House, Senate to show support for Israel

House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) later this week are expected to introduce a resolution signaling strong support for Israel during its violent showdown with Hezbollah.

Staffers for the two leaders were still working on the exact language of the resolution as of press time yesterday. Republican aides said that Democrats were reviewing the language but that they hope to introduce a bipartisan resolution on the floor today or tomorrow that the House would approve by unanimous consent.

The Senate was expected to pass a resolution last night supporting “Israel’s right of self-defense … to take appropriate action to deter aggression by terrorist groups and their state sponsors” and condemning the governments of Iran and Syria for their financial backing of Hezbollah and Hamas, according to a draft of that resolution.

The Senate measure, which was introduced by Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), calls on Hezbollah and Hamas to release immediately the Israeli soldiers being held in Lebanon and urged President Bush to continue his support of Israel and impose sanctions on Syria and Iran.

The Senate measure also calls on the United Nations Security Council to condemn Hezbollah’s rocket attacks and to demand that the militant group be “disbanded and disarmed.”

Aides for the two House leaders drafted the resolution with help from the House International Relations Committee.