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Reps. Ackerman and Weldon Attempt to Rewrite History During House Debate on H. Res. 125

AAI
Posted on Friday April 27, 2007

Debate about Bill Condemning “Human Shields” Glosses over Israeli Use of Tactic

WASHINGTON – April 27, 2007 – During House floor debate about H. Res. 125, a bill that condemns the use of civilians to protect combatants from attack and Hezbollah’s use of human shields during the 2006 Lebanon conflict, Congressmen Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and Dave Weldon (R-Fla.) attempted to rewrite history by making misleading and inaccurate statements that blamed Hezbollah solely for the loss of civilian life, and glossed over Israel’s use of human shields.

The Arab American Institute (AAI) categorically denounces all use of human shields, and calls upon Congress to be consistent in its condemnation by also criticizing Israel’s use of the tactic. Congressmen Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), who during their remarks in support of the bill condemned the use of shields by Israel as well as Hezbollah, are to be commended for their principled stance on the issue.

Issa introduced disturbing reports, photos and videos on the floor that documented Israel’s use of human shields. They can be viewed on his website at http://issa.house.gov.

“It’s important also for the Israeli Government to take responsibilities for their actions as well. I say this as someone who speaks in defense of Israel and the defense of Israel’s right to survive,” Kucinich said on the floor.

In one of several inaccurate statements, Ackerman said that the issue of human shields “had gone to the Supreme Court of Israel, and that court found…their soldiers doing something wrong, and they were charged, and the court found them guilty, and the court banned it.” While the court did ban the use of human shields in 2005 according to Israeli human rights group B’tselem, no soldiers were sentenced. Furthermore, Israel’s use of human shields continues; an Associated Press video shot in February shows Israeli troops forcing a Palestinian to serve as a shield during a manhunt. The congressman also said “the loss of civilian life in Lebanon was due solely to Hezbollah’s cruel and uncivilized use of civilian areas as military bases,” in stark contrast to troubling reports from the United Nations, Amnesty International and various human rights organizations about Israel’s conduct during the war.

Weldon demonstrated his indifference about the safety and security of Palestinian lives, stating in response to a photo shared by Issa showing a Palestinian child strapped to the front of a tank that “it is absolutely ridiculous that Hezbollah would find some photo of a bunch of Palestinian youths leaning on a tank and try to make an argument in front of the world stage that that is the moral equivalent of what they were doing.”

These inaccurate, biased and irresponsible comments by Ackerman and Weldon are part of the Congressional Record, and present a dangerous example of anti-Arab bias to the international community. AAI calls upon these congressmen to immediately clarify and correct these statements for the benefit of the American people.