Judea and Samaria

2025-2026 Bill 4865: Judea and Samaria - South Carolina Legislature Online

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
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H. 4865
STATUS INFORMATION
House Resolution
Sponsors: Rep. McCravy
Document Path: LC-0486SA-JN26.docx
Introduced in the House on January 14, 2026
Currently residing in the House Committee on
Invitations and Memorial Resolutions
Summary: Judea and Samaria
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

Date

Body

Action Description with journal page number

1/14/2026

House

Introduced (
House Journal-page 56
)

1/14/2026

House

Referred to Committee on
Invitations and Memorial Resolutions
(
House Journal-page 56
)

View the latest
legislative information
at the website
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
01/14/2026

A
house
RESOLUTION

to recognize judea and samaria as
the ancestral heartland of the jewish people, to affirm the historical,
biblical, and legal connection of the jewish people to judea and samaria, to
reject the politicized term "west bank" and to stand in solidarity with the
state of israel.

W
hereas, the regions historically known as Judea and Samaria
constitute the ancestral heartland of the Jewish people and comprise the
historical, spiritual, and geographical core of the Land of Israel; and

W
hereas, Judea and Samaria are repeatedly and explicitly referenced
in the Hebrew Bible as the setting for key events that form the foundation of
the Jewish people's religious and national identity; and

W
hereas, Abraham, the patriarch of the Jewish people, first entered
the Land of Israel at Shechem, located in Samaria, where God promised the land
to his descendants, as recorded in Genesis 12:6-7; and

W
hereas, Abraham subsequently purchased the Cave of Machpelah in
Hebron, in Judea, as a burial place for his wife Sarah, thereby making the
first recorded land acquisition by a Jew in the Land of Israel, as recorded in
Genesis 23; and

W
hereas, Jacob, Abraham's grandson, had his prophetic dream of a
ladder reaching heaven while in Bethel, in Samaria, as recorded in Genesis
28:10-22, and later purchased land near Shechem, building an altar to God
there, as described in Genesis 33:18-20; and

W
hereas, Joseph, Jacob's son, was buried in Shechem in fulfillment of
the promise made to him by his family, as recorded in Joshua 24:32; and

W
hereas, the covenant ceremony between the children of Israel and God
was performed on Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, both located in Samaria, as
commanded in Deuteronomy 11:29; and

W
hereas, the Tabernacle, which was the center of Israelite worship
prior to the construction of the first temple in Jerusalem, stood in Shiloh, in
Samaria, for several centuries, as recorded in Joshua 18:1; and

W
hereas, King David began his reign over the tribes of Israel in
Hebron, in Judea, where he ruled for seven years before establishing his
kingdom in Jerusalem, as described in 2 Samuel 2:1-4; and

W
hereas, Jerusalem, which sits historically on the border of the
tribal territories of Judah and Benjamin, was purchased by King David from
Araunah the Jebusite and became the eternal capital of the Jewish people, as
recorded in 2 Samuel 24:24; and

W
hereas, the return of the Jewish people to Judea and Samaria in
modern times constitutes the fulfillment of numerous biblical prophecies,
including Jeremiah 31:5, Ezekiel 36:8, and Amos 9:14; and

W
hereas, the names "Judea" and "Samaria" are the historically,
biblically, and legally accurate terms for the region, while the term "West
Bank" was imposed by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan during its illegal
occupation of the region between 1948 and 1967; and

W
hereas, the term "West Bank" is a political construct designed to
sever the land from its Jewish historical and biblical roots and to obscure the
deep historical, religious, and legal connections of the Jewish people to the
land; and

W
hereas, during the Six-Day War of June 1967, the State of Israel
liberated Judea and Samaria from Jordanian control, restoring Jewish access to
their ancestral homeland and holy sites after nineteen years of exclusion; and

W
hereas, without Judea and Samaria, the width of Israel is only nine
miles at its narrowest point, rendering the nation militarily indefensible and
placing more than seventy percent of Israel's population and economic
infrastructure at risk; and

W
hereas, the highlands of Judea and Samaria overlook Israel's coastal
plain, including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Ben-Gurion International Airport,
making Israeli control of these areas essential to national defense; and

W
hereas, the ideological conflict over Judea and Samaria represents a
broader civilizational struggle between Judeo-Christian values and radical
ideologies that seek to undermine Western democratic principles and religious
freedom; and

W
hereas, numerous American towns and cities bear the names of
biblical locations in Judea and Samaria, illustrating the deep cultural and
spiritual bond between the United States and the biblical Land of Israel; and

W
hereas, under the San Remo Resolution of 1920 and the League of
Nations Mandate for Palestine, the international community recognized the right
of the Jewish people to reconstitute their national home in their ancestral
land, including Judea and Samaria, rights that remain preserved under Article
80 of the United Nations Charter; and

W
hereas, no international agreement or resolution has lawfully
revoked or superseded these foundational legal rights; and

W
hereas, the security and sovereignty of the State of Israel in Judea
and Samaria serve the strategic interests of the United States by preventing
the emergence of terrorist-controlled regimes, promoting regional stability,
and affirming the Judeo-Christian heritage upon which American constitutional
democracy is founded. Now, therefore,

B
e it resolved by the
House of
Representatives
:

T
hat the members of the South Carolina
House
of Representatives
, by this resolution:

1
. recognize Judea and Samaria as the
ancestral heartland of the Jewish people and affirm the historical, biblical,
and legal connection of the Jewish people to this land;

2
. reject the use of the politicized
term "West Bank" and affirm that "Judea and Samaria" are the historically,
biblically, and legally accurate names for the region;

3
. urge all agencies, departments,
boards, commissions, and institutions of the State of South Carolina to utilize
the historically accurate term "Judea and Samaria" in place of the politicized
term "West Bank" in official communications, publications, educational
materials, and other governmental documents, to the fullest extent practicable;

4
. stand in unwavering solidarity with
the State of Israel and support Israel's right to defend itself, its citizens,
and its sovereign territory; and

5
. affirm the moral clarity of
supporting Jewish sovereignty in Judea and Samaria as consistent with the
values of truth, justice, religious liberty, and the Judeo-Christian heritage.

B
e it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be transmitted
to Governor McMaster, the Prime Minister of Israel, the Ambassador of Israel to
the United States, and the members of the South Carolina Congressional
Delegation.

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This web page was last updated on January 14, 2026 at 3:29 PM