Norway Mobilizes for BDS

Norway has been the site of a flurry of Palestine solidarity activism and BDS initiatives over the past week, as tens of thousand of people have called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador to Oslo, and major trade unions are mobilizing in support of a comprehensive boycott and divestment campaign.

Demonstrations have now been held in at least 28 cities:

Oslo, Stavanger, Sandnes, Fredrikstad, Trondheim, Hamar, Sortland, Namsos,
Arendal, Norheimsund, Mosjøen, Bergen, Sarpsborg, Tønsberg, Harstad, Tromsø,
Kristiansand, Notodden, Vadsø, Mo i Rana, Alta, Kirkenes, Røros, Volda,
Halden, Gjøvik, Lillehammer, Selbu.

The numbers of participants have never been bigger.

Union activities:

POLITICAL STRIKE: Thursday ALL trains in the whole of Norway, and all trams
and subways in Oslo, will stand still for two minutes as a result of a
political strike organized by the Norwegian Locomotive Union and the Oslo
Tram Workers Union in protest of the Israeli invasion of Gaza.

A large selection of Norwegian trade unions and organizations has endorsed a
new campaign for the withdrawal of all State investments in Israel. The call
is endorsed by so far 6 of the largest national trade unions.

The Union of Trade and Office Workers calls on all members to ask their
employers to remove Israeli produtcts from stores. The union is the by far
largest union of workers in all types of private and public stores in
Norway.

The confederation of Norwegian Trade Unions (LO), with apr. 1/5 of the whole
Norwegian population as members, condemns the Israeli bombing and invasion
in Gaza and calls for demonstrations.

The Norwegian Church has protested Israels invasion of Gaza and was,
according to media, "called to the carpet" by the Israeli embassador.

22.000 supports the Facebook-group demanding the embassador to be expelelled
from Norway. The Facebook-group has got attention in all major newspaper and
was hacked by a Zionist hacker-group but is now back on track.

31% of Norwegians supports the boycott of Israel, in a survey by the
pro-Israel tabloid VG today. The question was politicaly charged "Do you
support the Socialist Left's boycott of Israel?" If not mentioning the
Socialists the number would probably be much higher. The vast majority in
all groups in the survey is against the Israeli invasion of Gaza.