H. Res. 683 
In the House of Representatives, U. S., 
August 1, 2014. 
Whereas Iraq is currently embroiled in a political and reli-
gious insurrection stemming from an Islamic State in 
Iraq and Levant (ISIL)-led offensive that began in the 
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 ISIL is a transnational Sunni insurgency whose ide-
ological and organizational roots lie in both al Qaeda in 
Iraq and the Syria-based Jabhat al Nursa and has a 
stated mission of establishing an Islamic state and a ca-
liphate across the Levant through violence against Shi-
ites, non-Muslims, and unsupportive Sunnis; 
Whereas Iraq’s population is approximately 31,300,000 with 
97 percent identifying themselves as Muslim and the ap-
proximately 3 percent of religious minorities groups com-
prising of Christians, Yezidis, Sabean-Mandaeans, Ba-
hais, Shabaks, Kakais, and Jews; 
Whereas the Iraqi Christian population is estimated to be be-
tween 400,000 and 850,000 with two-thirds being 
Chaldean, one-fifth Assyrian, and the remainder con-
sisting of Syriacs, Protestants, Armenians, and Angli-
cans;
•HRES 683 EH 
Whereas the Iraqi constitution provides for religious freedom 
by stating— 
(1) ‘‘no law may be enacted that contradicts the 
principles of democracy’’; 
(2) ‘‘no law may be enacted that contradicts the 
rights and basic freedoms stipulated in this Constitu-
tion’’; and 
(3) ‘‘[This Constitution] guarantees the full religious 
rights to freedom of religious belief and practice of all in-
dividuals such as Christians, Yazidis, and Mandean 
Sabeans’’; 
Whereas over 500,000 people have been displaced by the cur-
rent situation in Iraq and reports have surfaced of tar-
geted harassment, persecution, and killings of Iraqi reli-
gious minorities by ISIL with little to no protection from 
the Iraqi Government 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 the city; 
Whereas over 50 percent of Iraq’s Christian population has 
fled since the fall of Saddam Hussein, 1,100,000 people 
of diverse religious backgrounds remain internally dis-
placed and the government under Prime Minister Nouri 
al-Maliki has not upheld its commitment to protect the 
rights of religious minorities; 
Whereas the United Nations High Commissioner for Refu-
gees reports as of January 2014 a total population of 
concern in Iraq numbering 1,522,855 people, including 
refugees and internally displaced persons, many of whom 
face grave deprivation and imminent threats to life, 
health, and safety;
•HRES 683 EH 
Whereas the United States has provided over $73,000,000 of 
cumulative assistance to Iraq’s minority populations since 
2003 through economic development, humanitarian serv-
ices, 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, par-
ticularly in Michigan, California, Arizona, Illinois, and 
Ohio; and 
Whereas President Barack Obama recently declared on Reli-
gious Freedom Day, ‘‘Foremost among the rights Ameri-
cans 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 free-
dom is an essential part of human dignity, and without 
it our world cannot know lasting peace’’: Now, therefore, 
be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) deplores and condemns the religious bigotry, 
vandalism and destruction of property, and violent at-
tacks on and intimidation of innocent Iraqi civilians by 
armed extremists; 
(2) calls on the United States Department of State 
to work with the Kurdistan Regional Government, the 
Iraqi central government, neighboring countries, the di-
aspora community in the United States, the United Na-
tions High Commissioner for Refugees, and other key
•HRES 683 EH 
stakeholders to help secure safe havens for those claim-
ing amnesty in Iraq; 
(3) calls on the United States Permanent Rep-
resentative to the United Nations to work with the 
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on a 
sustained basis to document human rights abuses 
against Iraqi civilians and develop an immediate plan to 
facilitate safe humanitarian access to potable water, 
health care, fuel, electricity, and basic security for the 
most vulnerable civilian populations; 
(4) calls upon the Government of Iraq to take im-
mediate steps to protect the safety and constitutional 
rights of all Iraqi citizens; 
(5) respectfully requests the addition of a Special 
Representative for Religious Minorities to be included in 
the newly reconstructed government of Iraq; and 
(6) reaffirms its commitments to promoting and 
protecting religious freedom around the world and pro-
viding relief to minority groups facing persecution. 
Attest: 
Clerk.