US Congress passes bill calling to freeze US aid to Palestinians

The GOP-led House has approved legislation to withhold US financial aid to the Palestinian Authority until it takes credible steps to end what lawmakers say is a practice of rewarding Palestinians who kill Americans and Israelis.

The bipartisan bill passed Tuesday by voice vote. The legislation reflects outrage over what members of Congress have called a "pay to slay" program endorsed by the Palestinian Authority.

But Palestinian officials say US lawmakers are misinformed about a program that supports families who lose their breadwinners during Israel's occupation of the West Bank.

The bill is named after Taylor Force, who was stabbed to death last year in Israel by a Palestinian terrorist. Force was an MBA student at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. He was visiting Israel in March 2016 when he was killed.