The US House Foreign Affairs Committee passed on Wednesday a bill by voice vote setting the stage for the full House to consider backing legislation that would slap sanctions on any countries or individuals providing financial and material support to Hamas Movement.
The bill specifically criticized Qatar for having backed Hamas and hosting its senior members. The legislation cited a March 2014 Treasury Department report that said Qatar “has for many years openly financed Hamas.”
In late June U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley told the committee the crisis between the Gulf States and Qatar presented an opportunity to tell Qatar to “quit funding Hamas quit doing these things in Gaza that they are doing.” But Haley changed her testimony a few months later according to an answer she gave to a follow-up question from the committee.
“While the Qatari government does not fund Hamas it does allow Hamas political representatives to be based in Qatar which Qatar believes limits Iran’s influence and pressure over Hamas” Haley wrote.
The committee also approved a bill that would suspend U.S. financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority until it takes credible steps to end “acts of violence against U.S. and Israeli citizens”.
