Progressive Dems submit motion panning ‘Israel’ for labeling 6 Palestinian NGOs as “terror”

Washington (QNN)- A group of progressive Democrats introduced a resolution in the United States House of Representatives on Thursday condemning ‘Israel’ for its “repressive” and “anti-democratic” decision to label six Palestinian human rights NGOs as “terror groups.”

The resolution describes the labeling of the six Palestinian groups as “a repressive act designed to criminalize and persecute important Palestinian human rights organizations.”

The motion was introduced by Rep. Betty McCollum, one of the most vocal critics of the Israeli occupation government in Congress and has led efforts in Congress to hold Israel accountable for human rights abuses against Palestinians.

The resolution calls on US President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to “publicly condemn this authoritarian and antidemocratic act of repression” and publicly call on ‘Israel’ to cease such measures.

It notes the value of the six Palestinian groups and cites condemnations of the decision by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, 21 Israeli rights organizations and Israel’s Haaretz daily.

“The United States provides $3.8 billion in military funding to the Israeli Government each fiscal year and therefore holds a unique obligation to speak out against and condemn actions by the Israeli government that intentionally undermine democratic values and internationally recognized human rights,” the resolution states.

Last week, US State Department Spokesman Ned Price said Washington planned to ask ‘Israel’ for more information about this decision.

“We believe respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, and a strong civil society are critically important for responsible and responsive governance,” said Price during a telephone briefing with reporters.

He added that the US will “be engaging our Israeli partners for more information regarding the basis for these designations.”

Price also noted that the “Israeli government did not give us advance warning” that the organizations would be named.

On October 24, the Israeli occupation government declared six leading Palestinian NGOs to be affiliated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP): Addameer, Al Haq, Bisan Center, DCI-P, Samidoun and UAWC.

Under Israeli law, membership in terror organizations is punishable by five to seven years in jail, while aiding them is punishable by five years, and praising or promoting them can result in a three-year-long jail sentence.

The Israeli law also permits authorities to confiscate any “terror organization’s” assets and limit its use of space.

The occupation state has targeted civil society dissenters for decades. In the early 2000s however, a series of right-wing organizations, funders and politicians sought to support the Israeli government’s brutal repression of Palestinians by accelerating the attack on civil society dissenters as Israel’s abuses mounted.

In the mid to late aughts, several Israeli human rights organizations came under organized attack, including groups like B’tselem, Yesh Din.

In 2019, Israeli authorities expelled Human Rights Watch’s director in Palestine, Omar Shakir, who is an American citizen after revoking his work visa, accusing him of supporting the BDS movement.

Israel’s decision sparked a swift backlash around the globe, with the EU, US Jewish NGOs, progressive Democrats, and international human rights organizations expressing criticism.