Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill are taking action to respond to the Israel-Hamas war by urging the Biden administration to freeze the $6 billion payment it made to Iran through Qatar as part of a prisoner exchange last month.

As CBN News reported, the administration issued a blanket waiver in September to allow the transfer of $6 billion in frozen Iranian oil funds without fear of U.S. sanctions.

Under the agreement, access to the funds would be transferred from South Korea to a bank in Qatar, in exchange for the release of five Americans freed in the prisoner swap with Tehran.

No money is going directly to Iran and no U.S. taxpayer funds are being used and the money is supposed to be limited to the purchase of humanitarian goods like food or medicine.

But Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi told NBC News that his government will decide how it will spend the $6 billion adding the money will be spent “wherever we need it.”

“This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money,” he said, according to an Iranian government translator.

Republicans in Congress called the exchange and ransom payment troubling, but as the war between Israel and Hams continues into day 11, several lawmakers have introduced legislation to stop the Iranian regime from accessing funds that could potentially back terrorist groups. 

Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Committee and a 2024 candidate for president, has released one version of a bill that would restrict the ability of the Treasury and State departments to loosen sanctions for the Iranian funds, Politico reports.

It would also require that the Treasury Department report to Congress on other Iranian assets blocked by U.S. sanctions.

“My bill is a comprehensive approach to wielding our economic sanctions tools against Iran by freezing the $6 billion and ensuring Congress has the information necessary to prevent Iran from accessing funds in the future,” Scott said in a statement. “We must be unequivocal that the United States will not back down and waive sanctions on frozen Iranian funds held by other nations.”

Scott’s bill has 21 Republican co-sponsors, including Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Marco Rubio (R-FL.)

Meanwhile, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) unveiled similar legislation last week. 

They are seeking unanimous consent to pass legislation to block Iran from accessing the $6 billion in funds, The Hill reports. 

“The path of resources, training, and lethal weapons from Tehran to terrorists throughout the Middle East is crystal clear. On Saturday, it enabled cold-blooded killers like Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to perpetrate the deadliest day of violence against Jews in decades,” McConnell said in a statement.  

Cotton called Iran “the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism.” 

“The civilized world must re-impose serious consequences on the regime that aids and abets murderous evil against innocent Israelis. The United States must lead that effort by our example, and freezing Iranian assets is an important first step,” Cotton said. 

Last Friday, Florida Congressman Daniel Webster (R-Fl), along with Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX) and over 100 Republican lawmakers introduced legislation in the House with the same goal. 

H.R.5947 freezes the $ 6 billion sanctioned funds from being accessed by Iran. 

“Iran cannot be trusted,” Webster said in a statement. “As the world’s largest state-sponsor of terrorism, Iran is a proven opponent of U.S. interests, international security, and universal values of liberty. While the Biden Administration claims to have a ‘quiet understanding’ with Qatar to prevent the release of these funds, Congress must take action to ensure Iran never has access to these funds.”

Meanwhile, several Senate Democrats have also called on the Biden administration to freeze the assets.

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