The Stop Arming Terrorists Act
By Rep. Tulsi Gabbard
Washington, DC—Rep.
Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02) introduced the Stop Arming Terrorists Act today.
The legislation would prohibit the U.S. government from using American
taxpayer dollars to provide funding, weapons, training, and intelligence
support to groups like the Levant Front, Fursan al Ha and other allies
of Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, al-Qaeda and ISIS, or to countries who are
providing direct or indirect support to those same groups.
The
legislation is cosponsored by Reps. Peter Welch (D-VT-AL), Barbara Lee
(D-CA-13), Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA-48), and Thomas Massie (R-KT-04), and
supported by the Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) and the U.S.
Peace Council.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said,
“Under U.S. law it is illegal for any American to provide money or
assistance to al-Qaeda, ISIS or other terrorist groups. If you or I gave
money, weapons or support to al-Qaeda or ISIS, we would be thrown in
jail. Yet the U.S. government has been violating this law for years,
quietly supporting allies and partners of al-Qaeda, ISIL, Jabhat Fateh
al Sham and other terrorist groups with money, weapons, and intelligence
support, in their fight to overthrow the Syrian government.[i]
“The CIA has also been funneling weapons and money
through Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and others who provide direct and
indirect support to groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda. This support has
allowed al-Qaeda and their fellow terrorist organizations to establish
strongholds throughout Syria, including in Aleppo.
“A recent New York Times article confirmed
that ‘rebel groups’ supported by the U.S. ‘have entered into
battlefield alliances with the affiliate of al-Qaeda in Syria, formerly
known as al Nusra.’ This alliance has rendered the phrase ‘moderate
rebels’ meaningless. Reports confirm
that ‘every armed anti-Assad organization unit in those provinces
[of Idlib and Aleppo] is engaged in a military structure controlled by
[al-Qaeda’s] Nusra militants.’
“A recent Wall Street Journal article reported
that many rebel groups are ‘doubling down on their alliance’ with
al Nusra. Some rebel groups are renewing their alliance, while others,
like Nour al-Din al-Zinki, a former CIA-backed group and one of
the largest factions in Aleppo are joining for the first time. “The
Syria Conquest Front—formerly known as the
al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front—is deeply intermingled with armed opposition
groups of all stripes across Syria’s battlefields.”
“The CIA has long been supporting a
group called Fursan al Haqq, providing them with salaries, weapons and
support, including surface to air missiles. This group is cooperating
with and fighting alongside an al-Qaeda affiliated group trying to
overthrow the Syrian government. The Levant Front is
another so-called moderate umbrella group of Syrian opposition
fighters. Over the past year, the United States has been working with
Turkey to give this group intelligence support and other forms of
military assistance. This group has joined forces with al-Qaeda’s
offshoot group in Syria.
“This
madness must end. We must stop arming terrorists. The Government must
end this hypocrisy and abide by the same laws that apply to its’
citizens.
“That
is why I’ve introduced the Stop Arming Terrorists bill—legislation
based on congressional action during the Iran-Contra affair to stop the
CIA’s illegal arming of rebels in Nicaragua. It will prohibit any
Federal agency from using taxpayer dollars to provide weapons, cash,
intelligence, or any support to al-Qaeda, ISIS and other terrorist
groups, and it will prohibit the government from funneling money and
weapons through other countries who are directly or indirectly
supporting terrorists,” concluded Rep. Tulsi Gabbard.
Stephen
Kinzer, a senior fellow at the Watson Institute for International
Studies at Brown University, and award-winning author and journalist
said,
“The proposal to stop sending weapons to insurgents in Syria is based
on the principle that pouring arms into a war zone only intensifies
suffering and makes peace more difficult to achieve. Congress made a
decision like this about the Nicaraguan contras during the 1980s. Aid to
the contras was cut off by the Boland Amendment. The result was a peace
process that finally brought an end to wars not only in Nicaragua, but
also in El Salvador and Guatemala. This is the example we should be
following. Cutting off arms shipments forces belligerents to negotiate.
That is what we achieved in Nicaragua. It should be our goal in Syria as
well.”
Donna Smith, Executive Director of Progressive Democrats of America said,
"Progressive Democrats of America believes that it is fundamentally
wrong for the United States to fund those groups or individuals aligned
with al-Qaeda, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, ISIS, or other terrorist/extremist
organizations. The 'Stop Arming Terrorists' bill authored by Rep. Tulsi
Gabbard, of Hawaii's 2nd Congressional District, would help bring an
end to the human tragedy unfolding in Syria where the haunting eyes of
the innocent children of Aleppo call on us all to stop supporting those
who threaten and kill them with ferocious intention. War is war, and
terrorism is terrorism whether waged by the state or from external
forces. PDA supports this measure."
Alfred Marder, President of the U.S. Peace Council said, “The
U.S. Peace Council is honored to endorse and support the ‘Stop Arming
Terrorists Bill’ as a major contribution to peace. This legislation will
serve to galvanize the anti-war movement and the opposition to regime
change policies that characterize our present foreign policy.”
Background: The
Stop Arming Terrorists bill prohibits U.S. government funds from being
used to support al-Qaeda, ISIS or other terrorist groups. In the same
way that Congress passed the Boland Amendment to prohibit the funding
and support to CIA backed-Nicaraguan Contras during the 1980’s, this
bill would stop CIA or other Federal government activities in places
like Syria by ensuring U.S. funds are not used to support al-Qaeda,
Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, ISIS, or other terrorist groups working with them.
It would also prohibit the Federal government from funding assistance
to countries that are directly or indirectly supporting those terrorist
groups. The bill achieves this by:
- Making
it illegal for any U.S. Federal government funds to be used to provide
assistance covered in this bill to terrorists. The assistance covered
includes weapons, munitions, weapons platforms, intelligence, logistics,
training, and cash.
- Making
it illegal for the U.S. government to provide assistance covered in the
bill to any nation that has given or continues to give such assistance
to terrorists.
- Requiring
the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to determine the individual
and groups that should be considered terrorists, for the purposes of
this bill, by determining: (a) the individuals and groups that are
associated with, affiliated with, adherents to or cooperating with
al-Qaeda, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, or ISIS; (b) the countries that are
providing assistance covered in this bill to those individuals or
groups.
- Requiring
the DNI to review and update the list of countries and groups to which
assistance is prohibited every six months, in consultation with the
House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees, as well as the
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
- Requiring the DNI to brief Congress on the determinations.
Notes
The
views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not
necessarily reflect Information Clearing House editorial policy.
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