Human Shields

Human Shields

US Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Counter Use of Human Shields by Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad - Algemeiner

US lawmakers introduced a bipartisan bill on Tuesday to counter the use of human shields by terrorist groups, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

The STOP Using Human Shields Act - brought forward by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) - would impose sanctions on terrorist organizations and others who have used "civilians or protected property to deliberately cause casualties or shield lawful targets from attack."

It would also commit the US representative at the UN Security Council to advance a resolution placing multilateral sanctions on terrorist groups that use human shields, while requiring the UN to track the practice and member states to take steps against those who employ it.

Among these identified groups is Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which during its 2006 conflict with Israel "purposefully used civilians in an effort to shield themselves against attacks by Israeli forces," the bill noted.

The Iranian proxy was further accused of willfully endangering non-combatants "by storing weapons inside civilian homes and launching attacks from firing positions in areas of dense civilian population, often in or near homes, schools, mosques or hospitals, in order to shield such positions from attack."

"The use of human shields - including by terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah - is barbaric, illegal, and offensive to the most basic standards of human decency," said Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.), a co-sponsor and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.