[Note: There will be no Round-Up next week -- sorry for any inconvenience this may cause].

1.  NEW BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS
 
(IRAN) S.1475:  Introduced 7/2/0/09 by Sens. Schumer (D-NY) and Graham (R-SC), "A bill to prohibit the heads of executive agencies from entering into or renewing procurement contracts with persons that export certain computer or telecommunications technologies to Iran, and for other purposes."  Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
 
(IRAN) HR 3284:  Introduced 7/21/09 by Rep. Sherman (D-CA) and 2 cosponsors, "To prohibit the heads of executive agencies from entering into or renewing procurement contracts with persons that export certain computer or telecommunications technologies to Iran, and for other purposes."  Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
 
2.  SENATE DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION
 
This week the Senate continued to debate S. 1390, the FY10 Defense Authorization bill, passing a number of Iran-related amendments.  The bill, as amended, was passed by the Senate 7/23/09 by a vote of 87-7.  Iran-related amendments to the bill were:
 
S. Amdt.1489:  REPORT ON MILITARY POWER OF IRAN  (Submitted but not considered or voted on)
Submitted 7/13/09 by Sens. Brownback (R-KS) and Inhofe (R-OK), to require an annual report "on the current and future military strategy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The report shall address the current and probable future course of military developments on the Army, Air Force, Navy, and Revolutionary Guard Corps of the Government of Iran, and the tenets and probable development of the grand strategy, security strategy, military strategy, and military organizations and operational concepts of the Government of Iran..."  The amendment lays out in detail the matters to be included in the report.
 
S. Amdt. 1535:  REPORT ON CUBA AND CUBA'S RELATIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES) (Adopted by Unanimous Consent 7/22/09)
Submitted 7/14/09 by Sen. Martinez (R-FL), to require a report by the Director of National Intelligence on, among other things, "The cooperative agreements and relationships that Cuba has with Iran, North Korea, and other states suspected of nuclear proliferation."
 
S. Amdt. 1536:  REPORT ON VENEZUELA (Adopted by Unanimous Consent 7/22/09)  Submitted 7/14/09 by Sen. Martinez (R-FL), to require a report by the Director of National Intelligence on, among other things, "The mining and shipping of Venezuelan uranium to Iran, North Korea, and other states suspected of nuclear proliferation," and "the extent to which Hugo Chavez and other Venezuelan officials provide funding, logistical and political support to the Islamist terrorist organization Hezbollah."
 
S. Amdt.1575:  REPORT ON ELECTRONIC SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIES OF THE GOVERNMENT OF IRAN (Submitted but not considered or voted on)
Submitted 7/16/09 by Sen. Johanns (R-NE) and Bond (R-MO), to require a report to congress "on the domestic electronic surveillance capabilities of the Government of Iran that includes-- (1) an identification of the five persons that supply the most electronic surveillance equipment to the Government of Iran and the location of any global headquarters of each such person;  (2) an estimate of the value of the sales of such equipment by each such person in the year preceding the submittal of the report; (3) an estimate of the annual value of such sales during previous years; (4) a description of any actions taken by the United States to discourage such sales; and  (5) an identification of any contracts entered into with such persons by the Federal Government."
 
S. Amdt. 1597:  SENSE OF THE SENATE ON REDESIGNATION OF NORTH KOREA AS A STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM (Defeated 7/22/09 by a vote of 43-54)
Submitted 7/16/09 by Sens. Brownback (R-KS) and Bayh (D-IN), finding (among other things) that "North Korea has failed to acknowledge or account for its role in building and supplying the secret nuclear facility at Al Kibar, Syria, has failed to account for all remaining citizens of Japan abducted by North Korea, and, according to recent reports, continues to engage in close cooperation with the terrorist Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps on ballistic missile technology," "There have been recent credible reports that North Korea has provided support to the terrorist group Hezbollah, including by providing ballistic missile components and personnel to train members of Hezbollah with respect to the development of extensive underground military facilities in southern Lebanon, including tunnels and bunkers," and "The 2005 and 2006 Country Reports on Terrorism of the Department of State state, with respect to Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria, 'Most worrisome is that some of these countries also have the capability to manufacture WMD and other destabilizing technologies that can get into the hands of terrorists. The United States will continue to insist that these countries end the support they give to terrorist groups.'"
 
