,,iv  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #hbc  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of
 ,,representatives  ,january #cj1       
#bjbj,mr4 ,deutch 7for himself1 ,mr4    
,wilson of ,south ,carolina1 ,mr4       
,engel1 ,mr4 ,mc,caul1 ,ms4 ,schakowsky1
 ,mr4 ,smith of ,new ,jersey1 ,mr4      
,schneider1 ,mr4 ,chabot1 ,mr4 ,meeks1  
and ,mrs4 ,wagner7 submitted the        
following resolution2 which was referred
 to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs 
,,resolution  ,condemning the           
,government of ,iran's state-sponsored  
persecution of its ,baha'i minority and 
its continued violation of the          
,international ,covenants on ,human     
,rights4  ,whereas1 in #aihb1 #aihd1    
#aihh1 #aiij1 #aiib1 #aiic1 #aiid1      
#aiif1 #bjjj1 #bjjd1 #bjjf1 #bjjh1      
#bjji1 #bjab1 #bjac1 #bjae1 #bjaf1      
#bjag1 and #bjah1 ,congress declared    
that it deplored the religious          
persecution by the ,government of ,iran 
of the ,baha'i community and would hold 
the ,government of ,iran responsible for

 upholding the rights of all ,iranian   
nationals1 including members of the     
,baha'i faith2 ,whereas1 since #aigi1   
authorities have killed or executed more
 than #bjj ,baha'i leaders1 and more    
than #aj1jjj have been dismissed from   
government and university jobs2 ,whereas
 the ,report of the ,united ,nations    
,special ,rapporteur on the situation of
 human rights in the ,islamic ,republic 
of ,iran 7,a_/#gd_/ahh7 dated ,july #ah1
 #bjai1 provides1 in part-- 7#a7 the    
,iranian authorities and the ,iranian   
criminal justice system regard the      
,baha'is as unprotected infidels2 the   
,baha'i faith is also regarded as a     
misguided sect2 and ,baha'i worship and 
religious practices are deemed heresy42 
7#b7 ,baha'is have been murdered with   
impunity and violations of their human  
rights have not been investigated42     
7#c7 members of the ,baha'i faith       
frequently face charges1 such as1       
breaching national security1 propaganda 
against the holy regime of the ,islamic 

,republic of ,iran1 or propaganda       
activities against the regime in the    
interests of the ,baha'i sect2  7#d7    
,since ,august #bjje1 more than #a1afh  
,baha'is have been arrested and charged 
with vaguely worded offences42  7#e7    
,there were a total of #ie ,baha'is     
reportedly arrested in #bjah1 compared  
with at least #hd in #bjag and #ha in   
#bjaf42  7#f7 ,on #a ,january #bjai1 the
 court of appeal of ,isfahan reportedly 
condemned1 in separate judgments1 nine  
,baha'i citizens to a total of #dh years
 of prison4 ,they had been charged with 
membership of the illegal ,baha'i       
community and propaganda against the    
regime by spreading the ,baha'i faith in
 the society42  7#g7 directed by a #bjjg
 letter from the ,security ,unit of the 
,public ,place ,supervision ,office of  
the ,islamic ,republic of ,iran to      
police commanders throughout the        
country1 ,iranian authorities continue  
to apply economic pressure against the  
,baha'i community1 by banning them from 

specific professions and halting their  
entry to high earning businesses42 and  
7#h7 ,since #bjac1 there have been more 
than #hjc incidents of violations of    
economic rights of the ,baha'is1        
including arbitrary shop closures1      
unfair dismissals from employment and   
the actual or threatened revocation of  
business licenses42 ,whereas the        
,department of ,state's ,international  
,religious ,freedom ,report for #bjah1  
,iran section1 provides1 in part--  7#a7
 ,non-,shia ,muslims and those          
affiliated with a religion other than   
,islam1 especially members of the       
,baha'i community1 continued to face    
societal discrimination and harassment1 
and employers experienced social        
pressures not to hire ,baha'is or to    
dismiss them from their private sector  
jobs42 and  7#b7 ,the law bars ,baha'is 
from founding their own educational     
institutions4 ,a ,ministry of ,science1 
,research1 and ,technology order        
requires universities to exclude        

