IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 447 
Calling upon the President to use the United States’ voice and vote in 
the United Nations Security Council to condemn the ongoing sexual 
violence against women and children from Yezidi, Christian, Shabak, 
and other religious communities by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant 
militants as crimes against humanity, to prosecute all perpetrators and 
those complicit in these crimes, and to support other United Nations 
member states prosecuting these perpetrators and those complicit. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 29, 2015 
Mr. FRANKS of Arizona (for himself, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, 
Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Ms. ESHOO, and Mr. FORTEN-
BERRY) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the 
Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Calling upon the President to use the United States’ voice 
and vote in the United Nations Security Council to con-
demn the ongoing sexual violence against women and 
children from Yezidi, Christian, Shabak, and other reli-
gious communities by Islamic State of Iraq and the 
Levant militants as crimes against humanity, to pros-
ecute all perpetrators and those complicit in these crimes, 
and to support other United Nations member states 
prosecuting these perpetrators and those complicit. 
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•HRES 447 IH 
Whereas the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has 
publicly and systematically targeted communities on the 
basis of their religious identities, including Yezidis, Chris-
tians, Shi’a Muslims, Shabaks, Turkmens, and Kaka’i, in 
a campaign of violence that includes: summary execu-
tions, beheadings, torture, arbitrary detainment, forced 
displacement, rape and sexual violence, and enslavement; 
Whereas enslavement and sexual violence against women is a 
widespread practice among ISIL militants, who have, ac-
cording to the Yezidi Affairs Directory, captured and 
enslaved as many as 5,838 Yezidis, including as many as 
3,192 women, since August 2014; 
Whereas ISIL has established a formal slave trade in which 
women and girls as young as 5 years old are systemati-
cally abducted, transported, categorized according to 
physical traits and perceived value, and traded among 
ISIL militants or sold for as little as 50 cents; 
Whereas the Research and Fatwa Department of ISIL has 
issued guidelines and directions for the enslavement of 
women and children (from Yezidi, Christian, and other 
religious minority communities), and have justified their 
actions on the basis of religious teachings; 
Whereas the New York Times reported that ‘‘the Islamic 
State has developed a detailed bureaucracy of sex slavery, 
including sales contracts notarized by the ISIS-run Is-
lamic courts’’; 
Whereas according to various reports, including statements 
provided in congressional briefings by Khidher Domle, a 
Yezidi activist and Director of the Media Department at 
the University of Dohuk, the enslavement and sexual vio-
lence used against Yezidi women and children by ISIL 
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