Backing Israel in Both Word and Deed
The October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on civilians
commands a forceful response. The world has watched with grief
the accounts of the injuries, tortures, slaughters and takings of
thousands of people, including Americans. The United States
stands firmly with our ally Israel and backs its right to defend
itself.
- I co-sponsored, and the Senate
unanimously passed, a bipartisan resolution introduced by
fellow Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Ben Cardin (D-Maryland)
expressing solidarity with Israel in the wake of the Hamas attacks and
ongoing operations to safeguard Israeli citizens.
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We also need to take concrete steps to address Iran’s support of
terrorism. I co-sponsored two pieces of legislation that
would re-freeze the $6 billion of Iranian assets and block Iran from
accessing them. The legislation follows an August
letter to the U.S. Departments of State and Treasury demanding answers
from the Biden Administration regarding the release of funds to Iran
in exchange for American prisoners. We wrote, “The release
of such a significant sum to the Iranian regime . . . will only serve
to encourage additional hostage taking for financial or political
gain.” Additionally, I joined calls for
a Senate investigation into the release of $6 billion to Iran.
It has since been reported that the Biden Administration has agreed to
stop Iran from accessing the $6 billion account, which is a positive
step to ensure no fungible funds are used to perpetrate terrorist
acts.
- It is also time to finally stop funding the
anti-Israel United Nations (UN) Relief and Works Agency for Palestine
Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). UNRWA has a long history of
using textbooks antagonistic to Israel, and Hamas uses UNRWA schools
to store its weapons used to attack Israel. For these reasons,
I recently co-sponsored the U.N. Anti-Terrorism Accountability
Act, which prohibits the U.S. from making any financial
contributions to UNRWA. Previously, I co-sponsored Senator
Risch’s UNRWA Accountability and Transparency Act, which
outlines a comprehensive approach to cease U.S. contributions to the
UNRWA.
- Finally, the antisemitism we have
seen in our own country is unacceptable and must be condemned.
In response to the hateful rhetoric and displays on college campuses
around the country, my colleagues and I sent
a letterto Harvard University President demanding
that the university condemn the statement issued by student groups
supporting Hamas' attack on Israel. Further, we also sent
a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Cardona
urging a swift response to the increase in violent activities
against Jewish students.
We share the
loss of the Israelis, and we stand with them now unequivocally in word
in deed. My continued prayers are with the victims and families
of those killed in the senseless October 7 terrorist attacks, as well
as the over 200 individuals still held hostage. I pray for their
safe return.
You can read my full column on these
efforts by visiting my website: https://www.crapo.senate.gov/news/in-the-news/weekly-column-backing-israel-in-both-word-and-deed
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