,,iv #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,,res4 #gea ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,october #bh1 #bjba,ms4 ,mc,collum 7for herself1 ,ms4 ,tlaib1 ,mr4 ,grijalva1 ,mr4 ,carson1 ,ms4 ,omar1 ,ms4 ,newman1 ,ms4 ,ocasio-,cortez1 ,ms4 ,pressley1 ,ms4 ,bush1 and ,mr4 ,garca of ,illinois7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,,resolution ,condemning the repressive designation by the ,government of ,israel of six prominent ,palestinian human rights and civil society groups as terrorist organizations1 and for other purposes4 ,whereas the ,government of ,israel designated six prominent ,palestinian human rights and civil society groups as terrorist organizations on ,october #ai1 #bjba1 a designation that effectively criminalizes the activities of legitimate civil society groups and authorizes ,israeli authorities to close their offices1 seize their assets1 and arrest and jail their staff members2 ,whereas the six prominent ,palestinian human rights and civil society organizations are ,addameer1 ,al-,haq1 ,defense for ,children ,international-,palestine1 the ,union of ,agricultural ,work ,committees1 the ,bisan ,center for ,research and ,development1 and the ,union of ,palestinian ,women ,committees1 which work directly with ,palestinian women and girls1 children1 small holder farmers1 prisoners1 and civil society activists1 providing direct services and monitoring and exposing human rights abuses1 including ongoing expansion of settlements in violation of international law2 ,whereas ,human ,rights ,watch and ,amnesty ,international1 in a joint statement1 called the move appalling and unjust and an alarming escalation that threatens to shut down the work of ,palestine's most prominent civil society organizations2 ,whereas #ba of the leading ,israeli human rights groups issued a joint statement calling this a draconian measure that criminalizes critical human rights work2 ,whereas ,united ,nations human rights experts unequivocally condemned the decision declaring that the designation is a frontal attack on the ,palestinian human rights movement1 and on human rights everywhere and not what a democracy adhering to well-accepted human rights and humanitarian standards would do2 ,whereas the ,israeli newspaper ,haaretz called the decision ,a stain upon ,israel and said1 ,the outlawing of human rights groups and persecution of humanitarian activists are quintessential characteristics of military regimes1 in which democracy in its deepest sense is a dead letter2 ,whereas1 over the past several years1 ,israeli1 ,palestinian1 and international human rights and humanitarian organizations have faced an increasingly difficult operating environment and shrinking civic space in ,israel and the occupied ,west ,bank1 including ,east ,jerusalem1 and the ,gaza ,strip1 that negatively impacts their ability to deliver assistance and advocate on behalf of ,palestinian human rights2 ,whereas delegitimization and disinformation campaigns have been advanced by a network of rising nationalist ,israeli civil society organizations and associated organizations outside of ,israel1 with the support of ,israeli government ministries and aim to silence and eliminate lawful human rights work that exposes widespread human rights violations inherent in ,israel's military occupation of ,palestinians2 ,whereas antiterrorism legislation must not be used to unjustifiably undermine civil liberties or to curtail the legitimate work of human rights organizations and must be applied in a manner that is consistent with international law and does not violate obligations under international law2 and ,whereas the ,united ,states provides #c4h billion in military funding to the ,israeli government each fiscal year and therefore holds a unique obligation to speak out against and condemn actions by the ,israeli government that intentionally undermine democratic values and internationally recognized human rights3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that-- 7#a7 the ,house of ,representatives-- 7,a7 recognizes the value and importance of the courageous work being done by the six ,palestinian civil society organizations defending the human rights of a vulnerable and at-risk ,palestinian population living under ,israeli military occupation2 and 7,b7 condemns as a repressive act designed to criminalize and persecute important ,palestinian human rights organizations the decision by the ,government of ,israel to designate six prominent ,palestinian human rights and civil society groups as terrorist organizations2 and 7#b7 it is the sense of the ,house of ,representatives that ,president ,biden and the ,secretary of ,state should-- 7,a7 publicly condemn this authoritarian and antidemocratic act of repression by the ,government of ,israel against prominent ,palestinian civil society organizations2 7,b7 publicly call on ,israeli authorities to immediately end efforts aimed at persecuting1 delegitimizing1 and criminalizing ,palestinian human rights defenders and civil society organizations2 and 7,c7 publicly state the ongoing ,united ,states commitment to recognize the valuable work of ,palestinian civil society organizations1 including ,addameer1 ,al-,haq1 ,defense for ,children ,international-,palestine1 the ,union of ,agricultural ,work ,committees1 the ,bisan ,center for ,research and ,development1 and the ,union of ,palestinian ,women ,committees1 and all other peaceful1 legitimate efforts to protect the internationally recognized human rights of ,palestinians living under ,israeli military occupation4