S. Amdt. 1609:  REPORT ON INVESTMENT IN IRAN'S ENERGY SECTOR (Submitted but not considered or voted on) 
Submitted 7/16/09 by Sen. Kyl (R-AZ),  to add to reporting requirements (already in the bill) "a list of all investments in the energy sector of Iran and assessment of whether any person making such an investment is transacting any economic activity in the United States, including with the United States Government."
 
S. Amdt. 1628: SENSE OF THE SENATE ON IMPOSING SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN (Agreed to by Voice Vote 7/21/)
Submitted 7/20/09 by Sen. Kyl (R-AZ) and 6 cosponsors, "It is the sense of the Senate that the President should impose sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran and any other Iranian bank engaged in proliferation activities or support for terrorist groups, as well as any other sanctions the President determines appropriate, if the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has not accepted the offer by the United States to engage in direct diplomacy through the P5-plus-1 process before the Summit of the Group of 20 (G-20) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in September 2009; or has not suspended all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities and work on all heavy-water related projects within 60 days of the conclusion of that Summit; and the United Nations Security Council has failed to adopt significant and meaningful additional sanctions on the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
 
S. Amdt. 1775: Victims of Iranian Censorship Act (Agreed to 7/23/09 by Unanimous Consent)
Submitted 7/23/09 by Sen. McCain (R-AZ) and 4 cosponsors, to add a lengthy, far-reaching new section to the bill "to support freedom of the press, freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly in Iran, to support the Iranian people as they seek, receive, and impart information and promote ideas in writing, in print, or through any media without interference, and for other purposes."
 
S. Amdt. 1697: REPORT ON MILITARY POWER OF IRAN (Agreed to by Unanimous Consent 7/23/09)
Submitted 7/22/09 by Sen. Brownback (R-KS), "To require a biennial report on the military power of Iran."

S. Amdt. 1712:  S. AMDT. 1775: Victims of Iranian Censorship
(see S. Amdt. 1775 for action on this issue)

S. Amdt. 1744:  SENSE OF SENATE ON AND RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR DEVELOPMENT AND DEPLOYMENT OF MISSILE DEFENSE SYSTEMS IN EUROPE (Agreed to 7/23/09 by a Voice Vote)
Submitted 7/23/09 by Sen. Lieberman (I-CT) and 10 cosponsors, "To express the sense of the Senate on and reserve funds for the development and deployment of missile defense systems to Europe."
 
3. BAYH-RISCH LETTER ON ARAB NORMALIZATION
 
Late on 7/23/09 Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and James Risch (R-ID) began circulating a letter urging President Obama to press Arab states to take dramatic steps to normalize relations with Israel.  The letter, which does not once mention the word "settlements" asserts that over the past few months Israel has taken "concrete measures to reaffirm its commitment to advancing the peace process" and states that signers "encourage Arab leaders to take similar tangible steps to demonstrate their commitment to the peace process."  The letter then provides a list of what such steps could be, including urging the President to press Arab leaders "to consider dramatic gestures toward Israel similar to those taken by brave leaders like King Hussein of Jordan and Anwar El-Sadat of Egypt..."
 
AIPAC has the letter listed on its website as the top item on its "take action" page.
AIPAC has also posted a memo laying out rationale behind the letter.
 
4.  Q&A on Jerusalem/Shepherd's Hotel
 
This week controversy erupted over Israeli plans to permit the construction of a new settlement in the heart of an Arab neighborhood in East Jerusalem. Given the intense focus on this issue, APN, in cooperation with Ir Amim's Danny Seidemann, produced a comprehensive Q&A guide to the issue, entitled Abusing Jerusalem to Assault Peace: the Case of the Shepherd's Hotel."
 
In addition, we have posted several blog items dealing with recent settlement-related developments:
 
Israeli Double-Talk on Settlements
Setting the Record Straight: Palestinians Can't Really Live in West Jerusalem
Nahum Barnea on Bibi's Transparent Ploy: Jerusalem
 
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Don't forget to check the APN blog for breaking news and analysis about issues related to Israel, the Middle East, and the Hill.
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Americans for Peace Now promotes Israeli security through the peace process and supports the Israeli Peace Now movement.   For more information, visit the APN web site at www.peacenow.org or contact Lara Friedman, APN Director of Policy and Government Relations, at 202/408-9898, or at lfriedman@peacenow.org.