[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 45 (Thursday, March 15, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E560-E561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CALLING FOR RELEASE OF ISRAELI SOLDIERS HELD CAPTIVE BY HAMAS AND 
                               HEZBOLLAH

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 13, 2007

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I join with my good friend Congressman Gary 
Ackerman in calling for the unconditional release of the three 
kidnapped Israeli soldiers held hostage for more than six months by 
Hezbollah and Hamas. I am proud to co-sponsor it, and to have our 
Committee bring it up for consideration by the House.
  A few weeks ago we were honored by the presence in the Capitol of 
Karnit Goldwasser, whose husband Ehud remains in Hezbollah's hands. She 
is a model of strength, courage, and loving commitment.
  I put my arm around this young woman--having recently celebrated my 
57th anniversary with my own lovely wife--and I assured her that we in 
the Congress will do our best to see to it that she and her beloved 
husband Ehud also will have the opportunity to celebrate many 
anniversaries together in the years ahead.
  As everyone knows, Mr. Speaker, Hezbollah and Hamas are the guilty 
parties in the outbreak of violence in the Middle East last summer. 
They committed acts of war by crossing into Israeli territory, acts of 
terror by taking three young Israeli soldiers captive, and vicious 
unprovoked attacks against Israel's civilian population.
  While the immediate fighting between Israel and these terrorist 
organizations has subsided, the initial causes for the violence, 
lamentably, have not yet been addressed. Primary among these is the 
fact that the three young men, Gilad Shalit, Eldad Regev, and Ehud 
Goldwasser, remain in captivity.
  Mr. Speaker, the fighting last summer ended when the United Nations 
Security Council passed Resolution 1701, which imposed a ceasefire on 
the Hezbollah attacks against Israel. That resolution unequivocally 
called for--and I quote--``the unconditional release of the abducted 
Israeli soldiers.''
  Therefore, their ongoing captivity is not only immoral. It is also 
illegal, and it represents

[[Page E561]]

characteristically contemptuous disregard by the terrorists for the 
will of the international community.
  Contrary to the most basic standards of humanitarian conduct, Hamas 
and Hezbollah have not even allowed access to the Israeli captives by 
competent medical personnel and representatives of the International 
Committee of the Red Cross.
  Mr. Speaker, this appalling conduct underscores the cruel and 
sinister nature of the enemies that The United States and Israel face 
in this troubled region.
  The resolution we are considering today expresses this Congress's 
vision for ``a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through 
the creation of a viable and independent Palestinian state living in 
peace alongside of the State of Israel.''
  I share this vision, but we all know that this vision cannot be 
achieved--nor can Israeli confidence be won--by sweeping under the rug 
the transgressions of terrorists like Hamas and Hezbollah.
  Mr. Speaker, these terrorists attacked Israel from land that the 
Israeli army unilaterally evacuated--evacuated in the expectation of 
peace. But the borders traversed by Hamas and Hezbollah have been 
anything but peaceful. As one insightful observer aptly described it, 
``Israel pursues land-for-peace, while Hamas and Hezbollah pursue land-
for-war.''
  Our own American soldiers are being victimized by terrorists every 
day in Iraq--terrorism sponsored by the same two nations that sponsored 
the kidnapping of the Israeli soldiers, Iran and Syria. So we cannot 
turn a blind eye when citizens of a fellow democracy fall prey to the 
machinations of savage terrorists.
  The Israeli soldiers must be released without delay and without 
preconditions. That is the Security Council's demand, and it is our 
demand as well. We will remain committed to the soldiers' freedom--for 
the sake of the fight against terrorism and for the sake of peace.
  Mr. Speaker, I support this resolution and I urge all my colleagues 
to do likewise.

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