WASHINGTON – The Zionist Organization of America calls upon its membership to support new House legislation known as H.R. 4681, The Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006. The bill, introduced by Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and Tom Lantos (D-CA) calls for prohibitions on U.S. assistance to a terrorist-controlled Palestinian Authority or any recognition of that leadership by the U.S.

The Senate version of this bill, S.2370, is a weaker bill, which includes a presidential waiver that would allow the Palestinian Authority to continue to receive U.S. funds for the duration of Mahmoud Abbas’ term in office.

H.R. 4681 includes many points lobbied for by the ZOA.

• End of all terrorist incitement, activities and infrastructure
  
  
  
• Recognize Israel and its right to exist
  
  
  
  
  
• Verifiable steps to supply media and textbooks that promote peaceful co-existence with Israel, and ending the commemoration of terrorists
  
  
  
  
  
• Ensuring consistent democratic elections and an independent judiciary
  
  
  
  
  
• Transparency in all financial operations of all Palestinian government institutions

Formal Congressional declaration of the Palestinian territory as a “sanctuary for terrorists”
Importantly, H.R. 4681 also bans the PLO in the U.S. and calls for a suspension of U.S. funds to the United Nations until U.S. recommendations regarding Palestinian-related entities are implemented. The bill also calls for new restrictions on travel visas for all Palestinian Authority officials.Until the U.S. stipulations are met, the U.S. will withhold an amount of UN funding equal to the UN budget for Palestinian related programs.

Introduced in early February, H.R. 4681 has gained ground rapidly, and now boasts over a hundred co-sponsors, including House Majority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO), and Jane Harman (D-CA), ranking member of the Intelligence Committee (See full list below).

The Senate version, S. 2370, was introduced March 6, 2006 by Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the majority whip, and the ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee Joseph Biden (D-DE). As noted above, S.2370 provides the presidential waiver that House sponsors had strongly resisted. It also drops the prohibition on representation of the Palestine Liberation Organization in the United States.

Remind your Representatives:

• Hamas is a terrorist organization, bound to a charter that calls for the destruction of Israel and the murder of every Jew.
  
  
  
• Since the outbreak of the Palestinian terror war in September 2000, Hamas has killed 442 Israelis, wounding and maiming 2,244 more in scores of suicide bombings and hundreds of other attacks.

We ask all ZOA members to contact their Senators and Representatives in Congress in support of the House version of The Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, H. R. 4681.

If the Member of Congress has already signed on to the bill, thank them for their support

The Zionist Organization of America, founded in 1897, is the oldest pro-Israel organization in the United States. The ZOA works to strengthen U.S.-Israel relations, educates the American public and Congress about the dangers that Israel faces, and combats anti-Israel bias in the media and on college campuses. Its past presidents have included Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis and Rabbi Dr. Abba Hillel Silver.