[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 784 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 784

Deterring Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran for their repeated 
  and continued acts of terrorism against the State of Israel and the 
United States and urging the United States to use all diplomatic tools 
          available to hold them accountable for such actions.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 2024

 Mr. Graham submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                   the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Deterring Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran for their repeated 
  and continued acts of terrorism against the State of Israel and the 
United States and urging the United States to use all diplomatic tools 
          available to hold them accountable for such actions.

Whereas, in 1982, the Lebanon-based, radical-Shia terrorist group Hizballah 
        (referred to in this preamble as ``Hezbollah''), which translates to 
        ``The Party of God'', was founded to violently advocate for global Shia 
        empowerment through acts of terror;
Whereas Hezbollah's founding manifesto states, ``The American threat is not 
        local or restricted to a particular region, and as such, confrontation 
        of such a threat must be international as well'', resulting in the 
        terrorist organization conducting numerous attacks against Israeli and 
        Western targets;
Whereas, since its inception, Hezbollah has received significant support from 
        the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is the largest state sponsor of 
        terrorism in the world;
Whereas, on April 18, 1983, Hezbollah attacked the United States Embassy in 
        Beirut, Lebanon, killing 63 American and Lebanese employees and 
        citizens;
Whereas, on October 23, 1983, Hezbollah attacked the Marine Corps barracks in 
        Beirut, Lebanon, killing 241 United States military personnel, including 
        220 United States Marines, 18 United States Navy sailors, and 3 United 
        States Army soldiers, resulting in the single deadliest day for the 
        United States Marine Corps since the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War 
        II;
Whereas, on September 20, 1984, Hezbollah attacked the United States Embassy 
        Annex in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 23 American and Lebanese employees and 
        citizens;
Whereas, on February 16, 1985, Hezbollah stated that their violent actions would 
        only cease when Israel is ``obliterated'' and that Hezbollah 
        ``vigorously condemns all plans for negotiation with Israel'';
Whereas, on June 14, 1985, Hezbollah hijacked Trans World Airlines (TWA) Flight 
        847 and immediately demanded to know the identity of ``those with 
        Jewish-sounding names'', holding hostage the plane and many TWA 
        employees and passengers for 17 days;
Whereas, in 1992, Hassan Nasrallah assumed the position of Secretary-General of 
        Hezbollah and has overseen their regime of terror ever since;
Whereas, on March 17, 1992, with the backing of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 
        Hezbollah detonated a truck bomb at the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires, 
        Argentina, killing 29 people and wounding more than 240 other people;
Whereas, on July 18, 1994, with the backing of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 
        Hezbollah attacked the Buenos Aires, Argentina, headquarters of the 
        Argentine-Israelite Mutual Association, a Jewish community center, 
        killing 85 people and wounding more than 300 other people, which is the 
        deadliest terrorist attack in the history of Argentina;
Whereas, on October 8, 1997, Hezbollah was designated as a foreign terrorist 
        organization pursuant to section 219(a) of the Immigration and 
        Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189(a));
Whereas, before September 11, 2001, Hezbollah was responsible for more deaths of 
        United States citizens than any other terrorist organization;
Whereas, on September 23, 2001, Hezbollah was designated a ``Specially 
        Designated Global Terrorist'' entity pursuant to Executive Order 13224 
        (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to blocking property and prohibiting 
        transactions with persons who commit, threaten to commit, or support 
        terrorism);
Whereas, on July 12, 2006, Hezbollah abducted 2 Israeli soldiers, which resulted 
        in a 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah;
Whereas, according to the Department of State's Country Reports on Terrorism 
        2021: Iran, ``Since the end of the 2006 Israeli-Hizballah conflict, Iran 
        has supplied Hizballah in Lebanon with thousands of rockets, missiles, 
        and small arms in violation of UNSCR 1701'';
Whereas, in 2010, the Department of State labeled Hezbollah as ``the most 
        technically capable terrorist group in the world and a continued 
        security threat to the United States'';
Whereas, on July 18, 2012, Hezbollah detonated a bus bomb in Burgas, Bulgaria, 
        killing 5 Israeli citizens and 1 Bulgarian citizen;
Whereas, since October 7, 2023, Hezbollah has increased its attacks against 
        northern Israel, resulting in the deaths of Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) 
        soldiers and Israeli civilians and the displacement of tens of thousands 
        of residents in northern Israel;
Whereas, since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah has increased the number of rockets 
        launched into Israel, resulting in the deaths of at least 22 IDF 
        soldiers and 24 Israeli civilians;
Whereas, on November 15, 2023, the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation, Christopher Wray, testified before the Committee on 
        Homeland Security of the House of Representatives that ``FBI arrests in 
        recent years also indicate that Hizballah has tried to seed operatives, 
        establish infrastructure, and engage in spying here domestically--
        raising our concern that they may be contingency planning for future 
        operations in the United States'';
Whereas, on February 5, 2024, the Office of the Director of National 
        Intelligence submitted its annual report pursuant to section 108B of the 
        National Security Act of 1947 (commonly known as the ``Annual Threat 
        Assessment''), which concluded ``Hizballah will continue to develop its 
        global terrorist capabilities as a complement to the group's growing 
        conventional military capabilities in the region. . .[and] Hizballah 
        probably will continue to conduct provocative actions such as rocket 
        launches against Israel'';
Whereas, on June 19, 2024, Hassan Nasrallah threatened European Union member 
        Cyprus, stating ``The Cypriot Government must be warned that opening 
        Cypriot airports and bases for the Israeli enemy to target Lebanon means 
        that the Cypriot Government has become part of the war and the 
        resistance (Hezbollah) will deal with it as part of the war'';
Whereas, on July 27, 2024, Hezbollah launched a rocket at the town of Majdal 
        Shams in northern Israel, killing at least 12 children and teenagers, 
        and wounding dozens more, resulting in the single deadliest Hezbollah 
        attack on northern Israel since fighting began there in October;
Whereas Hezbollah has been deeply involved in training and continuously 
        providing weapons to Houthi militants in Yemen and has reportedly 
        assisted the Houthi campaign against international shipping in the Red 
        Sea;
Whereas Hassan Nasrallah has repeatedly vowed to destroy Israel, stating 
        ``[Israel] is an aggressive, illegal and illegitimate entity, which has 
        no future in our land. Its destination is manifested in our motto, 
        `Death to Israel''';
Whereas the Islamic Republic of Iran's Mission to the United Nations has echoed 
        the statements of Hassan Nasrallah, stating, ``[S]hould [Israel] embark 
        on full-scale military aggression, an obliterating war will ensue. All 
        options, [including] the full involvement of all Resistance Fronts, are 
        on the table.'';
Whereas it has been reported that Hezbollah is using Beirut Rafic Hariri 
        International Airport in Beirut, Lebanon, to store ballistic missiles, 
        unguided artillery rockets, laser-guided anti-tank guided missiles, and 
        a highly explosive and toxic white powder known as ``RDX'';
Whereas Hezbollah reportedly has at least 150,000 missiles in its arsenal, some 
        of which are precision-guided, which could be launched at Israel without 
        warning and would overwhelm the Iron Dome air defense system and greatly 
        expand the current regional conflict;
Whereas Israel's Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, previously stated the 
        Islamic Republic of Iran provides Hezbollah $700,000,000 a year in 
        funding and ``knowledge and strategic weaponry'';
Whereas former Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, previously stated, 
        ``Hezbollah has been Iran's favorite child. Their favorite son from the 
        beginning. And it's a model that they try to replicate around the Middle 
        East . . . Seventy percent of Hezbollah's budget comes from Iran and 
        that comes to about $700,000,000 per year'';
Whereas the Department of the Treasury, in its 2018 report, National Strategy 
        for Combating Terrorist and Other Illicit Financing, concluded that--

