H.R. 7903 — Justice for Hind Rajab Act

This section states 11 congressional findings regarding U.S. military assistance to Israel exceeding $21.7 billion since October 7, 2023; reported Gaza casualties including over 20,000 children and 1,700 health workers killed; the January 29, 2024, killing of 5-year-old Hind Rajab, six family members, and two Palestine Red Crescent paramedics by IDF tank and machine gun fire using U.S.-provided or -component weaponry; supporting forensic and satellite evidence; and the prohibition in Section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d) on assistance to foreign security force units with credible information of gross human rights violations.

This section requires the Secretary of State, not later than 30 days after enactment, to certify to the appropriate congressional committees whether credible information indicates that the January 29, 2024, attacks in Gaza City—which killed Hind Rajab, members of her family, and two Palestine Red Crescent paramedics—could constitute war crimes involving U.S.-origin weapons or munitions, U.S. citizens, or IDF personnel trained by the U.S., and if so, to refer such findings to the Attorney General not later than 15 days after certification. It further requires the Attorney General, not later than 30 days after enactment, to certify to the appropriate congressional committees that the Department of Justice will review any such referral and initiate an investigation and prosecutions for war crimes in accordance with 18 U.S.C. 2441 (which criminalizes conduct such as grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions), as appropriate to the extent within U.S. court jurisdiction.

This section requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of War, to submit to the appropriate congressional committees, not later than 45 days after enactment, a report on the Gaza City attacks of January 29, 2024. (As background, the Leahy Laws—section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d) and section 362 of title 10, United States Code—prohibit Department of State and Department of Defense assistance, respectively, to foreign security force units that have committed a gross violation of human rights.) The report must include— (1) all information available to the U.S. government regarding (A) the identity of involved Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) or other Israeli security force units, (B) the operational motivation for the attacks, (C) actions by the government of Israel to investigate and hold accountable those responsible, (D) whether involved soldiers were U.S. citizens, (E) whether U.S.-provided weapons or ammunition were used, and (F) whether involved IDF personnel were trained by the U.S.; (2) all Department of State actions to inquire or request information from the government of Israel; (3) all Department of State actions to request information from the intelligence community and other U.S. government components; (4) the extent to which the Secretary of State and Secretary of War initiated an inquiry to determine if the attacks constituted a gross violation of human rights under the Leahy Laws; (5) findings of any other Department of State reviews, policy recommendations, or investigations related to the attacks, including under the Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance; and (6) whether the Department of Justice has received information on the attacks, relayed it to the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, and established a record.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that the Government of Israel should provide compensation to the families of Hind Rajab and the paramedics killed in attacks on January 29, 2024, and that the Department of State should provide compensation to such families if any U.S. citizens serving in the Israel Defense Forces were involved.

This section establishes U.S. policy (1) to collect, analyze, and preserve evidence of possible war crimes and atrocities during the Israel-Hamas war that began on October 7, 2023—including the January 29, 2024, attacks that killed Hind Rajab, her family members, and two Palestine Red Crescent paramedics—for use in domestic, foreign, and international prosecutions; (2) to pursue accountability for war crimes worldwide, including through Department of Justice prosecutions under the War Crimes Act (18 U.S.C. § 2441); (3) to treat the willful killing of protected persons such as civilians and medical personnel as grave breaches constituting war crimes, and if systemic, crimes against humanity; (4) to hold perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity accountable; (5) to uphold the Fourth Geneva Convention, including common Article 3 prohibiting violence against persons not taking part in hostilities; (6) to uphold Article 35 of the First Geneva Convention requiring respect and protection for transports of wounded, sick civilians, or medical equipment; and (7) for the Attorney General, with input from other federal agencies as appropriate, to investigate credible allegations of war crimes by U.S. citizens in Gaza under 18 U.S.C. § 2441.

This section defines key terms for purposes of the Act. It specifies that "appropriate congressional committees" includes eight committees (the Senate Committees on Foreign Relations, Judiciary, and Armed Services and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence; and the House Committees on Foreign Affairs, Judiciary, and Armed Services and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence); "atrocities" has the meaning given in section 6(2) of the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 (i.e., widespread or systematic violence against civilians, including murder, torture, rape, and other forms of sexual violence); and "war crime" has the meaning given in 18 U.S.C. 2441(c) (i.e., grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and certain other serious violations of the laws of war).