By Daniel Burke
Religion News Service
(RNS) The Presbyterian Church (USA) has removed Citigroup Inc. from its list of businesses probed for possible ties to violence and oppression in the Palestinian territories, saying it found no “improprieties.”
The Louisville, Ky.-based denomination had looked into whether the financial conglomerate was helping terrorist groups launder money. The church’s Mission Responsibility Through Investment Committee announced the end of its investigation of Citigroup at its meeting Nov. 8-10.
The committee continues to scrutinize four other companies to determine if their dealings with Israel and Palestine comply with the church’s peacemaking policies. Those companies are: ITT Industries of White Plains, N.Y.; Motorola Inc. of Schaumburg Ill.; United Technologies Corp. of Hartford, Conn.; and Caterpillar Inc. of Peoria, Ill.
In a controversial move, the Presbyterian Church, which counts 3 million members in the U.S., promised in 2004 to divest from companies it believed contribute to violence in Israel and Palestine. Under pressure from conservatives and Jewish groups, the church changed plans in 2006, and now works to ensure that its money “be invested only in peaceful pursuits.”
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