[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 132 (Wednesday, September 24, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H8494]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            SUPPORTING ISRAEL IN ITS FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM

  (Mr. CROWLEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CROWLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about my commitment 
to an Israel that can live in a safe and secure environment.
  Over August I had the opportunity to travel to Israel with 28 of my 
colleagues. This trip was the largest congressional delegation ever to 
travel to the state of Israel. We had the opportunity to see the 
strength and resilience of the Israeli people as they face the threat 
of terrorism on a daily basis.
  The United States must not stand in the way of Israel protecting its 
citizens from terrorists who threaten them. Israel did not ask us to 
restrain ourselves when we acted against the terrorists responsible for 
the 9/11 attacks, and we should not ask that from them.
  For a true and lasting peace to come about, the Palestinian Authority 
must act against the terrorist groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad. But 
before the Palestinian Authority can act against these terrorists, they 
must clean up their own acts. The first step is to remove Yasser Arafat 
from any position of power. Arafat has done enough to destroy the 
aspirations of the Palestinian people.
  Recently we all read in the paper how the IMF discovered that Arafat 
diverted $900 million of public funds to a special bank account under 
his control. Arafat is not a partner for peace. We know that. We need 
to convince our allies of that as well. The Palestinian Authority must 
rid itself of Yasser Arafat if it truly wants to bring about a peaceful 
coexistence with the state of Israel.

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