Hamas-Backing Anwar Defends BlackRock in Face of Israel Protests

Protesters want Anwar to nix airport deal involving BlackRock
Anwar: ‘Not realistic’ to cut ties with companies over Israel

Anwar Ibrahim at a pro-Palestinian rally in Kuala Lumpur.Photographer: Samsul Said/Bloomberg

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By Ram Anand

June 28, 2024 at 7:04 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has been a fierce critic of Israel over its war against Hamas. Now he’s resisting pressure from his own critics to nix a multi-billion dollar Malaysian airports privatization deal involving BlackRock Inc. over its ties to Israel.

Anwar told parliament this week that it was “not realistic” to cut ties with any company for links to Israel. Then he sought to reassure US investors that his government had no issue with BlackRock, which bought Global Infrastructure Partners — a member of the consortium taking over Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd — for 12.3 billion ringgit ($2.6 billion).