More than 390 House members introduce resolution in support of Israel amid Hamas attack

More than 390 lawmakers introduced a bipartisan resolution in the House condemning the Hamas militant group for launching a surprise attack on Israel over the weekend, with members using the legislation as a way to highlight the United States’s dedication to defending a key ally.

The four-page resolution was filed on Tuesday, seeking to denounce the violence and arguing that if the attack is not addressed, it could lead to broader conflict in surrounding countries such as Iran. The legislation comes just days after Hamas launched an attack on Israel from Gaza, prompting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare war just hours later.

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“Now is the time to show the world the United States firmly stands with our friend and ally Israel in our condemnation of this heinous attack by Iran-backed terrorists,” said Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX), who co-introduced the resolution.

If adopted, the resolution would reaffirm U.S. loyalty to Israel “including through security assistance” and support the country’s “right to self-defense,” according to the legislation. Part of that includes vowing to provide “emergency resupply” or other forms of support amid the warfare.

The resolution also calls on all surrounding countries to condemn the Hamas attack while also condemning Iran for its “support for terrorist groups.

“President Biden has committed the United States fully to Israel’s self-defense,” said ranking member Gregory Meeks (D-NY), who also introduced the legislation. “Israel is responding to the Hamas terror organization’s unprecedented attack. The bipartisan resolution will demonstrate this is one issue in which the House of Representatives is united, and I expect it to pass the House with broad bipartisan support.”

It’s not entirely clear how quickly the House can act on the resolution as the lower chamber is still without a speaker after the historic ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) last week. Without a speaker, lawmakers cannot conduct any legislative business, although it’s unclear whether that extends to symbolic resolutions.

Some members, such as Rules Committee ranking member Jim McGovern (D-MA), have argued that the House cannot carry out any of its duties until a new speaker is elected, citing House rules that restrict acting Speaker Patrick McHenry’s (R-NC) abilities to overseeing leadership elections. However, because an ouster of the sitting House speaker is unprecedented, some members say lawmakers can define those abilities as broadly as they want, hoping to act quickly on the crisis.

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“I expect this bipartisan resolution to be one of the first, if not the first, items considered on the floor once we elect a new speaker,” McCaul said. “And I expect it to receive overwhelming bipartisan support.”

Roughly 1,800 people have been killed so far amid the war, with hundreds more unaccounted for. At least 11 Americans have died and several more may have been taken hostage by the militant group.