{"id":1152196,"date":"2026-08-16T17:49:15","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T17:49:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1152196\/"},"modified":"2026-08-16T17:49:15","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T17:49:15","slug":"norwegian-foundation-coordinated-with-hamas-on-eu-policy-documents-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1152196\/","title":{"rendered":"Norwegian foundation coordinated with Hamas on EU policy, documents show"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Oslo-based Norwegian Center for Conflict Resolution (NOREF) engaged in direct, systematic coordination with high-ranking Hamas officials<\/a>, according to internal Hamas documents recovered from Gaza, declassified by the IDF and translated by NGO Monitor.<\/p>\n

NOREF describes itself as an \u201cindependent foundation\u201d that works to prevent, mitigate, and resolve international conflicts. It was, however, established on the initiative of the Norwegian government and remains primarily funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).<\/p>\n

According to NGO Monitor, the newly uncovered documents indicate that Hamas explicitly viewed NOREF as a strategic channel for influencing European Union policy and mitigating Hamas\u2019 international isolation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The evidence also reportedly shows that NOREF\u2019s activities extended beyond occasional mediation and included at least one unpublicized joint project with EU-designated terrorist organizations.<\/p>\n

Specifically, a July 2021 document details how Hamas explicitly sought to utilize NOREF\u2019s access to Western political circles to manipulate European foreign policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"ProtestersProtesters take part in a pro-Palestinian demonstration marching towards Ullevaal Stadium ahead of the World Cup qualifier between Norway and Israel, in Oslo, Norway, October 11, 2025. (credit: Javad Parsa\/NTB via REUTERS)Hamas officials met with NOREF staff in push to sway European position<\/strong><\/p>\n

The document said a meeting took place on May 15, 2021, between high-ranking Hamas officials \u2013 including Basem Naim (Head of Hamas\u2019 Foreign Relations Office in Gaza) and Abdallah Walid (from the same office) \u2013 and a senior NOREF delegation consisting of Deputy Head Dr. Marte Heian-Engdal, Middle East Department Head Dr. Frida Nome, and Advisor Dr. Ziad Abu Mustafa.<\/p>\n

The meeting\u2019s stated agenda included \u201cMediating the relationship between Hamas and the European Union<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the meeting, Hamas detailed its strategy to capitalize on the \u201cnegative reality in the Palestinian territories to push toward changing the European position.\u201d<\/p>\n

The NOREF delegation allegedly solicited Hamas\u2019 input on how to interface with European leaders to maximize benefit for Hamas, and asked, \u201cWhat are the channels of communication that are currently working on dialogue between the movement [Hamas] and the European Union? How are we able to contribute to this dialogue without obstructing these efforts?\u201d<\/p>\n

A NOREF representative also praised Hamas\u2019 cooperation on a joint initiative, stating, \u201cWe have the youth project, and we value your effort with us in facilitating some of the meetings and communications on this matter.\u201d<\/p>\n

NOREF trained Hamas, PIJ, PFLP, Fatah terrorists in ‘political reconciliation’<\/strong><\/p>\n

A separate internal Hamas document from August 2022 provided evidence of sustained engagement between Hamas and NOREF regarding a planned Norwegian delegation visit to Gaza, NGO Monitor reported. According to the internal record, Hamas authorities met with Ziad Abu Mustafa (the NOREF advisor identified in the May 2021 document) to coordinate the delegation\u2019s entry into Gaza, in consultation with Hamas\u2019 Foreign Relations department.<\/p>\n

The project carried out by NOREF aimed to conduct \u201ctraining\u201d for \u201cPalestinian factions and civil society organizations\u201d to achieve \u201cpolitical and social reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the document: \u201cThe current project being carried out includes 30 people who are members of Palestinian factions, such as Hamas, Fatah, [Palestinian] Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is clear from the internal documents that, rather than serving as a neutral facilitator, NOREF was viewed by Hamas as a channel to influence European positions, while operating with a distinct lack of public transparency,\u201d NGO Monitor said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat a Norwegian-funded organization provided a platform for Hamas officials to discuss influencing European policy, and directly coordinated projects involving members of multiple EU-designated terrorist organizations, raises serious questions about the Norwegian government\u2019s role in legitimizing Hamas across Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Jerusalem Post reached out to NOREF and the MFA for comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Oslo-based Norwegian Center for Conflict Resolution (NOREF) engaged in direct, systematic coordination with high-ranking Hamas officials, according…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1152197,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5174],"tags":[2000,299,5187,1699,835,88931,1115,70208],"class_list":["post-1152196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-eu","tag-eu","tag-europe","tag-european","tag-european-union","tag-hamas","tag-idf","tag-norway","tag-oslo"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1152196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1152196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1152196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1152197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1152196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1152196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1152196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}