United Methodist Church Votes to Divest From Israeli Banks

The international effort to Boycott, Divest and Sanction (BDS) Israel scored a victory Tuesday when the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church, the largest mainline Protestant denomination in the US, voted to exclude five Israeli banks from its list of potential investments due to their financial involvement in Israeli communities in the West Bank. However, the body voted down another proposal to initiate a full boycott of the Jewish State and members said Israel shouldn’t feel singled out since the $20 billion pension fund remains invested in 18 other Israeli companies. Also, 34 other entities from several countries were also barred from the pension fund for various reasons.