The US House of Representatives approved, in a unanimous voice vote, a bill that would deny immigration benefits to terrorists from Hamas. The legislation bars entry to the US for anyone who took part in the October 7 attack or assisted it in any way.
The proposal, led by Republican Representative Tom McClintock of California, passed by voice vote without any opposition, an unusual development in Washington's sharply polarized political climate surrounding Israel.
According to McClintock, there are still issues on which the House is capable of uniting, and one of them is opposition to Hamas and the terrorism unleashed on civilians in Israel. He added that the bill classifies individuals involved with Hamas on October 7 in the same category as Nazi collaborators under existing sections of US immigration law.
About two months ago, US authorities arrested Mahmoud Amin Yaqub al-Muhtadi, a 33-year-old Gaza resident living in Louisiana, on suspicion of involvement in the October 7 attack. His case drew public attention and was referenced during deliberations on the bill.
Automatic loss of immigration rights
The legislation defines as not eligible for entry anyone who carried out, planned, financed, supported or assisted in any way the attacks against Israel that began on October 7, 2023. It also expands the list of terrorist organizations for immigration purposes to explicitly include Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. In addition, the bill states that anyone involved in the attack would automatically lose any possible eligibility for legal relief under immigration law, including asylum claims.
A report by the House Judiciary Committee emphasizes that the bill is intended to streamline and accelerate the handling of individuals seeking entry or residency who are suspected of involvement in terrorism, reducing reliance on the more complex procedures currently used under provisions related to terrorist activity. The report also notes that Hamas was responsible for a brutal massacre that included the killing of 1,200 Israeli civilians, as well as torture and the kidnapping of more than 240 people, data on which US lawmakers relied.
In parallel with the House process, a matching initiative has already been introduced in the Senate by Senator Jacky Rosen, a Democrat, and Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Republican. McClintock expressed hope that the Senate will advance the bill this time, after it passed the House in the previous term but stalled in the upper chamber. He said the proposal is essential both to prevent a future president in the mold of Joe Biden from allowing such individuals to enter, and to enable a future President Donald Trump to bar them from entering.
The bill now moves to the Senate, where lawmakers will decide whether to approve it and send it to the president for signature.
