H.R.902 & S.384 - RECOGNIZING Judea and Samaria Act

H.R.902 was introduced on 31 January 2025 by REP Claudia Tenney (R-NY). It is currently pending before the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

S.384 was introduced on 4 February 2025 by SEN Tom Cotton (R-AR). It is currently pending before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Related legislation: None

Bill Summary: H.R.902 and S.384 would essentially prohibit the U.S. Government from referring in any context other than under international agreements to the “West Bank” instead mandating that the term be replaced in usage and across existing U.S. statutes with “Judea and Samaria.”

Context: “Judea and Samaria” are terms applied by Israeli extremists and some of their religiously-inspired allies in the U.S. to the southern and northern regions, respectively, of the current West Bank, which relies on a misappropriated and politicized Biblical claim to land that extends into parts of modern-day Jordan, Syria and Egypt.

American Values Analysis: These Bills contradict American values by endorsing the expansion of an ongoing military occupation and denying a right to self-determination for the Palestinian people of the West Bank. These Bills also violate the separation between Church and State, a fundamental principle enshrined in the First Amendment of the Constitution, by applying an inherently religious framing to U.S. foreign policy.

American Interest Analysis: By incorporating the nomenclature of Biblical kingdoms in line with Israeli usage, this Bill would imply a recognition of Israeli territoriality not only in the occupied West Bank but also over portions of U.S. ally Jordan, as well as Lebanon and Syria, significantly harming U.S. relations in the region and empowering the People’s Republic of China to supplant the U.S as a strategic partner while increasing Iranian influence. The Bill would also be a propaganda coup for both Russia and the PRC by endorsing the notion of claims to territories (in Ukraine and Taiwan, respectively) rooted in national mythology rather than self-determination.

A New Policy’s Recommendation: OPPOSE

A New Policy opposes H.R.902 and S.384 because these Bills endorse the military occupation of the West Bank, are contrary to American values of freedom and self-determination, are deeply damaging to U.S. regional interests, further forestall the possibility of a just and lasting resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, undermine U.S. global credibility, and are an intrusion of religious ideology into American foreign policy (thus violating the First Amendment of the Constitution).

For more information please contact: Josh Paul, (202) 770-0055, info@anewpolicy.org