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APN Welcomes Senate Passage of Hamas Legislation

APN today welcomed the Senate's passage of S. 2370 -- the House companion version of this legislation, passed earlier this year, despite strong opposition from APN and the Bush Administration.


Link to all information related to the House & Senate Palestinian Sanctions Legislation


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - June 23, 2006
CONTACT: Lewis Roth - (202) 728-1893

Washington, D.C.-Americans for Peace Now (APN) today welcomed the Senate's passage of S. 2370, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorist Act of 2006. The House companion version of this legislation, H.R. 4681, passed earlier this year, despite strong opposition from APN and the Bush Administration. APN is a Jewish, Zionist organization dedicated to enhancing Israel's security through peace and to supporting the Israeli Peace Now movement.

"The Senate and House versions of the Palestinian Anti-Terrorist Act are light-years apart in their approach to Hamas' election victory, with S. 2370 reflecting a more sophisticated understanding of the current complexities in the Middle East," said Debra DeLee, President and CEO of Americans for Peace Now. "Like H.R. 4681, the Senate legislation sends a sharp message rejecting terrorism. But in contrast to the House bill, S. 2370 gives the President more flexibility to conduct U.S. foreign policy, preserves the possibility of productive U.S.-Palestinian relations, and differentiates between those Palestinians who embrace a negotiated solution to their conflict with Israel and those who do not. APN has worked hard to have these changes included in this legislation. We welcome the Senate's passage of S. 2370, and we encourage congressional negotiators to accept its provisions if the two versions of the bill are eventually dealt with in conference committee."

Summary of Improvements in the Text of S. 2370

  • The bill has been clearly focused on Hamas:
    • If Hamas is not controlling the Palestinian Authority (PA), the certification that is the basis for all of the sanctions in the bill is not required and, by extension, none of the bill's other sanctions are triggered;
    • If Hamas is controlling all or part of the PA, but has undertaken required reforms and actions, the President can so certify, thereby averting or lifting sanctions (this provides incentive for Hamas to undertake required reforms, although the reforms stipulated in the bill remain excessive and unprioritized); or
    • If Hamas is controlling all or part of the PA, but has not undertaken required reforms and actions, the President cannot make the certification, triggering all the sanctions in the bill.
  • A key action demanded of Hamas as part of the certification has been re-stated to make it more reasonable, while still achieving the same end goal - recognition of Israel's right to exist (under the new formulation, Hamas must "acknowledge the Jewish state of Israel's right to exist" rather than "recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state").
  • A broader waiver of the ban on direct aid has been included. Under this waiver, the President may provide assistance for the administrative and personal security costs of the President of the PA; for activities of the President of the PA "to fulfill his or her duties as President, including to maintain control of the management and security of border crossings, to foster the Middle East peace process, and to promote democracy and the rule of law;" and "assistance for the judiciary branch of the PA and other entities." To invoke this waiver the President must consult with Congress and certify that it is in the national security interests of the U.S. to provide the assistance, and that the proposed recipient of the assistance is not a member of or controlled by Hamas or any other foreign terrorist organization. Unfortunately, this section also stipulates that invoking the waiver and making the certification will be treated as a "program change" - a technicality that would mean that that for each time the President wanted to provide assistance under the waiver, he would have to formally notify relevant House and Senate Committees, whose members would then have 15 days to consider the request; customary practice in such cases permits Committee members to place a "hold" on the requested program change.
  • A broader waiver on the ban on aid to the West Bank and Gaza programs has also been included. In addition to the original waiver for "basic human needs" (as opposed to HR 4681, which only provides for "basic human health needs") and assistance to promote democracy, the bill now includes an exception for assistance for non-Hamas members of the PLC "for the purposes of facilitating their attendance of such members in programs for the development of institutions of democratic governance, including enhancing the transparent and accountable operations of such institutions and providing support for the Middle East peace process." There also is still the exception for other types of assistance if the President certifies that such assistance will further the national society interests of the U.S. - the congressional pre-notification time for such assistance has been cut from 45 days to 30 days.
  • The visa restriction has been focused clearly on Hamas. The section remains discretionary ("should," rather than "shall"), but the overall ban applies to "an alien who is an official of, under the control of, or serving as a representative of the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority." An exception was also added to explicitly exempt from the visa ban the President of the PA and his personal representatives (so long as they are not affiliated with Hamas or any other foreign terrorist organization) and members of the PLC who are not affiliated with Hamas or any other foreign terrorist organization.
  • Finally, a new section has been added entitled "Israeli-Palestinian Peace, Reconciliation and Democracy Fund." This section requires the Secretary of State to establish this fund to support "through Palestinian and Israeli organizations, the promotion of democracy, human rights, freedom of the press, and non-violence among Palestinians, and peaceful coexistence and reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians." The section goes on to authorize $20 million for the fund in FY07.