Norway weighs up to 3 years in prison for trade with Israeli settlers in West Bank

Norway is considering legislation that could impose prison sentences of up to three years on individuals or companies that trade with Israeli settlers in the West Bank, taking proposed restrictions on settlement commerce further than measures announced by a group of other Western countries. Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that he expects parliament, the Storting, to approve legislation this fall targeting trade with Israeli settlers in what Norway considers the occupied West Bank. The proposal, being advanced by the Foreign Ministry in Oslo, would apply to both individuals and companies. A public consultation on the measure is scheduled to end on September 19. It would also apply to East Jerusalem, which Israel considers an inseparable part of its capital, as well as to construction and infrastructure services connected to settlements.