Earlier this week, the Norwegian government announced on Facebook that Norway is increasing its aid to Palestine by NOK 125 million.
The comments section filled so quickly with angry reactions that the government felt compelled to close it.
NOK 125 million more, NOK one billion in total this year
Norway is allocating an additional NOK 125 million to Palestine through the UN and the World Bank. The money will go, among other things, towards budget support for the Palestinian public sector.
In total, Norway is providing around NOK one billion in aid to Palestine in 2026.
– Norway is among the strongest advocates for getting early reconstruction in Gaza under way. The work is proceeding too slowly, says Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Labour Party).
He refers to the UN’s 20-point plan for peace, adopted by the Security Council last year. According to Barth Eide, there is an urgent need to implement the plan.
Closed the comments section
The announcement was made on the government’s own Facebook page.
‘This comments section is now closed. If you have a matter that you would like the ministries or the Office of the Prime Minister (SMK) to consider, we ask that you address…’, the government’s own account eventually wrote.
No other reason for the closure has been given beyond this standard text.
Furious over the spending
A great many of the comments made the same point. The money is being sent out of the country while Norwegians themselves are struggling financially.
Norges Bank raised the policy rate to 4.5 per cent just days before the announcement. Several commenters referred directly to the interest-rate increase.
Harald Bakken points out that interest rates are rising. At the same time, billions are being sent out of the country. Egil Marthinsen calls it insane waste of taxpayers’ money. Kjell Gjesteby simply writes that he has given up on the government.
Accused of financing Hamas
A number of commenters go further. They accuse the government of, in reality, financing Hamas.
Mary-Ann Jølle writes that the money simply ends up in the pockets of Hamas. The population gets only crumbs back, according to her. Vivi Hask calls Norway one of the largest sponsors of terrorism in the Middle East. Several others use the term terrorist financing directly.
One commenter claims that the five most senior Hamas leaders have a combined fortune of ten billion dollars. International media, however, have estimated the fortunes of Hamas leaders at anything from around 11 to more than 25 billion dollars.
Hamas has not laid down its arms
The accusations have a real basis. On paper, Hamas agreed this summer to disarm. It is part of the same peace plan to which Barth Eide refers.
In practice, little has happened. A Hamas spokesman has himself stated that the group has neither agreed to disarm nor to hand over its weapons.
What is being offered is to place heavy weapons under Palestinian control. Personal weapons and lighter weapons are not part of the offer at all.
Document reported as early as May 2024 on how a large proportion of the aid to Gaza ends up with Hamas. Israel estimated at the time that Hamas had stolen up to 60 per cent of the aid entering the Gaza Strip. The Israeli television channel Channel 12 simultaneously revealed that Hamas had earned at least 500 million dollars from humanitarian aid. The money had been earned since the war began on 7 October 2023.
Norway alone had provided NOK 14.5 billion to the Palestinian territories since 1993, according to the same report. The support was increased further after the attack on Israel.
The bill ends up in Norway
The money for reconstruction is going into an area that Hamas in practice still controls militarily. At the same time, interest rates are rising for people at home in Norway.
The government has not responded to any of the accusations, either concerning the spending of the money or Hamas.
Freedom of expression in Norway is under severe pressure at present.
