New Congressional Bill Advocates Justice for Palestinian Children

Arab America sat down with USCPR Policy Director Josh Ruebner to discuss the significance of HR 4391, the Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act, and where the legislation is expected to go:

Josh  Ruebner is the Policy Director at the United States Campaign for Palestinian Rights. But when asked about the likelihood of this bill passing, he does not believe that it will. “In the current Republican-controlled Congress, the likelihood of this bill passing is slim to none. But the legislation doesn’t have to pass in order to have a big impact. The fact that Rep. Betty McCollum has introduced legislation supporting Palestinian children’s rights is historic in and of itself.” But since the bill’s introduction, many representatives have become cosponsors, and that,  Ruebner says, is encouraging. He also says that the transparency of how taxpayer dollars are spent that would accompany this bill is also a plus.

When asked if there was one thing he wished the public knew about this bill,  Ruebner stated: “Military aid to Israel is scheduled to increase from $3.1 to $3.8 billion annually starting in 2019. This increase makes us more complicit than ever in Israel’s human rights abuses of Palestinians. Shouldn’t Americans have the right to know if this money is being used to abuse and, in some cases, torture Palestinian children?” And like  Ruebner says, this bill would provide us with that information.

Read the article here.