Lawmakers say Amnesty’s genocide report amplifies Hamas propaganda
A group of House members said that, in accusing Israel of genocide, the NGO was ‘mislead[ing] the public by standing with the narratives produced and promoted by Hamas’
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Amnesty International Advisor on Economic, Social, Cultural Rights Middle East and North Africa Regional Office Kristine Beckerle, Amnesty International Secretary general Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International Head of Centre for International justice Matt Cannock present their latest report on Israel’s war on Gaza during a press conference on December 4, 2024 in The Hague, Netherlands.
House lawmakers are circulating a joint statement condemning Amnesty International for its report accusing Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinian people.
The statement, which is still open for additional signatories, according to a source familiar with the effort, accuses Amnesty of echoing “misinformation that has been spewed by Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran — the U.S’ shared enemies with Israel” and of “mislead[ing] the public by standing with the narratives produced and promoted by Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.”
The statement is being organized by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ). Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY), Greg Landsman (D-OH), Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Max Miller (R-OH), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Shri Thanedar (D-MI), Tom Kean (R-NJ), Don Bacon (R-NE), Kathy Manning (D-NC), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Ritchie Torres (D-NY) had signed on as of Thursday night.
The lawmakers accuse Amnesty of making “slanderous” claims, in line with a “long-standing, historically biased position against Israel and the Jewish people.” They said the NGO had “admittedly and nefariously created its own definition of the legal term ‘genocide’ in their report simply to fit their defamatory narrative.”
The lawmakers said that Amnesty’s “[f]alse statements about Israel’s conduct in its war of self-defense rewards self-proclaimed genocidal terrorist organizations intent on destroying the Jewish state and murdering Jews everywhere” and would “embolden Israel’s enemies” in their fight against both the U.S. and Israel.
“The promotion of this misleading report will further threaten the safety of the only Jewish nation in the world and undermine those working to achieve the safe return of all hostages,” they continued.
The Israeli branch of Amnesty has disavowed the group’s report. Amnesty is the first major global human rights group to charge Israel with genocide since Oct. 7.
Several other lawmakers condemned Amnesty individually on Thursday.
“Amnesty International has released yet another deeply flawed and frankly libelous report, this time accusing Israel of ‘genocide,’” Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) said. “This baseless claim distorts reality and undermines our ally.”
Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY) accused the group of “blatant antisemitism.”
Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY) said, “Amnesty’s biased stance should be rejected by those who stand with Israel, the region’s only democracy.”
Torres, in a separate statement, accused Amnesty of a “21st century blood libel,” adding, “calling Israel a genocidal state is as fictional as calling Amnesty International a human rights organization.”