Caterpillar Inc.

Caterpillar Inc. represents one of the most established and symbolically powerful boycott targets in the Palestinian solidarity movement. The company's D9 armoured bulldozers have become globally recognised icons of home demolitions and civilian infrastructure destruction. Unlike consumer-facing targets, Caterpillar's vulnerability lies in institutional investor pressure and government procurement decisions, with a proven track record of successful divestment campaigns.

Key Leverage Points

• Iconic Symbol: The D9 bulldozer is arguably the most visually identifiable tool of occupation, creating powerful campaign material. Recent Gaza footage has intensified this recognition.
• Proven Divestment Success: Over 50 organisations have divested, including Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund, multiple church denominations, pension funds, and municipalities. This demonstrates the campaign's effectiveness and provides replicable models.
• Rachel Corrie Legacy: The 2003 killing of American activist Rachel Corrie by a D9 bulldozer created lasting reputational damage and established legal precedent for corporate complicity arguments.
• Government Sales Dependency: D9 sales to Israel flow through US Foreign Military Sales program, creating regulatory and political pressure points beyond corporate decision-making.
• UK Subsidiary (Perkins Engines): Caterpillar's Peterborough-based Perkins subsidiary, acquired for $1.325 billion in 1998, represents a significant UK pressure point. With a 125,000 sqm factory producing up to 420,000 diesel engines annually and housing Europe's R&D Centre, plus additional facilities in Stafford and Shrewsbury, Caterpillar is a major UK employer. This creates opportunities for local council engagement, UK pension fund pressure, and coordinated advocacy targeting UK operations.

Evidence Summary

Documentation from Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the AFSC establishes D9 bulldozers as primary tools in unlawful home demolitions, with over 18,000 Palestinian homes destroyed since 1967. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has formally advised Caterpillar that it may be complicit in human rights violations.

Post-October 2023 evidence is particularly damning: CNN investigations documented D9s used to desecrate 16 Gaza cemeteries; AFSC reports bulldozers crushing displaced persons at Beit Lahia hospital (December 2023); and satellite imagery confirms 38-48% of Gaza's farmland destroyed. The $295 million emergency sale approved in February 2025 demonstrates continued US government facilitation despite documentation of violations.

Engagement Strategy

Focus on institutional investor pressure and replicating successful divestment campaigns. Target pension funds, university endowments, and municipal investment portfolios using the KLP, Norway sovereign wealth fund, and Alameda County precedents as models. For shareholder engagement, submit human rights resolutions at annual meetings, building on the six consecutive years Caterpillar faced such proposals. Emphasise the company's contradiction between stated human rights policies and documented equipment usage in operations the ICJ found face a 'plausible' genocide case.