“These pro-Hamas supporters wouldn’t last a day [in Gaza], but let’s give them the opportunity,” says Republican lawmaker.
By World Israel News Staff
A new bill proposed by a Republican lawmaker would see people convicted of illegal activity on college campuses punished with a sentence to perform community service for six months in the Gaza Strip.
“Students have abandoned their classes to harass other students and disrupt campus-wide activities, including university commencement ceremonies nationwide. Enough is enough,” Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN), who is spearheading the bill, told Fox News Digital.
“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’t last a day, but let’s give them the opportunity,” Ogles said.
Although the bill does not specify that it’s targeting those who participated in anti-Israel protests, it does specify that the punishment should be applied to students who were convicted of crimes on campus after October 7th, 2023, the date that Hamas launched an unprecedented terror onslaught that killed some 1,200 in Israel.
Ogles, along with his colleagues Reps. Randy Weber (R-TX) and Jeff Duncan (R-SC), recently introduced the bill to the House. However, with a one-majority seat for the Republicans, it’s unclear if the bill will have sufficient partisan support to pass.
Even if the bill is passed by the House, the Democrat-controlled Senate will most likely refuse to call a vote on the matter.
Anti-Israel protests, often including violent harassment of Jewish students, encampments, and other disruptions to studying, have roiled campuses across the U.S.
The chaos has seen a drop in applications for some elite universities, including Harvard, after the heads of those institutions essentially told Congress that antisemitic hate speech was acceptable on campus during the protests.