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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, On November 29, 1947, the United Nations General
3Assembly voted to partition British Mandatory Palestine into a
4Jewish state and an Arab state, a decision welcomed by Jewish
5leadership and rejected by the Arab world; and
 
6    WHEREAS, On May 14, 1948, the people of Israel proclaimed
7the establishment of the sovereign and independent state of
8Israel, and the United States government established full
9diplomatic relations after Israel's first election in 1949; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The desire of the Jewish people to establish an
11independent modern state of Israel is directly linked to the
12existence of the historic kingdom of Israel established in the
13land of Israel 3,000 years ago, with the city of Jerusalem as
14its capital both then and now; and
 
15    WHEREAS, For over 2,000 years, Jews living in other parts
16of the world maintained a profound spiritual and emotional
17connection to the Land of Israel, where there has been a
18continuous Jewish presence in the land comprising the modern
19state of Israel; and
 
20    WHEREAS, The establishment of the modern state of Israel as
21a homeland for the Jewish people followed the destruction of

 

 

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1much of European Jewry during the Holocaust; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Since its establishment 70 years ago, the modern
3State of Israel has rebuilt the nation, forged a new and
4dynamic society, and created a thriving economic, political,
5cultural, and intellectual life despite the heavy burdens of
6war, terrorism, and unjustified diplomatic and economic
7boycotts against the people of Israel; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The people of Israel, in the spirit of Israel's
9Declaration of Independence, have established a vibrant,
10pluralistic, democratic political system, which includes
11freedom of speech, freedom of association, and freedom of
12religion, a vigorously free press, free, fair and open
13elections, the rule of law, a fully independent judiciary, and
14other democratic principles and practices; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Israel has developed some of the world's leading
16universities; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Israel has developed an advanced, entrepreneurial
18economy, is among the world's leaders of the high-tech
19industry, and is at the forefront of research and development
20in the fields of renewable energy sources and medicine; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Israel regularly sends humanitarian aid, search

 

 

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1and rescue teams, mobile hospitals, and other emergency
2supplies, to help victims of disasters around the world;
3therefore, be it
 
4    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
5HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
6recognize the 70th anniversary of Israel's establishment and
7reaffirm the bonds of friendship and cooperation between the
8United States, the State of Illinois, and Israel.