For the fifth year running, the flag of the non-existent Palestinian state is to fly from Oslo City Hall. Oslo’s politicians are divided, but the Liberal Party and the red-green parties hold a majority.
As there is no such thing as a Palestinian flag, many of those who support the Jews’ right to their own state, Israel, believe that the flag actually symbolises terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
The flying of the flag on 29 November was given the green light by the City Council’s executive committee on Monday afternoon, when the Liberal Party secured a majority together with the red-green parties, reports NRK.
The Labour Party beat Rødt to the punch by proposing the flying of the Palestinian flag at City Hall this year. They were inspired by this year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner, Navi Pillay, who – without any basis in international law – has accused Israel of genocide, an accusation that has really taken hold in the West.
UN Palestine Day
29 November is the UN’s International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. Rødt proposed flying the flag from the town hall in 2022 – in other words, almost a year before Hamas carried out its terrorist attack against Israel that triggered the war in the Gaza Strip.
This was unusual, as strictly speaking only the Norwegian and Sami flags are permitted to be flown in front of public buildings. However, the Palestine activists exploited a loophole, as provision has been made for flying flags on UN days, in connection with state visits and on Nordic Day on 23 March.
City Council Leader Eirik Lae Solberg nevertheless warned against exploiting the loophole to fly flags on Palestine Day.
“The Town Hall should be a place for all the city’s residents, regardless of political stance, religion or beliefs, and should not contribute to polarisation in public debate,” was his reasoning.
The Liberal Party, which is also one of the most prominent parties when it comes to Norwegian support for Ukraine, disagreed and voted in favour of flying the flag alongside the parties on the left.
This year, the proposal to fly the flags secured a majority for the fifth year running – with varying majority configurations. Tensions were at their highest in 2023, immediately following the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October and the start of the war in Gaza.
It was in 2023 that Rødt proposed illuminating the City Hall in the Palestinian colours, to truly highlight the strength of Norwegian support for the Palestinian Arabs.
Rødt drew inspiration from the fact that the Ukrainian flag illuminated both the City Hall and the Holmenkollen ski jump following Russia’s invasion. However, the proposal to illuminate the City Hall was rejected. In 2024, Oslo decided to tighten the rules governing this type of display by introducing a ban on illuminating municipal buildings in the colours of other nations.
However, the flag-flying continues, and the Conservative Party remains opposed, giving the following reasons:
– “The reason is not a lack of empathy with the Palestinian people or that we do not take the situation in Gaza or the West Bank seriously, but is entirely a matter of principle,” says group leader Merete Agerbak-Jensen.
The Liberal Party explains its support as follows:
– It is nice to take a small step to express support for a people experiencing severe oppression. I believe it would send a very unfortunate signal if Oslo were to stop doing this now,” says Anna Dåsnes of the Liberal Party.
Dåsnes points out that Oslo has been doing the same since 2022.
