,h4 ,,res4 #eed  ,in the ,house of      
,representatives1 ,u4 ,s41  ,november   
#bj1 #bjbd  ,,resolution  ,whereas      
national1 ethnic1 religious1 and        
linguistic minorities and indigenous    
peoples1 including ,yezidis1 ,turkmen1  
,shabak1 ,sabaean-,mandeans1 ,kaka'i1   
and indigenous ,christians 7including   
,chaldean1 ,syriac1 ,assyrian1          
,armenian1 and ,melkite communities71   
among others1 have been an integral part
 of the cultural fabric and history of  
,iraq and the broader ,middle ,east2    
,whereas these same religious and ethnic
 minorities have made and continue to   
make invaluable contributions to the    
prosperity and well-being of societies  
across the ,middle ,east and the world1 
including in the ,united ,states2       
,whereas1 according to the #bjag ,report
 on ,international ,religious ,freedom1 
the ,islamic ,state of ,iraq and ,syria 
7,,isis7 is responsible for carrying out
 a campaign of violence against members 
of all faiths1 in particular            

non-,sunnis2 ,whereas ethnic and        
religious minorities were subjected to  
innumerable atrocities by ,,isis1       
including forced religious conversion1  
kidnapping1 slavery1 human trafficking1 
unlawful forced displacement1 ethnic    
cleansing1 torture1 sexual violence1 and
 sex trafficking1 among other crimes2   
,whereas the ,secretary of ,state       
declared on ,march #ag1 #bjaf1 and on   
,august #ae1 #bjag1 that ,,isis is      
responsible for genocide1 crimes against
 humanity1 and other atrocities against 
religious and ethnic minority groups in 
,iraq and ,syria1 including ,shia       
,muslims1 ,christians1 and ,yezidis1    
among other religious and ethnic groups2
 ,whereas the ,iraq and ,syria ,genocide
 ,relief and ,accountability ,act of    
#bjah 7,public ,law #aae-cjj7 affirms   
that it is the policy of the ,united    
,states to ensure that assistance for   
religious and ethnic minorities is      
directed towards those most in need1    
including those that the ,secretary of  

,state declared were targeted for       
genocide1 crimes against humanity1 or   
war crimes1 and have been identified as 
being at risk of persecution1 forced    
migration1 genocide1 crimes against     
humanity1 or war crimes2 ,whereas       
members of these religious and ethnic   
minority communities continue to face   
daily insecurity1 discrimination1 and   
hardship2 ,whereas religious and ethnic 
minorities continue to face significant 
challenges to returning to their        
ancestral homelands1 including in       
,mosul1 ,baaj1 ,sinjar1 the ,nineveh    
,plain1 and other ,yezidi places1 due to
 security concerns1 economic hardship1  
and shifting demographics2 and ,whereas 
the restoration and stabilization of    
these regions will provide an           
opportunity for diverse ethnic and      
religious communities to flourish3 ,now1
 therefore1 be it ,that the ,house of   
,representatives--  7#a7 commits to     
protecting and upholding internationally
 recognized human rights of members of  

religious and ethnic minority           
communities2  7#b7 supports the         
restoration of security1 stability1 and 
economic opportunity of1 as well as the 
safe1 dignified1 and voluntary return   
of1 internally displaced persons1       
including those originally from the     
territories of ,mosul1 ,baaj1 ,sinjar1  
and the ,nineveh ,plain2  7#c7 supports 
the restoration of religious and        
cultural heritage sites in ,iraq1       
including1 churches1 and other religious
 sites1 and community buildings of      
religious and ethnic minority           
communities in these regions2 and  7#d7 
supports equal and inclusive            
representation for religious and ethnic 
minority groups in ,iraq in line with   
article #abe of the ,constitution of    
,iraq and encourages the ,secretary of  
,state to promote opportunities for     
affected minority groups to further that
 objective4  ,clerk4