The Portland City Council on Wednesday unanimously passed a protest resolution to divest from Israel over the county’s continued killing of Palestinians in Gaza.
The resolution, sponsored by the Maine Coalition for Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace Maine chapter, aims to withhold all city money and investments from companies that are “complicit in Israel’s war crimes in Gaza,” Maine Coalition For Palestine said in a news release.
Portland is the fourth city in the U.S., and the first on the East Coast, to adopt such a resolution, according to the coalition.
The resolution calls on the city manager to divest from corporations or entities known to “provide Israel with weapons … used in Gaza”, “operate in and contribute to the expansion of Israel’s illegal settlements”, or “enable or profit from the ongoing occupation and oppression of the Palestinian people.”
The divestment list in the resolution includes Chevron, Volvo, Boeing and 82 other companies, the Portland Press Herald reported.
More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas fighters killed roughly 1,200 Israelis, according to news reports from the past week citing the Gaza Health Ministry.
