III 

Calendar No. 575 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 530 

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the current situation in Iraq and 

the urgent need to protect religious minorities from persecution from 

the Sunni Islamist insurgent and terrorist group the Islamic State, 

formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), 

as it expands its control over areas in northwestern Iraq. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 30, 2014 

Mr. PORTMAN (for himself, Mr. ALEXANDER, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BARRASSO, 

Mr. BLUNT, Mr. BOOZMAN, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. ENZI, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. HELLER, Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. 

JOHANNS, Mr. KIRK, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. LEE, Mr. 

LEVIN, Mr. MANCHIN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MCCAIN, Mr. MORAN, Mr. 

RISCH, Mr. JOHNSON of Wisconsin, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. SESSIONS, Mrs. 

SHAHEEN, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. THUNE, Mr. WICKER, Mr. HATCH, Mr. 

DURBIN, Mr. VITTER, Ms. AYOTTE, Mr. KAINE, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. COONS, 

Mr. ROBERTS, and Mr. BURR) submitted the following resolution; which 

was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014 

Reported by Mr. MENENDEZ, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble and an amendment to the title 

[Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic] 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the current situation 

in Iraq and the urgent need to protect religious minoriVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:29 Sep 19, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\SR530.RS SR530

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•SRES 530 RS 

ties from persecution from the Sunni Islamist insurgent 

and terrorist group the Islamic State, formerly known 

as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), 

as it expands its control over areas in northwestern Iraq. 

Whereas Iraq is currently embroiled in a surge of violence 

arising from an Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant 

(ISIL)-led offensive that began in Anbar province and 

has spread to key locations such as Mosul, Tikrit, and 

Samarra and continues to engulf the region in violence 

and instability; 

Whereas, on June 29, 2014, ISIL leader Abu Bakr alBaghdadi renamed the group the Islamic State and pronounced himself Caliph of a new Islamic Caliphate encompassing the areas under his control, and Mr. alBaghdadi has a stated mission of spreading the Islamic 

State and caliphate across the region through violence 

against Shiites, non-Muslims, and unsupportive Sunnis; 

Whereas Iraq’s population is approximately 31,300,000 people, with 97 percent identifying themselves as Muslim 

and the approximately 3 percent of religious minorities 

groups comprising of Christians, Yezidis, SabeanMandaeans, Bahais, Shabaks, Kakais, and Jews; 

Whereas the Iraqi Christian population is estimated to be between 400,000 and 850,000, with two-thirds being 

Chaldean, one-fifth Assyrian, and the remainder consisting of Syriacs, Protestants, Armenians, and Anglicans; 

Whereas the Iraqi constitution provides for religious freedom 

by stating that ‘‘no law may be enacted that contradicts 

the principles of democracy,’’ ‘‘no law may be enacted 

that contradicts the rights and basic freedoms stipulated 


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in this Constitution,’’ and ‘‘[this Constitution] guarantees 

the full religious rights to freedom of religious belief and 

practice of all individuals such as Christians, Yazidis, and 

Mandean Sabeans’’; 

Whereas over 1,000,000 people have been displaced by violence in Iraq, and reports have surfaced of targeted harassment, persecution, and killings of Iraqi religious minorities by the Islamic State with little to no protection 

from the Government of Iraq and other security forces; 

Whereas the fall of Mosul in particular has sparked enough 

anxiety among the Christian population that, for the first 

time in 1,600 years, there was no Mass in that city; 

Whereas over 50 percent of Iraq’s Christian population has 

fled since the fall of Saddam Hussein, and the government under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has not 

upheld its commitment to protect the rights of religious 

minorities; 

Whereas the United States Government has provided over 

$73,000,000 of cumulative assistance to Iraq’s minority 

populations since 2003 through economic development, 

humanitarian services, and capacity development; 

Whereas 84,902 Iraqis have resettled to the United States 

between 2007 and 2013 and over 300,000 Chaldean and 

Assyrians currently reside throughout the country, particularly in Michigan, California, Arizona, Illinois, and 

Ohio; and 

Whereas President Barack Obama recently declared on Religious Freedom Day, ‘‘Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose 

. . . we also remember that religious liberty is not just 

an American right; it is a universal human right to be 


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•SRES 530 RS 

protected here at home and across the globe. This freedom is an essential part of human dignity, and without 

it our world cannot know lasting peace’’: Now, therefore, 

be it 

Whereas Iraq is currently embroiled in a surge of violence arising from an ISIL-led offensive that began in Anbar province and has spread to key locations such as Mosul, Tikrit, 

and Samarra and continues to engulf the region in violence and instability; 

