– We are now asking the Norwegian business community to run trade and businesses that contribute to maintaining the Israeli settlements that violate international law, says Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide to news on Thursday morning. Norway prohibits economic activity that causes or contributes to serious acts that are in violation of international law, i.e. violations of basic human rights and humanitarian law’s rules on the protection of civilians in armed conflict. The Israeli settlements Israel occupies the West Bank from Jordan and the Golan Heights from Syria. Since the occupation began during the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel has established 132 settlements on the West Bank and 32 on the Golan Heights. The UN has determined that these are in violation of international law. Eide: – There is no place on earth where the humanitarian situation is so desperate. When asked why this call is coming right now, the foreign minister replies: – Because there has been a very dramatic development in the Middle East, not least in the West Bank, where we have seen that a a number of housing estates have been expanded, new ones are being established, and we are seeing more and more housing estates. This is completely contrary to international law, to humanitarianism and human rights, and we are concerned that no one should contribute to it, and that is why we are saying no to business. Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide at Marienlyst on Thursday. Photo: OLE N. OLSEN / news He describes the situation in Gaza as follows: – I meet a number of humanitarian aid demonstrations that work directly with people inside Gaza. A fairly general impression from them confirms my impression, which is that right now there is no place on earth where the humanitarian situation is as desperate as in Gaza. Record number of settlers According to Haaretz, Israel has approved 3,475 new buildings on the occupied West Bank in 2024. This number is the highest since the Oslo agreement in the 90s. Last week, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced more approved settlements, after a Palestinian allegedly killed an Israeli and wounded several others in the West Bank. These settlements are illegal. It has been established by the UN Security Council. Also in 2023, a record number of housing developments were built on Vestbreidda. 12,359 new buildings were approved last year. The Israeli settlement of Givat Zeev, near Ramallah in the West Bank. Photo: AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP This intensification is part of the reason why Norway is now coming after several countries, and is tightening its grip. Espen Barth Eide says this undermined the prospects for a two-state solution. – The settlements on occupied land undermined the possibility of a peaceful solution to the conflict, and constitute a threat to peace and security in the region – Goods are not always labeled as settlers Earlier this week, Espen Barth Eide received 1,100 signatures from the business community about the war in Gaza. The call for human rights in Gaza came from several parts of the business world. In a chronicle in VG, they wrote that business has an independent responsibility for what happens down there. And now they receive guidelines from Foreign Minister Eide: Do not trade with or conduct business with anyone who is connected to Israeli settlers or who acts in violation of international law. The settlements usually start like this, with some makeshift barracks on top of a hill. Photo: Ksenia Novikova / news The settlements grow quickly and can turn into smaller and larger cities. Photo: Ksenia Novikova / news From the height, the settlers have a good overview of their Palestinian neighbours. Uniformed guards with weapons keep watch. It is easier said than done. Even if goods come from the West Bank or illegally occupied areas in Israel, the goods are labeled as Israeli. In 2022, the government will require labeling of Israeli settlement products from the West Bank and Golan Heights. But the product is still branded with Israel as the country of manufacture. 15 EU countries have previously issued advice to the business community about trade in residential tars. – We have also been able to afford it because we have had a branding scheme that we were early on with. We have also been among the clearest that the buauk is contrary to international law. But we are tightening our grip a bit now that we are also giving up that activity. This has previously been implied in laws and regulations that already apply, says the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Having imposed entry restrictions on December 5, the US began denying visas to extremist Israeli settlers who attacked Palestinians. Then US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that they will deny entry to anyone who is involved in “undermining peace, security or stability in the West Bank” or those who “unnecessarily limit civilians’ access to important services and basic needs”. The US has also frozen the funds for elected residents. Earlier in February, France also introduced sanctions against Israeli settlers who use violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. 28 civilians have also been banned from entering the country. The German foreign minister has also strongly condemned the approval of settlements in the West Bank, and has asked the Israeli authorities to withdraw the permit.
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Norway bans trade in illegal Israeli settlers – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
