Ed Royce: “International law of armed conflict prohibits the use of innocent men, women and children to deter an attack. This…”

“International law of armed conflict prohibits the use of innocent men, women and children to deter an attack. This cowardly and disgraceful strategy is known as using human shields. And it's rightly deemed a war crime. Yet since the violent takeover of Gaza in 2007, Hamas has repeatedly put the lives of Palestinian civilians at risk by brutally using them as human shields. Hamas also terrorizes Palestinians--the very people they claim to represent--with summary executions and torture in Gaza. Hamas regularly launches indiscriminate attacks on civilian populations in Israel from densely populated positions in Gaza, often in or near schools, mosques or hospitals. Hamas also routinely forces Palestinian civilians to gather on the roofs of their homes to act as human shields. This means that every time Hamas fires a rocket, it is committing not one, but two, war crimes: targeting civilians in Israel while shamelessly using human shields in Gaza. Today, the Gaza Strip is a terrorist sanctuary on Israel's borders. The legislation we are considering today, H.R. 3542, appropriately holds Hamas responsible for its repeated use of human shields--as well as their enablers, like the Iranian regime. It imposes targeted sanctions and calls for action at the United Nations Security Council to put an end to this heinous practice. The world cannot let terrorists embed forces among civilian populations, using them as human shields, without taking action.…”