Thou Shalt Not Betray Us... Construction of the Green Park project in the West Bank settlement of Modiin Ilit.
Norway's 450 billion euro oil-riches fund has excluded two Israeli firms involved in developing settlements, as well as a Malaysian forestry firm, on ethical grounds, Norway's finance ministry said on Monday. The excluded companies are Africa Israel Investments and its engineering subsidiary Danya Cebus, both of which are controlled by energy and real estate magnate Lev Leviev. The Malaysian firm is Samling Global.
The ministry said that the oil fund, which is essentially a form of pension fund, has already sold all its holdings in these companies.
The central bank-managed fund follows ethical guidelines set by the government and does not invest in companies that produce nuclear weapons or cluster munitions, damage the environment or abuse workers' rights. Nor will it invest in companies that build in the settlements, it appears.
Africa Israel controls Danya Cebus, "a construction company involved in developing settlements in occupied Palestinian territory," the fund said in a statement.
Danya Cebus has carried out construction projects, as a hired contractor, in Har Homa, a Jewish neighborhood in east Jerusalem, and in the settlements Ma'aleh Adumim, Modi'in Ilit (shown in the picture) and Adam.
