Legislation would prevent individuals with ties to Hamas from entering country

Bipartisan legislation recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would prevent any migrant tied to Hamas from entering the United States.

The No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act would prohibit any migrant who carried out, participated in, planned, financed, afforded material support to, or otherwise facilitated in the attacks Hamas perpetrated against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, from entering the country. The bill also would prohibit any person fitting that description from being eligible for immigration benefits.

The bill would require the Homeland Security secretary report to Congress the number of aliens who were found inadmissible under the act and those found to be removable.

U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) introduced the bill.

“No one who participated in Hamas’s brutal October 7 terrorist attack should be allowed to enter the United States,” Rosen said. “That’s why I’m helping introduce bipartisan legislation to prohibit Hamas terrorists from being eligible to receive immigration benefits. I’ll always work across the aisle to keep our nation safe.”

The legislation was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. The act would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act.

U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) introduced a companion bill in the House of Representatives in 2023. It passed 422-2.