(JNS) The advancing of bills in US states seeking to require the use of “Judea and Samaria” on official documents instead of the “West Bank” represents a strategic step in defending not only Israel, but the western world, according to Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan.
Dagan attended events in both Florida and Georgia last week as part of his “Friends of Samaria in the US” initiative, as legislators pledged to advance bills on the issue in both of those states respectively.
“Especially after Oct. 7, we all understand that construction and sovereignty in Judea and Samaria are essential to the security of Israel and the United States, and we stand together. The bill recognizing Judea and Samaria is recognition of justice and of our shared values,” said Dagan following his stop in Florida.
Similar legislation was also proposed in the state of Oklahoma last week.
Oklahoma Senate Majority Floor Leader Julie Daniels, who introduced the bill, said she did so “to correct the record and affirm the historic and biblical connection of the Jewish people to Judea and Samaria.”
A term “created in 1948 for political reasons [the West Bank] should not be allowed to erase the true name of the biblical heartland of the Jewish people,” she added.
In 2025, Arkansas became the first and only state to date to sign into law that official documents must refer to Judea and Samaria, not the West Bank.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich at a press conference announcing his plans to approve more than 3,000 housing units in the E1 settlement project between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim, AUgust 14, 2025. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/FLASH90
Jason Rapert, founder and president of the National Association of Christian Lawmakers (NACL), which supports Christian elected officials advancing Judeo-Christian values in public office, told JNS that “efforts to redefine and rename Judea and Samaria as the ‘West Bank’ are intended to disconnect the region from Israel itself.”
Judea and Samaria are the biblical heartland of Israel, with over 80% of all the stories in the Bible taking place in the region, he noted.
Therefore, those attempting to create a disconnect by using the term “West Bank” must be revealed and rebuffed, he added.
NACL member Rep. Mindy McAlindon should be credited for passing the first Judea-Samaria bill in Arkansas, said Rapert, adding that his organization is working to ensure the bill is passed in every state in America.
During a Thanksgiving 2025 trip to Israel with 24 elected US officials belonging to the NACL, Rapert’s group visited Samaria and referred to Joshua’s Altar, an archaeological site on Mount Ebal, as the “Plymouth Rock of Israel,” comparing it to the US landmark traditionally believed to mark the Pilgrims’ landing in the New World in 1620.
“Who would ever argue that Plymouth Rock is not part of America? Who also could argue that Joshua’s Altar is not part of the State of Israel?” he asked.
The NACL is also committed to working against antisemitism around the world and promoting good relations between Christians and Jews based on shared values.
US House Speaker Mike Johnson (left) meeting with Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, December 2025. Credit: Samaria Regional Council.
Gideon Israel, president of the Jerusalem Washington Center and special adviser to the NACL, told JNS that what’s happening in Judea and Samaria is really a battle of western civilization.
The issue isn’t just about the Israeli Arab conflict, but rather a battle between those who subscribe to Judeo-Christian values and those who want to wipe out Jewish history, he said.
The term “West Bank” has a negative connotation, he said, but when he brings visitors, both Jews and Christians, on tours and uses “Judea and Samaria,” they better understand the significance of the area, which he called a “spiritual powerhouse.”
“This is a zero-sum, either-or situation,” Israel told JNS. “Therefore, the terminology used to describe the land is extremely important. Referring to it as Judea and Samaria carries a fundamentally different meaning than calling it the West Bank.”
He added that, “The eagerness of state legislators to advance these bills after they come here and see the reality, [it’s] something they want to do, because it’s close to their heritage.”
Just as the American Revolutionary War and other key events are central to the foundation of US history, so too are the biblical events—most of which took place in Judea and Samaria—central to Israeli history, he said.
Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, speaks at “The Future of Judea and Samaria” conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 29, 2025. Photo by Matt Kaminsky/JNS.
Israel showed JNS a recent eight-page legislative policy memo written by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemning the advancement of legislation at the state and federal levels to amend the terminology.
The fact that the proposed legislation has ruffled feathers at CAIR, which he called a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, shows its effectiveness, he said.
Yigal Dilmoni, CEO and co-founder of the American Friends of Judea and Samaria (AFJS) organization, told JNS his group has hosted extensive educational seminars and public awareness initiatives for elected officials in the United States in order to provide factual information about the realities in Judea and Samaria.
Since the Oct. 7, 2023 invasion of southern Israel, more Jewish and Christian supporters of Israel are aware that the Palestinian Authority and Hamas are actively attempting to erase the biblical and historical truth about the Land of Israel, he said.
“These efforts are widely viewed as part of a broader attempt by progressives to undermine traditional faith, historical continuity, and conservative values,” he added.
“The decision by state leaders to adopt the historically accurate term ‘Judea and Samaria,’ rather than the politically charged and misleading term ‘West Bank,’ is seen as a reaffirmation of biblical truth and historical integrity,” said Dilmoni.
The legislative efforts also send a powerful message to younger generations about the true historical roots of the region, he added.
Jewish shepherds herd their sheep near an outpost in Judea and Samaria on June 29, 2025. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90.
On a federal level, Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) introduced the “Recognizing Judea and Samaria Act” on Feb. 29, 2024. The legislation would require all official US documents and materials to reference “Judea and Samaria” rather than the “West Bank.”
In December of the same year, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) introduced similar legislation in the senate.
Both officials reintroduced the bills in their respective chambers in 2025.
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