,baha'is from access to higher education
 or expel them if their religious       
affiliation becomes known42  ,whereas1  
on ,march #ac1 #bjai1 the ,department of
 ,state released the ,country ,reports  
on ,human ,rights ,practices for #bjah  
and1 in connection with ,iran1 the      
report provides1 in part-- 7#a7 ,iranian
 authorities barred ,baha'i students    
from higher education1 and in ,september
 #bjah1 denied enrollment to more than  
#ej ,baha'i college applicants because  
of their religious affiliation2 and     
7#b7 ,the country materially contributed
 to human rights abuses 4 4 4 in ,yemen1
 through its support for ,houthi rebels 
and directing authorities in            
,houthi-controlled areas of ,yemen to   
harass and detain ,baha'is because of   
their religious affiliation42 ,whereas  
the #bjai ,annual ,report of the ,united
 ,states ,commission on ,international  
,religious ,freedom provides1 in part-- 
7#a7 ,there are more than #cjj1jjj      
,baha'is in ,iran1 who together         

constitute the largest non-,muslim      
religious majority in the country42     
7#b7 ,shiraz city councilman ,mehdi     
,hajati was arrested on the order of the
 ,shiraz ,revolutionary ,court after    
criticizing the arrests of ,baha'is in  
his city42 and  7#c7 ,security forces   
also prevented the burial of two        
deceased ,baha'i individuals in a       
,baha'i cemetery in ,kerman after it was
 sealed in ,march #bjah4 ,in ,october1  
the body of a deceased ,baha'i woman was
 exhumed four days after her burial and 
abandoned in a desert area outside the  
town of ,jaban42 ,whereas the ,baha'i   
,international ,community has documented
 more than #bf1jjj items of anti-,baha'i
 hate propaganda in ,iran's official and
 semi official media since ,january     
#bjad2 ,whereas the ,government of ,iran
 is a party to the ,international       
,covenants on ,human ,rights and is in  
violation of its obligations under such 
covenants2 ,whereas section #aje of the 
,comprehensive ,iran ,sanctions1        

,accountability1 and ,divestment ,act of
 #bjaj 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #head7 authorizes 
the ,president to impose sanctions on   
individuals responsible for or complicit
 in1 or responsible for ordering1       
controlling1 or otherwise directing1 the
 commission of serious human rights     
abuses against citizens of ,iran or     
their family members on or after ,june  
#ab1 #bjji2 and ,whereas the ,iran      
,threat ,reduction and ,syria ,human    
,rights ,act of #bjab 7,public ,law     
#aab-aeh7 amends and expands the        
authorities established under the       
,comprehensive ,iran ,sanctions1        
,accountability1 and ,divestment ,act of
 #bjaj 7,public ,law #aaa-aie7 to       
sanction ,iranian human rights abusers3 
,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,house 
of ,representatives--  7#a7 condemns the
 ,government of ,iran's state-sponsored 
persecution of its ,baha'i minority and 
its continued violation of the          
,international ,covenants on ,human     
,rights2  7#b7 calls on the ,government 

of ,iran--  7,a7 to immediately release 
all imprisoned or detained ,baha'is1    
together with all other prisoners held  
solely on account of their religion2    
7,b7 to end its state-sponsored campaign
 of hate propaganda against the         
,baha'is2 and  7,c7 to reverse          
state-imposed policies denying equal    
opportunities to higher education1      
earning a livelihood1 due process under 
the law1 and the free exercise of       
religious practices2  7#c7 calls on the 
,president and the ,secretary of ,state1
 in cooperation with responsible        
nations1 to immediately condemn the     
,government of ,iran's continued        
violation of human rights and demand the
 immediate release of prisoners held    
solely on account of their religion2 and
  7#d7 urges the ,president and the     
,secretary of ,state to utilize         
available authorities to impose         
sanctions on officials of the           
,government of ,iran and other          
individuals directly responsible for    

serious human rights abuses1 including  
abuses against the ,baha'i community of 
,iran4