    (1) ``Hizballah continues to present a significant terrorism threat to 
. . . U.S., Israeli, and Saudi Arabian interests'';

    (2) ``Hizballah receives the majority of its funding, upwards of $700 
million a year, from Iran, which is the world's foremost state sponsor of 
terrorism''; and

    (3) ``Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) 
continues to provide hundreds of millions of dollars a year to Iran's 
terrorist proxies, such as Hizballah and the Assad regime in Syria'';

Whereas the Department of State, in its 2020 report, Outlaw Regime: A Chronicle 
        of Iran's Destructive Activities, concluded ``In Lebanon, Iranian 
        support has been foundational to Hizballah since its emergence in the 
        1980s as the first organization to employ the widespread and regular use 
        of suicide bombers. In addition to providing as much as $700 million in 
        funds annually, Iran has long been one of the primary suppliers of 
        Hizballah's military technology, enabling the group's transformation 
        into a quasi-conventional force.'';
Whereas the Department of State, in its annual country reports on terrorism 
        required under section 140 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, 
        Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989 (22 U.S.C. 2656f), concluded that--

    (1) ``Iran's annual financial backing to Hizballah--which has been 
estimated to be hundreds of millions of dollars annually--accounts for the 
overwhelming majority of the group's annual budget'';

    (2) ``Iran has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in support of 
Hizballah and trained thousands of its fighters at camps in Iran'';

    (3) ``Iran continues to provide Hizballah with most of its funding, 
training, weapons, and explosives, as well as political, diplomatic, 
monetary, and organizational aid''; and

    (4) ``Israeli security officials and politicians [have] expressed 
concerns that Iran [is] supplying Hizballah with advanced weapons systems 
and technologies, as well as assisting the group in creating infrastructure 
that would permit it to produce its own rockets and missiles, thereby 
threatening Israel from Lebanon and Syria'';

Whereas the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, in an assessment 
        published in accordance with the Iran Nuclear Weapons Capability and 
        Terrorism Monitoring Act of 2022 (22 U.S.C. 8701 note; Public Law 117-
        263), concluded, ``Iran provides aid to Lebanese Hizballah . . . to 
        build and strengthen a network which Tehran intends to leverage to 
        advance its interests'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) affirms that any escalation by Hezbollah against the 
        State of Israel that leads to a major confrontation will be 
        viewed as an attack carried out and executed by the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran;
            (2) asserts that efforts to deter Hezbollah and the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran are most credible when the President keeps all 
        options on the table, including the use of military force, in 
        accordance with constitutional processes;
            (3) recognizes that the Islamic Republic of Iran and 
        Hezbollah will be responsible for any adverse impacts on the 
        people of Lebanon that result from an attack on the State of 
        Israel by Hezbollah;
            (4) condemns Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran for 
        their repeated acts of terrorism and urges Congress and the 
        President to use all diplomatic tools and power projection 
        capabilities to hold both parties accountable for their 
        actions;
            (5) denounces all comments made by Hezbollah and the 
        Islamic Republic of Iran, including comments by the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran's Mission to the United Nations, which call 
        for the obliteration and destruction of the State of Israel; 
        and
            (6) supports the State of Israel as it continues to defend 
        its sovereignty against attacks from the Islamic Republic of 
        Iran, Hezbollah, and all other Iranian proxies.
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