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<\/h3>\nRep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., introduced the bill on Wednesday alongside Reps. Randy Weber, R-Texas, and Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., in response to the ongoing anti-Israel demonstrations on college campuses across the country.<\/p>\n
Several of those protests have turned violent, with clashes between police and activists, as well as hundreds of activists being arrested across multiple campuses.<\/p>\n
While Ogles’ bill text does not mention Israel or the anti-Israel groups, it specifically targets unlawful activity on college campuses after Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants invaded Israel in a surprise attack that killed over 1,000 people.<\/p>\n
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A woman is arrested at an anti-Israel protest at the University of Texas on Wednesday, April 24, 2024.(Jay Janner \/ American-Statesman)<\/p>\n
Those convicted would be forced to serve a minimum six-month community service sentence in Gaza, where Israel is currently waging a brutal campaign to eradicate Hamas and rescue the remaining Israelis that terrorists took hostage in October.<\/p>\n
“Students have abandoned their classes to harass other students and disrupt campus-wide activities, including university commencement ceremonies nationwide. Enough is enough,” Ogles told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n
“That\u2019s why I introduced legislation to send any person convicted of unlawful activity on the campus of an American university since October 7th, 2023, to Gaza to complete a minimum of six months of community service.”<\/p>\n
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Weber added, “If you support a terrorist organization, and you participate in unlawful activity on campuses, you should get a taste of your own medicine. I am going to bet that these pro-Hamas supporters wouldn\u2019t last a day, but let\u2019s give them the opportunity.”<\/p>\n
The bill is likely to face uncertain odds in the House, where Republicans hold a razor-thin majority of just one seat. Even if it passed, the Democrat-controlled Senate will almost certainly ignore it.<\/p>\n
It is an example, however, of the heightened tensions wracking the U.S. over Israel’s war with Hamas.<\/p>\n
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Smoke billows after the Israeli army launched an airstrike on Al Mughraqa area in the Gaza Strip on April 14, 2024.(Photo by Ashraf Amra\/Anadolu via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The college protests here have garnered bipartisan criticism from virtually all Republicans and a significant number of Democrats, but progressives have continued to show strong support for the students and other activists on campus.<\/p>\n
Comments by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., for example, referring to some Jewish students as “pro-genocide” have earned her a GOP-led censure resolution, filed by Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Her fellow “Squad” member, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., has also been censured for her comments about Israel in the wake of Oct. 7.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n