IV 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 226 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding United States 
efforts to promote Israeli-Palestinian peace. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 23, 2017 
Ms. LEE (for herself and Mr. CONYERS) submitted the following resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regard-
ing United States efforts to promote Israeli-Palestinian 
peace. 
Whereas United States support for a two-state solution to the 
Israeli-Palestinian conflict is based on the recognition 
that this solution can both best serve Israel’s security 
and permanence as a Jewish and democratic homeland 
while helping the Palestinian people achieve a future of 
independence and national self-determination; 
Whereas a true and lasting two-state solution is essential to 
the resolution of Israeli-Arab disputes and to the achieve-
ment of long-term peace and stability in the broader Mid-
dle East; 
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•HRES 226 IH 
Whereas a true and lasting two-state solution is in the na-
tional security interests of the United States and to en-
sure the safety and security of Israel; 
Whereas a true and lasting two-state solution will only be es-
tablished through resolution of outstanding issues be-
tween Israel and the recognized leadership of the Pales-
tinian people; 
Whereas successive United States Presidents and successive 
United States Congresses have recognized that promoting 
Israeli-Palestinian and Israeli-Arab peace is an integral 
element of the United States bipartisan commitment to 
Israel’s security and its survival, as well as to the sta-
bility of the entire Middle East region; 
Whereas successive United States administrations, led by 
Presidents from both parties, have invested substantial 
diplomatic resources in support of peace efforts, including 
under— 
(1) President Ronald Reagan, the 1982 Reagan 
Plan for Middle East Peace; 
(2) President George H.W. Bush, the 1991 Madrid 
Peace Conference; 
(3) President Bill Clinton, the 1993 Oslo Accords, 
the 1995 Wye River Memorandum, the 2000 Camp 
David Summit, and the 2000 Clinton Parameters; 
(4) President George W. Bush, the 2001 ‘‘Sharm 
El-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee Report’’, also known 
as the Mitchell Report, the 2003 ‘‘Roadmap for Peace in 
the Middle East’’, the 2005 Agreement on Movement and 
Access, and the 2007 Annapolis Conference; and 
(5) President Barack Obama, the 2013 appointment 
of Ambassador Martin S. Indyk as the United States 
Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations and 
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•HRES 226 IH 
the 2014 appointment of Frank Lowenstein as the Acting 
United States Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Nego-
tiations, and the tireless efforts of Secretary of State 
John Kerry to pursue a lasting resolution to the conflict 
via negotiations with Israel and the Palestinians; 
Whereas Hamas does not recognize Israel’s right to exist, has 
repeatedly launched rocket and missile attacks against 
and built tunnels into Israel, has not disavowed violence, 
and does not recognize or abide by existing binding 
agreements; 
Whereas the State of Israel is subject to existential threats 
from those seeking to deny the deep historical, cultural, 
and spiritual connection of the Jewish people to their 
homeland; 
Whereas, on September 20, 2016, while speaking to the 71st 
Session of the United Nations General Assembly, Presi-
dent Obama stated that ‘‘. . . surely, Israelis and Pal-
estinians will be better off if Palestinians reject incite-
ment and recognize the legitimacy of Israel, but Israel 
recognizes that it cannot permanently occupy and settle 
Palestinian land. We all have to do better as leaders in 
tamping down, rather than encouraging, a notion of iden-
tity that leads us to diminish others.’’; 
Whereas, on March 21, 2013, while speaking in both 
Ramallah and Jerusalem, President Obama stated that 
the Palestinian people deserve ‘‘an end to occupation and 
the daily indignities that come with it . . . It is not right 
to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands; to re-
strict a student’s ability to move around the West Bank; 
or to displace Palestinian families from their home. Nei-
ther occupation nor expulsion is the answer. Just as 
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•HRES 226 IH 
Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have 
a right to be a free people in their own land.’’; 
Whereas the loss of more than 2,100 Palestinians in the 
Gaza Strip, along with 66 Israeli soldiers and seven civil-
ians in Israel during the summer of 2014 surrounding 
Israel’s Operation Protective Edge, demonstrate that 
there is no military solution to this conflict and Hamas’ 
terror tactics will never lead to a Palestinian future of 
self-determination; 
Whereas successive United States administrations have op-
posed Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories, rec-
ognizing them to be a political and security liability for 
Israel and an impediment to efforts to achieve a nego-
tiated resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, among 
other reasons; and 
Whereas the United States goal of helping to secure Israel’s 
security and safety as a democratic homeland for the 
Jewish people well into the future is best served through 
achievement of an agreement between Israel and the Pal-
estinians to resolve their conflict: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) reaffirms its commitment to supporting 
United States actions that promote peace between 
Israel and the Palestinians and are designed to en-
sure the safety and security of Israel and its people; 
(2) reaffirms its support for previous agree-
ments reached between Israel and the Palestinians 
and adopted by third parties that recognize Israel’s 
right to exist and promote a Palestinian state to 
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•HRES 226 IH 
meet the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian 
people for self-determination within their own na-
tion; 
(3) commends the Obama administration and 
its predecessors for their resolute commitment to 
Israel’s survival and security and for their efforts to 
demonstrate this commitment through the promotion 
of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations to achieve a reso-
lution of their conflict and the establishment of a 
long-term peace in the region; 
(4) calls on Hamas to recognize Israel’s right to 
exist, denounce violence, abide by existing agree-
ments, and to prevent rocket and missile attacks 
against Israel; 
(5) calls upon states, international organiza-
tions, and individuals to oppose efforts to deny the 
deep historical, cultural, and spiritual connection of 
the Jewish people to Israel; 
(6) calls upon Arab and Muslim-majority states 
to build upon efforts such as the Arab Peace Initia-
tive, combat anti-Israel extremism, and otherwise 
work towards full normalization of state-to-state re-
lations with the State of Israel; 
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•HRES 226 IH 
(7) calls on the Israeli Government to cease 
support for and to prevent further settlement expan-
sion in the Occupied Territories; 
(8) commends the Obama administration for 
supporting Israel’s Iron Dome Missile Defense Sys-
tem to help intercept rocket attacks and prevent 
them from devastating civilian populations in Israel, 
which saved countless Israeli lives during Operation 
Protective Edge; 
(9) calls on Israel and Hamas to uphold the ex-
isting cease-fire agreement and exercise strong cau-
tion so as to avoid an escalation that would only lead 
to further violence, destruction, and loss of life; 
(10) applauds the Obama administration’s re-
cent efforts to facilitate negotiations to achieve a 
peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinian 
people and urges continued robust efforts towards a 
peaceful resolution; and 
(11) calls on President Trump to continue his 
predecessor’s work towards a negotiated, two-state 
agreement ending the conflict backed by a strong 
international coalition of stakeholders including Arab 
and Muslim majority states to provide assurance to 
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•HRES 226 IH 
the negotiating parties that their agreement will be 
enduring and enforceable. 
Æ 
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