Waltham Forest Council, a London-based local authority, has announced its decision to withdraw pension investments from companies associated with arms production.

Previously, the Labour-run council had £773,000 of its £1.1 billion pension fund invested in firms that were linked to the production of fighter planes.

The council stated that this move aligns with its "beliefs" and that it has updated its "ethical investment policy" accordingly. The decision comes in response to ongoing calls from the local campaign group Waltham Forest for a Free Palestine (WF4FP), which urged the council to take this action, known as "divesting," amid the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict.

The Israeli government has stated that it is defending itself following deadly attacks in October by Hamas, a Palestinian militant group designated as a terrorist organization by the UK government and other nations. Photo by The wub, Wikimedia commons.