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House of Representatives passes resolution conflating antisemitism with anti-Zionism

‘We have even seen members of this very body repeat blatantly antisemitic rhetoric and spread lies about Israel and her right to exist.’

By World Israel News Staff

The US House of Representatives passed a resolution classifying anti-Zionism as antisemitism, receiving almost unanimous Republican support while dividing Democrats, with a notable number of Jewish Democrats choosing to abstain by voting “present.”

Jewish Republicans Max Miller and David Kustoff introduced the resolution, which saw 311 votes in favor, 14 against, and 92 abstentions. The 14 who voted against were part of, or allied with, the so-called Squad.

Miller and Kustoff’s resolution aims to affirm US support for Jews following the increase in antisemitic rhetoric after the Israel-Hamas war.

“Whereas, since the massacre of innocent Israelis by Hamas, an Iran-backed terrorist organization, on October 7, 2023, antisemitic incidents of harassment, vandalism, and assault in the United States have spiked 388 percent over the same period last year,” the resolution stated.

Kustoff linked anti-Israel and antisemitic biases: “More Jews were murdered on October 7th than on any other single day since the Holocaust. Let that sink in. We have even seen members of this very body repeat blatantly antisemitic rhetoric and spread lies about Israel and her right to exist.”

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“We have seen an explosion, an absolute explosion, of antisemitic incidents, attacks, and harassment, in Israel, here in our own nation, and across the world,” Kustoff said.

The resolution drew criticism from some Democrats, including Representative Jerry Nadler, who argued, “The resolution suggests that all anti-Zionism is antisemitism… That is either intellectually disingenuous or just factually wrong. And it unfairly implicates many of my Orthodox former constituents in Brooklyn, many of whose families rose from the ashes of the Holocaust.”

Nadler was referring to a group of fringe hasidic Jews who have openly said they are anti-Zionist.

Nadler accused Republicans of politicizing the issue, saying, “I cannot help but note that, although this resolution strongly condemns and denounces antisemitism, its authors carefully avoided mentioning any of the obvious instances of antisemitism coming from their own leaders.”