[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 201 (Wednesday, December 6, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S5780]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Israel

  Ms. ROSEN. Mr. President, on October 7, Hamas launched the deadliest 
terror attack in Israel's history. Hamas's vicious and unprovoked 
slaughter targeted innocent Israeli civilians and killed 1,200 men, 
women, children--from babies to Holocaust survivors.
  Not since the Holocaust has there been a deadlier day for the Jewish 
people. Yet some extreme individuals and organizations are trying to 
minimize, distort, and outright deny what happened that day.
  We cannot let that happen. That is why Senator Rubio and I hosted a 
screening last week for our colleagues to show them exactly what Hamas 
did on October 7.
  The videos, many taken by the terrorists themselves, are disturbing. 
They are graphic. The images and sounds in those videos, I will never 
forget. I encourage all Members to see for themselves what Israel is 
fighting against--pure terror; pure, pure evil.
  On October 7, Hamas violated a longstanding cease-fire when they 
chose--they chose--to start this war. Hamas took deliberate and 
preemptive actions against innocent civilians, including dismemberment, 
torture, and mass rape, in what only can be described as barbaric 
terrorism. As any other nation would, Israel has responded to this 
unprovoked attack by acting to defend its own population, as they have 
the absolute right to do.
  At the same time, Hamas has stated over and over and over again that 
they will not stop until there are a thousand more October 7s, until 
they destroy Israel and all of the people living there, and it is time 
that the world listens. This is why it is not surprising that at the 
end of last week, Hamas broke the agreement that was put in place to 
temporarily pause the fighting, to bring more humanitarian aid into 
Gaza, and to rescue the hostages brutally taken by Hamas.
  Let me be clear. There is no equivalency, no equivalency--zero, 
none--between the terrorist actions of Hamas and the efforts of Israel 
to stop them from doing this again or, God forbid, committing a worse 
attack, as they have repeatedly promised to do. We must all remember 
this, especially now, as we work to deliver aid to Israel.
  It has been nearly 2 months since October 7, and rockets continue to 
rain down on Israeli cities. More than 130 hostages remain in Gaza. We 
continue to learn more and more about the violent acts of rape, of 
torture, of murder committed by Hamas. It is all ongoing. Yet Congress 
hasn't passed the supplemental security assistance that Israel 
desperately needs to defend itself.
  The security assistance includes support for Israel's lifesaving Iron 
Dome missile defense system--it protects them from Hamas and Hezbollah, 
from the rockets that rain down on them night after night after night--
as well as other key defense resources and tools. It also replenishes 
our own defense stocks that have been drawn down to support Israel in 
this time of need.
  To my knowledge, Congress has never used conditions on security 
assistance in order to strong-arm Israel, and now is not the time to 
start. Conditions would undermine Israel's ability to defend itself and 
would send a signal to the world that America's support for our ally is 
weakening, which is exactly what Iran and its terrorist proxies--it is 
what they all want. Our aid could make the difference between whether 
or not there is another October 7.
  Now I turn to Members of my own party. Here we are. We all want the 
same thing. We all want peace in the region for both Palestinians and 
Israelis, a two-state solution with a secure State of Israel living 
side by side with a peaceful Palestinian state.
  But let me be clear. Hamas--Hamas--is the one currently preventing 
this goal. Hamas launched the attack on Israel. Hamas targeted, Hamas 
murdered, Hamas raped and kidnapped innocent people. Hamas is 
threatening to do this over and over and over again. Hamas is a 
terrorist organization. They are terrorists. They must be stopped 
permanently. It is the only way we will get closer to peace and 
stability in the region.
  I also understand and I share your concerns about the need to 
minimize civilian casualties and the suffering in Gaza. Every innocent 
civilian death is a tragedy. To truly end the suffering of both 
Israelis and Palestinians, Hamas must no longer control Gaza.
  For nearly two decades, Hamas has stolen resources from the 
Palestinian people. They have used these resources for terrorist 
purposes. Instead of building infrastructure to improve Gaza's economy, 
Hamas built terrorist tunnels. Instead of launching programs to combat 
poverty, Hamas launches rockets to combat Israel. Instead of shielding 
their own people and lifting them up, Hamas uses their own people as 
human shields.
  Israel must dismantle Hamas for both Israelis and innocent 
Palestinians. And while we help Israel, we can and we must continue to 
work with the Israeli Government to make sure that they are doing 
everything--everything--in their power to prevent the loss of innocent 
life.
  As we partner with Israel and other nations in the region to deliver 
humanitarian aid in Gaza--food, water, medicine, emergency shelter, 
sanitation--we must make sure that this aid actually reaches civilians 
in Gaza. This aid and these resources will save Palestinian lives if 
they are allowed to reach them.
  So, my colleagues, to all of my colleagues, we all agree on these 
goals. They are reasonable, and we are utilizing existing channels with 
Israel to make sure they are taking these steps--all without 
conditioning aid to Israel.
  Let's be clear. Providing Israel with aid is not a blank check. As 
all of my colleagues in this Chamber know--every one of them knows 
this--all foreign aid is bound by a set of rules. This has been 
consistent for decades and has not changed. These are different from 
conditions specifically targeting Israel.
  Now is the time to stand with Israel as they work to dismantle Hamas, 
stop its ability to cause more harm to Israelis and Palestinians, and 
free all the remaining hostages--all of them.
  Conditioning aid to Israel after the worst terrorist attack in 
history would only embolden Israel's enemies, signal to them the limits 
of America's support, and open the door to more violence.
  This is why I am calling on my colleagues, Republicans and Democrats, 
to pass this aid without conditions. If we are serious about preventing 
another October 7; if we are serious, really serious, about preventing 
more gruesome images like the ones my colleagues saw last week--
torture, kidnapping, rape, murder, beheading; if we are serious about 
preventing all of this and serious about a future where the people of 
Gaza are not ruled by a brutal and barbaric terrorist organization, 
then we should not delay.
  I yield the floor.