalem's Red Line
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
Through Bombardier Transportation, Alstom became indirectly linked to the supply of rolling stock for the Tel Aviv to Jerusalem train line, which
passes through parts of the occupied West Bank
.
The company
told Le Monde
in August 2024 that it 'participated in the maintenance of Jerusalem's light rail red line', which connects the city to occupied East Jerusalem, though it says this has ceased.
A spokesperson for Alstom told
The Journal Investigates
that Alstom does not have any activity within or related to occupied Palestinian territories, and that the company has requested removal from the UN database when it is next updated.
The government has previously said that the ISIF continues to monitor its holdings, and Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has told the Dáil that it is unclear how much income companies like Alstom derive from the occupied territories.
Altice – Communications
Investments: ~€862,000 (indirect)
Altice International is another of the less familiar businesses in whom the ISIF has invested.
The company was founded by French-Israeli businessman Patrick Drahi in Luxembourg in 2001, and provides internet, phone and television services throughout Europe, the United States, Israel and within occupied Palestinian territories.
It is listed on the UN database for the same two reasons as Alstom: providing a service that supports the existence of Israeli settlements, and because of its use of natural resources with the occupied territories.
It is specifically listed in Section C because it is the parent company of the Israeli mobile phone and telecoms providers Hot Mobile and Hot Telecommunication Systems.
Through both companies, settlers in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights can access mobile phone services, cable television, landline phone services and broadband.
Both companies are also listed separately in Section B of the UN database, though the ISIF does not invest in them.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Altice for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication.
Last year, it referred similar queries by French newspaper Le Monde to a press release which said that the company 'respects local regulations'.
Booking Holdings – Accommodation
Investments: ~€920,000 (direct) & €691,768 (indirect)
Like Airbnb, Dutch-based Booking.com is another of the five online accommodation companies that feature on Section B of the database for listing properties to rent in the occupied territories.
Its US parent company Booking Holdings, which the Irish government directly invests in, is also listed on Section C of the list for the same reason.
As with Airbnb,
The Journal Investigates
browsed Booking.com and was easily able to find hundreds of listings for hotels and guesthouses, including with names written in Hebrew, based in settlements in the West Bank, the Golan Heights and occupied East Jerusalem.
Above the listings, the website features a notice that urges visitors to 'review any travel advisories provided by your government to make an informed decision about your stay in this area, which may be considered conflict-affected'.
A sign points to Israeli tourists sites and activities in the Jewish settlement Shilo in the West Bank
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
However, there is no indication that the properties are based in or near illegal settlements.
The company announced in September 2022
that it would start adding safety guidance to any listings in the occupied West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem, including guidance that the reservations are 'occupied'.
It subsequently backtracked on this policy
the following month after pressure from the Israeli government, and instead opted to use the term 'conflict-affected' in its warnings.
In a statement to
The Journal Investigates,
a spokesperson for Booking.com said the company believed it was 'not our place to decide where someone can or cannot travel'.
They added that there are 'many parts of the world where there are conflicts or disputes' and that the company seeks to inform tourists by adding information or prompts to consult government advice in listings for areas that are 'disputed or impacted by conflict'.
Delek Group Ltd – Transport
Investments: ~€214,000 (indirect)
The only Israeli company on the UN database that the Irish government invests in, energy conglomerate Delek Group is best-known in Israel as the operator of a chain of filling stations and convenience stores.
The ISIF's investment in the company is indirect, which means that it did not directly buy shares or provide capital to Delek, but instead invested in it through an intermediary such as a fund or financial institution that handles investment decisions on Ireland's behalf.
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A search of Google Maps reveals that Delek Group operates at least two petrol stations near a settlement within the West Bank, as well as a handful of others near settlements in the Golan Heights.
Delek petrol stations inside the West Bank and Golan Heights
The UN database says the company features on the list for providing a service that supports settlements, including transport, as well as the use of natural resources for business purposes.
Delek Group is also linked to the activities of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF): under a contract agreed in 2020,
the IDF listed
Delek as one of two companies whose petrol stations are allowed to be used by military vehicles to refuel.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Delek Group for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication and no other recent statements on the company's position about its activities in occupied Palestinian territories could be found.
