Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to support the repatriation of religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq to their ancestral homelands.

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 259 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to support the repatri- ation of religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq to their ancestral home- lands. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 27, 2019 Mr. FORTENBERRY (for himself and Ms. ESHOO) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to support the repatriation of religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq to their ancestral homelands. Whereas the Nineveh Plain and the wider region have been the ancestral homeland of Assyrian Chaldean Syriac Christians, Yazidis, Shabak, and other religious and eth- nic minorities, where they lived for centuries until the Is- lamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) overran and occu- pied the area in 2014; Whereas, in 2016, then-Secretary of State John Kerry an- nounced, ‘‘In my judgment Daesh is responsible for geno- cide against groups in areas under its control, including Yezidis, Christians, and Shia Muslims. Daesh is geno- cidal by self-proclamation, by ideology, and by actions— VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:00 Mar 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR259.IH HR259 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 259 IH in what it says, what it believes, and what it does. Daesh is also responsible for crimes against humanity and eth- nic cleansing directed at these same groups and in some cases also against Sunni Muslims, Kurds, and other mi- norities.’’; Whereas these atrocities were undertaken with the specific in- tent to bring about the eradication and displacement of Christians, Yazidis, and other communities and the de- struction of their cultural heritage, in violation of the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Pun- ishment of the Crime of Genocide; Whereas, in 2016, the House of Representatives passed H. Con. Res. 75 expressing the sense of the House of Rep- resentatives that the atrocities perpetrated by ISIS against religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq and Syria include war crimes, crimes against humanity, and geno- cide; Whereas it is consistent with the commitments of Iraq, the Kurdish Regional Government, the United States, and the international community to guarantee the restoration of fundamental human rights, including property rights, to genocide victims, and to see that ethnic and religious pluralism survives in Iraq; Whereas President Trump issued orders to defeat ISIS, and with the joint efforts of the United States and 79 allies and partners, ISIS has been edged out of large swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria that it once controlled; Whereas, in July 2018, under the direction of Vice President Pence, the Genocide Recovery and Persecution Response Program has partnered the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development with VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:00 Mar 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR259.IH HR259 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 259 IH local faith and community leaders to rapidly deliver aid to persecuted communities, beginning with Iraq; Whereas Christians in Iraq once numbered over 1.5 million in 2003 and have dwindled to less than 200,000 today; Whereas armed militia groups linked to Iran and operating in Sinjar and the Nineveh Plains are increasing the in- stability and insecurity of northern Iraq, preventing the conditions for local and indigenous minorities to return to their homelands; Whereas Iraqi religious minorities have faced challenges in integrating into the Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga; and Whereas facilitating the success of communities in Sinjar and the Nineveh Plains requires a commitment from inter- national, Iraqi, Kurdish, and local authorities, in partner- ship with local faith leaders, to promote the safety and security of all people, especially religious and ethnic mi- norities: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep- 1 resentatives that— 2 (1) it should be a policy priority of the United 3 States, working with international partners, the Gov- 4 ernment of Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Govern- 5 ment, and local populations, to support the safe re- 6 turn of displaced indigenous people of the Nineveh 7 Plain and Sinjar to their ancestral homeland; 8 (2) Iraqi Security Forces and the Kurdish 9 Peshmerga should work to more fully integrate all 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:00 Mar 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR259.IH HR259 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 259 IH communities, including religious minority commu- 1 nities to counter current and future terrorist threats; 2 and 3 (3) the United States, working with inter- 4 national allies and partners, should coordinate ef- 5 forts to provide for the safe return and future secu- 6 rity of religious minorities in the Nineveh Plain and 7 Sinjar. 8 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:00 Mar 28, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR259.IH HR259 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS