The United States House of Representatives has passed a bill to penalise American universities for boycotting Israel or its academic institutions, including those located in the occupied West Bank, a move that critics say violates freedom of expression.

Lawmakers approved the measure in a 237-169 vote on Thursday, with 33 Democrats joining the Republican majority. Two Republicans broke ranks with their party to reject the bill.

The proposal will still needs to be adopted by the Republican-controlled Senate and signed by President Donald Trump to become law.

If passed, it would bar universities that boycott “an entity licensed or regulated by, or organised under the laws of” Israel, such as those in illegal West Bank settlements, from receiving federal funds.

Withholding such funding would make it nearly impossible for many universities to operate or provide financial aid to students.

Jenin Younes, president of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), said the bill raises serious concerns for the First Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects freedom of speech rights.

“The Supreme Court has made clear that the government cannot condition its funding on suppression of First Amendment-protected activity,” Younes told Al Jazeera. “Courts also recognise that boycotts constitute such activity.”

The legislation would require academic institutions in the US to annually certify that they allow cooperation with Israeli universities. The stipulation raises concerns that the bill not only bans boycotts of schools in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank but could compel US universities to forge relationships with them to fulfil the certification requirement.

The International Court of Justice ruled in 2024 that Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, “have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law”.

The bill comes at a time when public support for Israel in the US has nosedived. A Pew Research Center survey in July suggested that 62 percent of Americans have an unfavourable view of the Israeli government.

Still, support for the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which carried out the genocidal war on Gaza, remains strong on Capitol Hill.

“The timing of the bill reflects the Israel lobby’s growing desperation in the face of rising opposition to US support for Israel,” Younes said.

“As Americans’ sentiment turns against our unholy alliance, Israel and its servants in Congress are working overtime to come up with ways to silence dissent and keep Americans’ tax dollars flowing to the genocidal, apartheid state.”

She added that including Israeli colleges in the occupied West Bank in the anti-boycott bill is further evidence there is no real intent by the US “to hold Israel accountable for its unlawful occupation or to pave the way for a Palestinian state”.

Restrictions on BDS

For years, US states and Congress have been passing bills to restrict the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement that aims to pressure Israel economically to end abuses against Palestinians.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has been among rights groups who have regularly warned that anti-BDS laws violate constitutional free speech guarantees.

Robert McCaw, CAIR’s government affairs director, called the legislative proposal “a blatant attempt to hold American students’ financial futures hostage in order to shield the Israeli government and entities operating under Israeli law from peaceful economic pressure”.

“Students and faculty have the right to speak, organise and urge their institutions to align investment and purchasing decisions with their values,” McCaw said in a statement.

“Congress should not threaten Pell Grants and student loans simply because lawmakers dislike the outcome of that advocacy,” he said, referring to a federally funded financial aid programme.

Supporters of the bill have argued that the measure aims to regulate commercial conduct, not speech.

“Our universities should not use taxpayer-funded federal programs to discriminate against Israeli students, faculty, institutions, or businesses simply because they are Israeli,” Representative Tim Walberg, the Republican chair of the House Committee on Education and Workforce, said in a statement.

“I’m proud of my colleagues for standing up for that principle today and I hope to see the Senate do the same,” he said.

Some rights advocates have called for academic boycotts of Israel, saying Israeli universities play a role in enabling abuses against Palestinians by developing weapon systems and military strategies.

“For decades, Israeli universities have played a key role in planning, implementing and justifying Israel’s occupation and apartheid policies, and now genocide, while maintaining a uniquely close relationship with the Israeli military,” the BDS movement website says.

The two Republicans who voted against the bill on Tuesday were Thomas Massie and Warren Davidson, who have both been critical of Washington’s policy towards the Middle East.

The 33 Democrats who approved the measure included staunchly pro-Israel legislators Ritchie Torres and Haley Stevens, who recently lost her bid for the US Senate Democratic Party nomination in Michigan to Abdul El-Sayed, a supporter of Palestinian rights.