[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2237 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2237

  To withhold United States assistance from the Palestinian Authority 
             until certain conditions have been satisfied.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 1, 2006

    Mr. Santorum (for himself, Mr. Nelson of Florida, and Mr. Kyl) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                     Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To withhold United States assistance from the Palestinian Authority 
             until certain conditions have been satisfied.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Palestinian Compliance Act of 
2006''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Harakatu I-Mujawamati I-Islamiya, which translated in 
        English means the ``Islamic Resistance Movement'', was founded 
        in Gaza by Sheikh Ahmad Yassin.
            (2) The Islamic Resistance Movement, also known as 
        ``Hamas'' has been designated as a Foreign Terrorist 
        Organization by the Secretary of State.
            (3) The Hamas resistance movement, which evolved from the 
        Muslim Brotherhood in 1987, won 74 seats of the 132-seat 
        legislature in the January 26, 2006, Palestinian parliamentary 
        elections.
            (4) Hamas, which has been designated by the Governments of 
        the United States, Canada, and Israel and by the European Union 
        as a terrorist organization, has carried out hundreds of 
        terrorist attacks, which have killed hundreds of civilians and 
        injured thousands more.
            (5) In 2001, the United States Government, under the 
        authority of Executive Order No. 13224 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; 
        prohibiting transactions with persons who support terrorism), 
        blocked the assets of 3 entities, The Holy Land Foundation for 
        Relief and Development, Beit al-Mal Holdings, and Al-Aqsa 
        Islamic Bank, because these entities were providing financial 
        and material support to Hamas.
            (6) Article 11 of the Hamas charter states the following: 
        ``The Islamic Resistance Movement believes that the land of 
        Palestine is an Islamic Waqf consecrated for future Moslem 
        generations until Judgement Day. It, or any part of it, should 
        not be squandered: it, or any part of it, should not be given 
        up. Neither a single Arab country nor all Arab countries, 
        neither any king or president, nor all the kings and 
        presidents, neither any organization nor all of them, be they 
        Palestinian or Arab, possess the right to do that. Palestine is 
        an Islamic Waqf land consecrated for Moslem generations until 
        Judgement Day.''.
            (7) Article 13 of the Hamas charter states, ``There is no 
        solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. 
        Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a 
        waste of time and vain endeavors.''.
            (8) Hamas receives financial support from the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism, as well as 
        charitable donations and remittances from Arab expatriates and 
        commercial enterprises.
            (9) Hamas has a budget estimated at $70,000,000, with 85 
        percent of these funds coming from outside sources.
            (10) According to the Israel Defense Forces, Hamas has 
        killed nearly 300 and wounded over 2,000 Israeli citizens since 
        September 2000.
            (11) According to the Office of the Coordinator for 
        Counterterrorism of the Department of State, in 2003 and 2004, 
        terrorist attacks by Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad 
        (PIJ), the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, and the Popular Front for 
        the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) killed almost 300 people in 
        Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza.
            (12) Section 550(a) of the Foreign Operations, Export 
        Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2006 
        (Public Law 109-102; 119 Stat. 2217) provides, ``None of the 
        funds appropriated by this Act to carry out the provisions of 
        chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 may 
        be obligated or expended with respect to providing funds to the 
        Palestinian Authority.''.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO THE PALESTINIAN 
              AUTHORITY.

    Section 550 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and 
Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-102; 119 
Stat. 2217) is amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting the 
following:
    ``(b) Waiver.--The prohibition included in subsection (a) shall not 
apply if the President certifies in writing to the Speaker of the House 
of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate that the 
Palestinian Authority has--
            ``(1) denounced terrorism and expressed a commitment to 
        combating terrorism;
            ``(2) committed to disarming terrorists and disarming and 
        dismantling terrorist networks, groups, and entities;
            ``(3) committed to eliminating the incitement of terrorism 
        and the commemoration of terrorists in Palestinian society;
            ``(4) pledged to uphold the human rights, civil liberties, 
        and religious liberties of the Palestinian people;
            ``(5) recognized Israel's right to exist and taken 
        appropriate steps to amend `The Covenant of the Islamic 
        Resistance Movement' dated August 18, 1988, to delete 
        statements that are hostile to Israel and that support the use 
        of violence;
            ``(6) renounced the use of violence as a means to resolve 
        disputes between entities; and
            ``(7) committed to prosecuting those individuals, entities, 
        and organizations that have committed acts of terrorism.''.
                                 <all>