Activists in the US state of Minnesota organized a protest stand calling for the withdrawal of investments in the state's pension funds from Israeli companies and arms companies that deal with Israel.

And the state capital, St. Paul, witnessed a vigil in the Capitol Building, demanding that Governor Tim Walz and the state Board of Investments, during their annual meeting, withdraw all state funds from companies that benefit from the Israeli apartheid system.

Activists raised Palestinian flags and banners condemning Israeli apartheid, and others in solidarity and support for the Palestinian people.

The state invests more than $800 million in public pension funds in companies that benefit from Israel's apartheid regime, such as Lockheed Martin, Israeli arms company Elbit Systems and others.

During the meeting, members of the campaign gave public testimony to the audience, including the testimony that indicated that the state had invested its pension in companies profiting from war crimes in Palestine.

The state has invested its pension in companies profiting from war crimes in Palestine, said teacher Anne Kerstead, adding that while Minnesota teachers are engaged in training on increasing racial justice in our schools and communities, the state is supporting Israeli apartheid.

She noted that Palestinians do not enjoy the same political or cultural rights as Jews, so our pensions should not be invested in companies that benefit from the occupation of Palestine.

And she continued, "Apartheid is a mistake in the United States, it was a mistake in South Africa, and it is a mistake in Palestine."