A human rights group has warned New York state and local officials that investment of public funds in bonds issued by Israel violates both international law and fiduciary duties and may expose officials and beneficiaries alike to “substantial legal, ethical and financial risks”.
The warning, from the human rights group Dawn, was sent on Friday along with a 26-page memo to the New York governor, Kathy Hochul; the state’s attorney general, Letitia James; New York City’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani; and the state and city comptrollers, Tom DiNapoli and Mark Levine, respectively. It calls on them to immediately cease new purchases and divest any current holdings in Israeli bonds, arguing the investments violate “legal obligations not to aid and abet Israeli crimes and their fiduciary duties to taxpayers”, Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Dawn, said in a statement.
The letter, which threatens litigation, comes as calls for divestment from Israel have grown in the US following the war in Gaza, and as some elected officials have moved away from once-reflexive support of Israel.
Human rights group warns New York officials against investing public funds in Israeli bonds
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