Republican vice-presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance of Ohio joined more than 30 of his Senate colleagues on Tuesday in calling a draft resolution by the Palestinian mission to the UN “an absolute disgrace that rewards terrorism.”
The draft resolution calls for the implementation of recent International Court of Justice decisions, including a withdrawal from the “Palestinian territories” within six months, an arms embargo on “settlements,” and sanctions against Israeli individuals. It is scheduled for a vote next week, Israel’s mission to the UN said Sunday.
The draft resolution was a “clear insult to the Jewish people and anyone who understands history,” the senators said in a statement.
'A one-sided effort to delegitimize Israel'
“As we approach the one-year anniversary of the barbaric terrorist attack by Hamas and affiliated Palestinian terrorist groups against innocent Israeli civilians, which involved murder, mutilation, and sexual violence, the international community must unequivocally unite against this evil, one-sided effort to delegitimize Israel,” they said.
The international community “must focus its energy and resources” on ensuring Hamas and other terrorist groups are completely destroyed, instead of proposing “biased and counterproductive initiatives, which will do nothing to advance a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians,” the statement said.
“We must remain firm to ensure every single hostage held by these terrorists is safely returned to their loved ones,” it said.
The statement was signed by Republican Senators Tom Cotton (Arkansas), Joni Ernst (Iowa), Rick Scott (R-Florida), Thom Tillis (North Carolina), Cynthia Lummis (Wyoming),Tim Scott (South Carolina), Dan Sullivan (Arkansas), Marsha Blackburn (Tennessee), Jim Risch (Idaho), Chuck Grassley (Iowa), Bill Cassidy (Louisiana), John Kennedy (Louisiana), John Hoeven (North Dakota), Kevin Cramer (North Dakota), Ted Budd (North Carolina), Lindsey Graham (South Carolina), Pete Ricketts (Nebraska), JD Vance (Ohio), John Barrasso (Wyoming), Jerry Moran (Kansas), Josh Hawley (Missouri), James Lankford (Oklahoma), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Mississippi), Shelley Moore Capito (West Virginia), Mike Braun (Indiana), John Thune (South Dakota), Roger Wicker (Mississippi), John Cornyn (Texas), and Katie Boyd Britt (Alabama).