Overview

• The fund will next week unveil specific measures to expedite the sale of stakes in Israeli firms that breach its ethical criteria.
• Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg confirmed there will be no wholesale divestment from Israeli companies, saying a full withdrawal would unfairly target firms solely for their nationality.
• An urgent ethics review launched this week focused on investments tied to military supply firms in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, including Bet Shemesh Engines.
• Norway’s independent ethics council and finance ministry are scrutinizing the use of external portfolio managers, including three based in Israel, for handling sensitive holdings.
• At the end of 2024 the fund held $1.95 billion in 65 Israeli companies and is considering divestment from five banks as pro-Palestinian campaigners press for broader withdrawals.