Sense of Congress

It is the sense of Congress that— (1) Israel has the right to self-defense and the United States is committed to helping Israel safeguard its people from future aggression; (2) Hamas should be condemned in the harshest terms for its premeditated, coordinated, and brutal terrorist attacks on Israel; (3) Hamas’s abductions and threats made against hostages, including threats to use hostages as human shields, are abhorrent; (4) Hamas should immediately cease its attacks against Israel and return the body of the deceased hostage; (5) the people killed by Hamas’s terrorist attacks deserve to be commemorated, and the hostages, people wounded, and their families deserve the support of the people of the United States; (6) all countries should unequivocally condemn Hamas’s war on Israel, including Hamas’s intentional targeting of, and attacks against, civilians; (7) the United States appreciates the global advocacy efforts calling for the release of all hostages; (8) Iran’s support for global terrorism, including its support for terrorist groups, such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, should be condemned and opposed by all available means; (9) the blocking of the borders of Gaza by the administration of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2025, which prohibited entry of food, medicine, infant formula, fuel, and other humanitarian assistance and essential services, should be condemned; (10) the vast majority of men, women, and especially children in Gaza, are civilians and not agents of Hamas; (11) actions by the Netanyahu administration that have contributed to the humanitarian crisis and acute suffering of Palestinians are horrifying; (12) occupying powers have a responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of the civilians in the occupied territory; (13) the Netanyahu administration has implemented policies that have regularly and deliberately undermined the delivery and distribution of humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza; (14) the restrictions on aid are being carried out by the political appointees and senior military leadership of the Netanyahu administration; (15) the restriction of aid by the Netanyahu administration is not consistent with the State of Israel’s core values and commitment to human rights; (16) the Netanyahu administration’s conduct has eroded the State of Israel’s standing in the world by undermining the rule of law and violating fundamental human rights; (17) the United States can support the State of Israel’s right to exist while opposing the policies and conduct of the Netanyahu administration; (18) the United States condemns the Netanyahu administration for restricting aid, but it continues to greatly value its relationship with the State of Israel; (19) the Netanyahu administration’s restrictions on aid create dire conditions for the civilians of Gaza, including death from starvation; (20) children dying of starvation serves no military aims for Israel; (21) such dire conditions undermine Israel’s future security; (22) Prime Minister Netanyahu or his successor should immediately facilitate the delivery of neutral, independent, impartial, and safe distribution of humanitarian assistance by all legitimate local and international actors to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza as soon as possible; (23) legitimate local and international actors delivering and distributing humanitarian assistance should at all times be safe from deliberate, incidental, and collateral harm from operations by Israel and its surrogates, including under the Netanyahu administration; and (24) the President, the Secretary of State, and the heads of other relevant United States Government agencies should urgently use all available diplomatic tools— (A) to maintain the ceasefire and hostage release agreement agreed to by Israel and Hamas on October 10, 2025; (B) to bring about an immediate and sustained surge in humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza; and (C) to lay the groundwork for a broader regional peace through implementation of the 20-point plan included in the agreement described in subparagraph (A).