A Delek station in Katzrin in the Golan Heights.
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
Expedia Group – Accommodation
Investments: ~€260,000 (direct) & ~€985,200 (indirect)
Yet another of the five online accommodation platforms on Section B of the UN list, Expedia Group is the owner of a travel booking site under its own name, as well as a number of others including Hotels.com, Trivago and Vrbo.
It also features on the database because it lists properties to rent in settlements in occupied territories.
The Journal Investigates
searched on Expedia for accommodation for July and August and found dozens of listings based in settlements in the West Bank, parts of occupied East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
Similar listings were also found via Hotels.com and Vrbo, including one in Efrat whose main image featured an Israeli flag hanging from the balcony of a property.
None of these listings contained any reference to the fact they are located in illegal settlements.
Expedia's only indication that properties may be based in settlements is via its search tool (which is also used on Hotels.com and Vrbo), where location data includes 'Israeli Settlement, Palestinian Territories' when a person specifically looks for properties in a settlement in the West Bank.
However, the search function lists the Golan Heights as being part of Israel, and the location tag does not feature for properties based in settlements in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Expedia Group for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication.
The company has said that accommodation listings in occupied Palestinian territory have been clearly identified as Israeli settlements, and previously responded to criticism in 2019 saying it would 'continue to assess the type of information' it provided to tourists.
Motorola Solutions – Security
Investments: ~€700,000 (direct) & ~€3.9 million (indirect)
Not to be confused with the telecoms company of the same name, with whom it split in 2011, Motorola Solutions specialises in security products and systems such as video equipment and command centre technology.
Both Motorola Solutions Inc and its subsidiary, Motorola Solutions Israel, feature on the UN database for two reasons: providing services to support settlements; and for the supply of security services and equipment to companies that operate in settlements.
The two companies are among just six that appear on the list for supplying security, and their systems feature throughout the occupied territories, along the separation wall in the West Bank, and at Israeli military bases.
A CCTV camera over the wall separting Israel and the West Bank in Bethlehem
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
In 2012, a report by the UN Special Rapporteur for Palestine Richard Falk
said that Motorola Solutions Israel
supplied surveillance systems, radar detectors and mobile communications systems to settlements.
'Beyond sustaining the settlements, these security systems further limit the Palestinians' freedom of movement within their territory,' Falk said at the time.
Human rights groups
have also highlighted
how the company's MotoEagle Wide Area Surveillance System – which uses radars and cameras to detect movements -
has been used
as a 'virtual fence system' in dozens of illegal settlements.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Motorola Solutions for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication.
The company has previously told a number of outlets that it supports 'efforts in the region to find a peaseful resolution to the conflict'.
Tripadvisor – Accommodation and tourism
Investments: ~€1.07 million (direct)
.
US travel platform Tripadvisor is another of the five major tourism companies to feature on the UN database for listing accommodation in the occupied territories.
Unlike the other tourism websites on this list, Tripadvisor provides a range of services on top of accommodation, including flight bookings, restaurant reservations, and user-generated content such as reviews and travel guides.
The Journal Investigates
was able to find a number of listings for holiday lettings via Trivago's website in settlements based in the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
Once again, there was no indication that these properties are based in illegal settlements, aside from a disclaimer at the top of Tripadvisor's search which reads: 'Due to safety risks in parts of this area, travellers should review the latest guidance and information from government agencies.'
Israeli settlers harvesting grapes in the West Bank to produce wine in the Jewish settlement Psagot
Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
The website was also found to recommend activities and tours within settlements, including tours, shopping, a shooting range and a craft workshop in the region of Gush Etzion, wineries in Psagot and Shilo, and a farm in Kibutz Almog.
Location information on the individual Tripadvisor pages for these activities states they are located in Israeli settlements.
The Journal Investigates
contacted Tripadvisor for comment, but no response was received by the time of publication.
The company has previously said that it does not believe in withholding travel information from users, and aims to provide 'an apolitical, accurate and useful picture of all accommodations, restaurants and attractions'.
The Journal Investigates
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Stephen McDermott
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Sinead O'Carroll
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