Whereas, on June 29, 2014, ISIL leader Abu Bakr alBaghdadi renamed the group the Islamic State and pronounced himself Caliph of a new Islamic caliphate encompassing the areas under his control, and Mr. al-Baghdadi 

has a stated mission of spreading the Islamic State and 

caliphate across the region through violence against Shiites, non-Muslims, and unsupportive Sunnis; 

Whereas Iraq’s population is approximately 31,300,000 people, 

with 97 percent identifying themselves as Muslim and the 

approximately 3 percent of religious minorities groups 

comprising of Christians, Yezidis, Sabean-Mandaeans, Bahais, Shabaks, Kakais, and Jews; 

Whereas the Iraqi Christian population is estimated to be between 400,000 and 850,000, with two-thirds being 

Chaldean, one-fifth Assyrian, and the remainder consisting 

of Syriacs, Protestants, Armenians, and Anglicans; 

Whereas the Iraqi constitution provides for religious freedom 

by stating that ‘‘no law may be enacted that contradicts 

the principles of democracy,’’ ‘‘no law may be enacted that 

contradicts the rights and basic freedoms stipulated in this 

Constitution,’’ and ‘‘[this Constitution] guarantees the full 

religious rights to freedom of religious belief and practice 


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•SRES 530 RS 

of all individuals such as Christians, Yazidis, and 

Mandean Sabeans’’; 

Whereas the fall of Mosul in particular has sparked enough 

anxiety among the Christian population that, for the first 

time in 1,600 years, there was no Mass in that city; 

Whereas over 50 percent of Iraq’s Christian population has fled 

since the fall of Saddam Hussein, and the government 

under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki did not uphold its 

commitment to protect the rights of religious minorities; 

Whereas the United States Government has provided over 

$73,000,000 of cumulative assistance to Iraq’s minority 

populations since 2003 through economic development, humanitarian services, and capacity development; 

Whereas 84,902 Iraqis have resettled to the United States between 2007 and 2013 and over 300,000 Chaldean and Assyrians currently reside throughout the country, particularly in Michigan, California, Arizona, Illinois, and Ohio; 

and 

Whereas President Barack Obama recently declared on Religious Freedom Day, ‘‘Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose 

. . . we also remember that religious liberty is not just an 

American right; it is a universal human right to be protected here at home and across the globe. This freedom is 

an essential part of human dignity, and without it our 

world cannot know lasting peace.’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) reaffirms its commitment to promoting and 

3 protecting religious freedom around the world and 


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1 providing relief to minority groups facing persecu2 tion; 

3 (2) calls on the Department of State to work 

4 with the Kurdistan Regional Government, the Gov5 ernment of Iraq, neighboring countries, the diaspora 

6 community in the United States, and other key 

7 stakeholders to help secure safe havens for those 

8 seeking safety and protection from religious persecu9 tion in Iraq; 

10 (3) respectfully requests the addition of a Spe11 cial Representative for Religious Minorities to be in12 cluded in Iraq’s government; and 

13 (4) urges the President to ensure the timely 

14 processing of visas for Iraq’s minority groups fleeing 

15 religious persecution, in accordance with existing 

16 United States immigration law and national security 

17 screening procedures. 

18 That the Senate— 

19 (1) reaffirms its commitment to promoting and 

20 to protecting religious freedom around the world; 

21 (2) calls on the Department of State to work 

22 with the Government of Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional 

23 Government, neighboring countries, the diaspora com24 munity in the United States, and other key stake25 holders to address the urgent plight of those Iraqi miVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:29 Sep 19, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\SR530.RS SR530

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1 nority groups seeking safety and protection from per2 secution in Iraq; 

3 (3) respectfully requests the Government of Iraq 

4 to prioritize the issue of protecting religious minori5 ties and take concrete action to enact and enforce 

6 laws protecting religious freedom; and 

7 (4) urges the President to ensure the timely proc8 essing of visas for Iraq’s minority groups fleeing reli9 gious persecution, in accordance with existing United 

10 States immigration law and national security screen11 ing procedures. 

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate on the current situation in 

Iraq and the urgent need to protect religious minorities 

from persecution from the terrorist group the Islamic 

State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).’’. 


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Calendar No. 575 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 530 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the current 

pands its control over areas in northwestern Iraq. State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as it exIslamic State, formerly known as the Islamic Sunni Islamist insurgent and terrorist group the religious minorities from persecution from the situation in Iraq and the urgent need to protect 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble and an amendment to the title 


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