The shipping company Maersk was found to be shipping weapons to Israel
Recently, Maersk Danish "compatriot" - Danish news investigation agency Danwatch published a special investigation report.
According to the investigation report, between October 2023 and September 2024, Maersk made 43 shipments of thousands of tons of military equipment to Israel via its 14 container ships.
Some of the parts came from Oshkosh Defense, an American company whose vehicles were used in the Gaza war.
Israel's Defense Ministry declined to comment on the specific purpose of the 43 shipments.
"There is a good chance that some of these goods will end up being used in the war in Gaza," Jakobsen said.
"The Americans knew it would be used in the war, and it would be used in Gaza."
While Maersk is not breaking any laws by shipping weapons components to a country that has committed war crimes, countries that ship weapons are responsible for complying with any treaty.
"In a nutshell, what Maersk does is ship it to countries. Permission must come from the country where the military equipment is located, "he said.
However, several experts said the shipment violated Maersk's adherence to the UN's guiding principles on business and human rights, which all companies are obliged to adhere to.
The shipping company has yet to submit a human rights due diligence report on the case, which is supposed to identify the risk of negative human rights impacts.
Sune Skadegaard Thorsen, an expert on corporate social responsibility and founder of consultancy Global CSR, said this could only mean one thing - Maersk does not respect human rights.
In response, Maersk said: "The cargo transported on behalf of the US government does not contain arms or ammunition and is related to US policy under the US-Israel Security Cooperation Program." The goods have been inspected, are legitimate and comply with applicable law."
Maersk has been suspected of carrying weapons
Maersk has previously been in contact with Spanish authorities about suspected arms shipments.
Last November, two Maersk container ships requested to dock at the Spanish port of Algeciras, but were denied entry on suspicion that they were carrying weapons destined for Israel. The Spanish Foreign Ministry then launched an investigation into whether these suspicions were true.
According to Maersk, both ships were sailing on behalf of the US government as part of security cooperation between the US and Israel. Maersk did not say whether the ships were heading to or from Israel, nor did it specify the composition of the cargo.
Spanish authorities have been among Europe's harshest critics of Israel's military operation against Hamas, the Palestinian militant movement in the Gaza Strip. Since last May, Spanish authorities have implemented a recent policy of turning away ships carrying arms to Israel.
However, Maersk has repeatedly stressed that the shipments are legal.
"However, we are not aware of the basis on which the Spanish authorities decided to deny us entry from the port of Algeciras, as the cargo fully complies with national and international laws and regulations." The cargo transshipped through the port does not include any military arms or ammunition."
The Danish shipping company added that it provided all necessary information about the cargo "in a timely manner in accordance with established procedures" and that Maersk had not received any inquiries or concerns about the cargo from the relevant authorities.
According to the investigation report, between October 2023 and September 2024, Maersk made 43 shipments of thousands of tons of military equipment to Israel via its 14 container ships.
Some of the parts came from Oshkosh Defense, an American company whose vehicles were used in the Gaza war.
Israel's Defense Ministry declined to comment on the specific purpose of the 43 shipments.
"There is a good chance that some of these goods will end up being used in the war in Gaza," Jakobsen said.
"The Americans knew it would be used in the war, and it would be used in Gaza."
While Maersk is not breaking any laws by shipping weapons components to a country that has committed war crimes, countries that ship weapons are responsible for complying with any treaty.
"In a nutshell, what Maersk does is ship it to countries. Permission must come from the country where the military equipment is located, "he said.
However, several experts said the shipment violated Maersk's adherence to the UN's guiding principles on business and human rights, which all companies are obliged to adhere to.
The shipping company has yet to submit a human rights due diligence report on the case, which is supposed to identify the risk of negative human rights impacts.
Sune Skadegaard Thorsen, an expert on corporate social responsibility and founder of consultancy Global CSR, said this could only mean one thing - Maersk does not respect human rights.
In response, Maersk said: "The cargo transported on behalf of the US government does not contain arms or ammunition and is related to US policy under the US-Israel Security Cooperation Program." The goods have been inspected, are legitimate and comply with applicable law."
Maersk has been suspected of carrying weapons
Maersk has previously been in contact with Spanish authorities about suspected arms shipments.
Last November, two Maersk container ships requested to dock at the Spanish port of Algeciras, but were denied entry on suspicion that they were carrying weapons destined for Israel. The Spanish Foreign Ministry then launched an investigation into whether these suspicions were true.
According to Maersk, both ships were sailing on behalf of the US government as part of security cooperation between the US and Israel. Maersk did not say whether the ships were heading to or from Israel, nor did it specify the composition of the cargo.
Spanish authorities have been among Europe's harshest critics of Israel's military operation against Hamas, the Palestinian militant movement in the Gaza Strip. Since last May, Spanish authorities have implemented a recent policy of turning away ships carrying arms to Israel.
However, Maersk has repeatedly stressed that the shipments are legal.
"However, we are not aware of the basis on which the Spanish authorities decided to deny us entry from the port of Algeciras, as the cargo fully complies with national and international laws and regulations." The cargo transshipped through the port does not include any military arms or ammunition."
The Danish shipping company added that it provided all necessary information about the cargo "in a timely manner in accordance with established procedures" and that Maersk had not received any inquiries or concerns about the cargo from the relevant authorities.
