U.S. Church Puts 5 Banks from Israel on a Blacklist
TEHRAN (IQNA) - The pension board of the United Methodist Church — one of the largest Protestant denominations in the United States, with more than seven million members — has placed five Israeli banks on a list of companies that it will not invest in for human rights reasons, the board said in a statement on Tuesday.
It appeared to be the first time that a pension fund of a large American church had taken such a step regarding the Israeli banks, which help finance settlement construction in what most of the world considers illegally occupied Palestinian territories.
Palestinian advocates, both in and
outside the church, described the step as an important advance in the Boycott,
Divest and Sanction campaign, or B.D.S., an international effort to pressure Israel economically over
the Palestinian issue, the NY Times reported.
