Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

 State of Arkansas
 94th General Assembly
 Regular Session, 2023                                                                              SR 60
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 By: Senators K. Hammer, J. Boyd, J. Bryant, Caldwell, L. Chesterfield, A. Clark, Crowell, B. Davis,
 Dees, J. Dismang, J. Dotson, J. English, Flippo, Gilmore, Hester, Hickey, Hill, Irvin, B. Johnson, M.
 Johnson, B. King, G. Leding, F. Love, M. McKee, R. Murdock, J. Payton, C. Penzo, J. Petty, Rice, Stone,
 G. Stubblefield, D. Sullivan, C. Tucker, D. Wallace
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                                    SENATE RESOLUTION
                 TO COMMEND AND CONGRATULATE THE MODERN STATE OF
                 ISRAEL ON THE OCCASION OF THE SEVENTY-FIFTH
                 ANNIVERSARY OF ITS ESTABLISHMENT, TO RECOGNIZE THE
                 CONTRIBUTIONS OF ISRAEL TO HUMANKIND, TO EXPRESS
                 SUPPORT FOR THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL FOR THEIR RIGHT TO
                 LIVE IN FREEDOM AND TO DEFEND THEIR LAND AND THEIR
                 COUNTRY, AND TO EXTEND BEST WISHES TO THE STATE OF
                 ISRAEL AND TO THE ISRAELI PEOPLE FOR A PEACEFUL AND
                 PROSPEROUS FUTURE.
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                                                 Subtitle
                         TO CONGRATULATE THE STATE OF ISRAEL ON
                         THE OCCASION OF THE SEVENTY-FIFTH
                         ANNIVERSARY OF ITS ESTABLISHMENT AND TO
                         EXTEND BEST WISHES TO THE STATE OF ISRAEL
                         AND TO THE ISRAELI PEOPLE FOR A PEACEFUL
                         AND PROSPEROUS FUTURE.
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         WHEREAS, what is now the modern State of Israel was historically
 granted her lands under and through the oldest recorded deed, as found in the
 Holy Bible, which is a tome of scripture revered by Jews and Christians alike
 as presenting the acts and words of God; and
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         WHEREAS, the desire of the Jewish people to establish an independent
 modern State of Israel is directly linked to the existence of the historic
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 Kingdom of Israel established in the Land of Israel more than three thousand
 years (3,000) ago, with the City of Jerusalem as its capital both then and
 now; and
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       WHEREAS, for more than two thousand (2,000) years, Jews living in other
 parts of the world maintained a profound spiritual and emotional connection
 to the Land of Israel, and there has been continuous Jewish presence in the
 land comprising the modern State of Israel; and
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       WHEREAS, the internationally recognized legal basis for the
 establishment of the modern State of Israel was a binding resolution under
 international law that was unanimously adopted by the League of Nations in
 1922 and subsequently affirmed by both houses of the United States Congress;
 and
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       WHEREAS, this binding resolution affirmed the establishment of a
 national home for the Jewish people in the historical region of the Land of
 Israel, including the areas of Judea, Samaria, and eastern Jerusalem; and
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       WHEREAS, on May 14, 1948, the people of Israel proclaimed the
 establishment of the sovereign and independent State of Israel with the goal
 of reestablishing its God-given and legally recognized land as a homeland for
 the Jewish people; and
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       WHEREAS, the establishment of the modern State of Israel as a homeland
 for the Jewish people followed the destruction of much of the European Jewry
 during the Holocaust; and
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       WHEREAS, the United States Government established full diplomatic
 relations after the State of Israel’s first election in 1949; and
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       WHEREAS, since its establishment seventy-five (75) years ago, the
 modern State of Israel has forged a new and dynamic society and created a
 thriving economic, political, cultural, and intellectual life; and
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       WHEREAS, the people of the State of Israel, in the spirit of the State
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 of Israel’s Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel, have
 established a vibrant, pluralistic, democratic political system; and
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      WHEREAS, the State of Israel has developed an advanced, entrepreneurial
 economy, is among the world’s leaders of the high-tech industry, and is at
 the forefront of research and development in the fields of renewable energy
 sources and medicine; and
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      WHEREAS, the State of Israel regularly sends humanitarian aid, search
 and rescue teams, mobile hospitals, and other emergency supplies to help
 victims of disasters around the world; and
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      WHEREAS, the State of Israel has taken in millions of Jews from
 countries throughout the world and sought to fully integrate them into
 Israeli society; and
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      WHEREAS, the State of Israel has long-established peaceful bilateral
 relations with Egypt and Jordan, and has more recently established peace with
 Bahrain, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Sudan, and has worked toward
 achieving a secure, peaceful relationship with the Palestinian people, and is
 looking forward to normalizing relations with all other Arab neighbors in
 pursuit of enduring regional stability and prosperity; and
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      WHEREAS, Ralph Bunche, a noted advisor to the United States Department
 of State, in his capacity as acting United Nations mediator worked tirelessly
 with many others on behalf of the United States to obtain signatures on
 armistice agreements between Israel and the Arab States; and
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      WHEREAS, for seven (7) decades, the United States, the State of
 Arkansas, and the State of Israel have maintained a special relationship
 based on mutually shared democratic and moral values, common strategic
 interests, and bonds of friendship and mutual respect; and
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      WHEREAS, the United States and the State of Arkansas continue to regard
 the State of Israel as a trusted ally and vital strategic partner in the
 Middle East; and
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      WHEREAS, the American people and the people of Arkansas feel a strong
 affinity for the Israeli people based on common values and shared cultural
 heritage; and
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      WHEREAS, the State of Arkansas again wishes to reaffirm its desire that
 the United States of America remains a strong and unequivocal supporter of
 the State of Israel and the right of Israel to defend itself in its own
 country; and
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      WHEREAS, nightfall of the 25th day of April through the evening of the
 26th day of April 2023, the fifth day of Iyar, 5783 of the Hebrew calendar,
 marks the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the modern State of
 Israel in the ancestral homeland of the Jewish people,
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 NOW THEREFORE,
 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE
 STATE OF ARKANSAS:
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      THAT the Senate congratulate the State of Israel on the occasion of the
 seventy-fifth anniversary of its establishment, recognize the contributions
 of the State of Israel to humankind, express support for the people of the
 State of Israel for their right to live in freedom and to defend their land
 and their country, and extend its best wishes to the State of Israel and to
 the Israeli people for a peaceful and prosperous future.
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 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT a copy of this resolution shall be transmitted to
 the Consul General of the State of Israel to the Southwest in Houston, Texas,
 and to the Embassy of Israel to the United States in Washington, D.C., for
 transmission to the proper authorities in the State of Israel by the
 Secretary of the Senate.
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