Ricketts, Schiff Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Sanction Gaza Terrorist Group Responsible for Attacks Against Americans and Israelis
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) introducedthe Accountability for Terrorist Perpetrators of October 7th Act. The bipartisan, bicameral bill wouldsanction the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), which is the third-largest terror group in Gaza. The PRC has claimed responsibility for over 100 terror attacks against Americans and Israelis. PRC members joined Hamas in murdering Americans and Israelis on October 7, 2023. U.S. Representatives David Kustoff (R-TN-08) and Brad Sherman (D-CA-32) lead companion legislation in the House.
“The Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) is the third-largest terrorist organization in Gaza and another puppet of Iran,” said Senator Ricketts. “Despite decades of attacks against Americans and Israelis, including on October 7th, the PRC has yet to be properly sanctioned for its barbarism. This bill will help hold accountable every terrorist that participated in the October 7th attacks.”
“For years, the Popular Resistance Committees have carried out terrorist attacks against Israelis, Americans, and Palestinians,” said Senator Schiff. “They were willing and cruel participants with Hamas during the horrific October 7th massacre, killing innocent Israelis and taking and holding hostages after that terrible attack. Any organization engaging in this level of violence should be sanctioned under U.S. law and officially designated as a terrorist group. The United States stands with Israel, and this is an important step to holding those responsible for October 7th accountable.”
“The terrorists responsible for the barbaric October 7th attack on Israel must be held accountable for their abhorrent actions against innocent men, women, and children,” said Representative Kustoff.“For years now, the Popular Resistance Committees, the third largest terror group in the Gaza strip, have terrorized Israelis and Americans in the region. Enough is enough. I am pleased to join Rep. Sherman to introduce this crucial legislation that will sanction the PRC.”
“Every day that we fail to sanction the terrorist Popular Resistance Committees – which have murdered Americans and Israelis for decades, and participated in the barbaric October 7th massacre including by taking hostages – is another day that we fail to secure justice for their victims,” said Representative Sherman. “It is long overdue that the Popular Resistance Committees are designated as a terrorist organization and sanctioned, alongside Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. I’m proud to reintroduce my legislation to finally hold these monsters accountable for the terror they have wreaked on innocents in the region.”
Bill text can be found here.
BACKGROUND:
The two largest terrorist groups in Gaza are Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), which have long been sanctioned. Despite its record of terror, the PRC is not currently a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization. It is past time that the PRC, whose ranks include former operatives from Hamas and PIJ, join them on the U.S.’s list of designated terrorist groups.
The Popular Resistance Committees participated in Hamas’s horrific October 7th massacre, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 Israelis, Americans, and others, as well as widespread torture and sexual violence as well as the abduction of some 250 hostages. The PRC proudly boasted about their involvement on their social media channels, issuing a statement on October 7th claiming joint responsibility for the massacre. The PRC’s posts stated that the PRC killed and captured IDF soldiers; the posts shared photos of items taken from their victims.
The Popular Resistance Committees have a long history of carrying out terror attacks across Israel and the Palestinian territories. In 2003, the PRC bombed a United States diplomatic convoy which injured a U.S. diplomat and killed 3 American security guards. In 2004, PRC terrorists murdered pregnant Israeli woman Tali Hatuel and her 4 daughters, 11-year-old Hila, 9-year-old Hadar, 7-year-old Roni, and baby Meirav who was only 2 years old. The PRC has also targeted Palestinians in terror attacks, including the 2005 assassination of Palestinian Security Services chief Moussa Arafat.
Despite multiple State Department reports identifying terror attacks committed by the Popular Resistance Committees, the group has never faced U.S. sanctions. This legislation would finally hold the PRC accountable for its long history of heinous terror attacks by applying long-overdue sanctions on the group.
Specifically, the bipartisan bill:
- Designates the PRC as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) organization;
- Places financial asset-blocking sanctions on the PRC and its members, preventing them from accessing the U.S. financial system;
- Places visa-blocking sanctions on the PRC and its members.