WASHINGTON, August 7, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – The Presbyterian Church USA has threatened to divest from five American giant companies, accusing them of supporting and helping maintain the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

The church’s Mission Responsibility through Investment (MRTI) Committee said in a statement, a copy of which was e-mailed to IslamOnline.net Sunday, August 7, it will have to use the church's multimillion-dollar stock holdings in the five corporations to pressure them to stop.

It also said it hopes to engage in a dialogue "so that these corporations might change their business practices which inflict harm on the innocent, and delay movement toward a just peace."

"If these dialogues fail, we may conclude that our investments are not being used for activities that support the broad mission of the Church," church official Bill Somplatsky-Jarman said in a press release.

"At that point, divestment is an option that the General Assembly may consider."

The Presbyterian Church has approximately 2.5 million members and is one of the strongest denominations in the United States.

During its General Assembly meeting in July of last year, the church proposed withdrawing investments from firms that do business in Israel.

The Presbyterian Church invests up to $8 billion in US firms.

The church has further, for the first time, named the five companies targeted.

They named heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar, communications giant Motorola, military contractor United Technologies, electronics manufacturer ITT Industries and international banking conglomerate Citigroup - all of which are firms who have been contracted to supply the Israeli occupation forces.

“We have chosen these companies because we believe that they can make changes that will increase the possibilities for a just peace in the region. As shareholders of these companies, the Presbyterian Church calls on them to act responsibly,” Carol Hylkema, chairperson of the MRTI committee, said in a press release.

The church said Caterpillar, for instance, manufactures heavy equipment used for the demolition of Palestinian homes, the uprooting of olive trees, construction of roads and infrastructure in the occupied territories for use only by Israeli settlers.

With $8 billion invested in US firms, the church's clout is significant, and the political symbolism of its move is even more striking.

Some observers believe Israel may be subjected ultimately to an economic embargo, as South Africa was during its apartheid years.

The New York Times reported Friday, August 5, that the Episcopal Church USA and the United Church of Christ, among others, have praised the Presbyterian move and are also considering divestment as a means of swaying Israeli policy.

The World Council of Churches, the main global body uniting non-Catholic Christians, encouraged in February members to sell off investments in companies profiting from Israeli control of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.