Dozens of speakers during the public hearing urged Alexandria City Council to divest city investments and contracts from companies they say support human rights violations in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, and they asked the council to act on a recommendation recently passed by the Alexandria Human Rights Commission.

The speakers—representing local advocacy groups, faith communities and area residents—named companies they said enable surveillance, detention and military operations, and they asked the city to cut financial ties where possible through contracts, retirement plan stewardship and local investment pools. One speaker said the Human Rights Commission had voted to recommend that the council pursue divestment from “human rights atrocities around the world, especially Israel’s genocide and apartheid,” and several speakers invoked reports by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and rulings of international bodies.

Lisonbee O’Connell, who opened the comment series on the subject, said the Human Rights Commission’s action echoed earlier local divestment work, recalling a 1985 city resolution on apartheid in South Africa. “Calling Israel an apartheid state is not a matter for debate,” O’Connell said. Other speakers named specific companies they said were linked to abuses: Motorola (surveillance systems); HP (servers and population‑registry infrastructure); Siemens (prison technology); Lockheed Martin and General Electric (defense equipment); Caterpillar, Cisco and Toyota (listed by speakers as connected through broader investments). Several speakers also urged the council to use its appointment and stewardship influence over boards that govern supplemental retirement plans and the local government investment pool.

Speakers framed their appeals as moral and legal: several asked council to follow the Human Rights Commission’s guidance, to ask the city manager to prepare options for non‑renewal of contracts, and to coordinate with other jurisdictions on ethical investment standards. Some speakers tied the request to international reporting: “Reputable organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have extensively documented Israeli apartheid against Palestinians,” a speaker said, and another referenced filings before international courts.

Council did not take formal action on the divestment request during the hearing. Several councilmembers acknowledged the testimony and the existence of the Human Rights Commission recommendation; none moved an immediate resolution or vote. Staff and the council will retain the written submissions and audio record as part of the public hearing docket. Speakers said they would continue monthly attendance at council meetings to press for action.