Newscasts - More than 150 firms have ties to Israeli settlements, UN finds

Heidelberg Materials AG

26/09/2025 17:48

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Source: 'Reuters - General news videos'

Description: More than 150 companies are doing business in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which have been declared illegal by the United Nations' highest court, a report by the organisation's human rights office showed on Friday (September 26). Sean Hogan has more.

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Video Transcript:

More than 150 companies, including leading online accommodation platforms, are doing business in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, a UN report found on Friday. The settlements have been declared illegal by the United Nations' highest court. The report by the organization's human rights office said US firms including Airbnb, Expedia, TripAdvisor and Booking.com remain on the list previously updated in 2023. 68 new names were added, taking the total to 158. New additions to the list include major German cement-maker Heidelberg Materials. Heidelberg disputed the listing, telling Reuters it was no longer active in occupied Palestinian territory. All the companies listed were involved in one or more of the 10 activities that the rights office said raised particular human rights concerns. Here's the UN's Ravina Shamdasani.

We call on businesses to take appropriate action to address the adverse human rights impacts of their activities. Where business enterprises identify that they have caused or contributed to adverse human rights impacts, they should provide for or cooperate in remediation through appropriate processes.

The accommodation platforms listed did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Israel, which cites biblical and historical ties to the West Bank, disputes the 2024 UN court ruling on settlements. Most of the international community takes the UN view on the settlements. The Israeli embassy in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest report.