Israel, US fight settlement list

Weeks ahead of the expected completion of a UN database of companies that operate in Israel’s West Bank settlements, Israel and the Trump administration are working feverishly to prevent its publication.

While Israel is usually quick to brush off UN criticism, officials fear the socalled “blacklist” could drive companies away and prompt investors to dump shares of Israeli firms.

Dozens of major Israeli companies, as well as multinationals that do business in Israel, are expected to appear on the list.

“We will do everything we can to ensure that this list does not see the light of day,” said Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon.

The UN’s top humanrights body, the Human Rights Council, ordered the compilation of the database in March 2016, calling on UN rights chief Zeid Ra’ad alHussein to “investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on Palestinians.”

The international community considers the settlements, built on occupied land claimed by the Palestinians for a future state, to be illegal. Israel rejects such claims and has long accused the UN of being biased against it. Some 70 resolutions have been aimed at Israel, nearly triple the number for the secondplace country, Syria.

The quiet, but high-stakes pressure campaign by Israel and the US to block the release of the database has shown some signs of success. After an earlier delay, Zeid’s office said the release has been pushed back again, from December to early next year.