Australia bars far-right Israeli politician over ‘hate and division’ concerns: Report
Australia has barred entry to far-right Israeli politician Simcha Rothman before a planned “solidarity tour”, The Guardian reported, quoting Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke.
Rothman, a Knesset member from the Religious Zionism party and part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition, was scheduled to appear at public events in Sydney and Melbourne in August, along with two private gatherings.
Burke said on Monday that Rothman’s visa application had been rejected and that he would be unable to apply again for three years.
“Our government takes a hard line on people who seek to come to our country and spread division,” Burke said in a statement. “If you are coming to Australia to spread a message of hate and division, we don’t want you here.”
Rothman has previously described Gaza’s children as “enemies” and called for Israel’s full control of the occupied West Bank. The events were organised by the right-leaning Australian Jewish Association.
Should be applied to all Israeli's at this point, except for those seeking political asylum.
Norway sovereign wealth fund to exclude six companies linked to Gaza, West Bank
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, says it has decided to exclude six companies with connections to Gaza and the occupied West Bank from its portfolio after a review of its Israeli investments.
The $2 trillion wealth fund did not name the companies it had decided to exclude but said these would be made public once the divestments were completed.
The announcement follows an urgent review launched this month after reports that the fund had built a stake in an Israeli jet engine group that provides services to Israel’s armed forces, including the maintenance of fighter jets used in the war in Gaza.
On August 11, the fund said it was terminating all contracts with asset managers handling its Israeli investments and had divested parts of its portfolio.
The fund’s ethics council watchdog said it would continue to assess Israeli companies every quarter.
