[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 317 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 317

  Calling for the unconditional release of United States citizens and 
 legal permanent resident aliens being held for political purposes by 
                        the Government of Iran.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 4, 2017

 Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Poe of Texas, and Mr. 
 Deutch) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Calling for the unconditional release of United States citizens and 
 legal permanent resident aliens being held for political purposes by 
                        the Government of Iran.

Whereas Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has taken as hostages Siamak 
        Namazi, Baquer Namazi, Karan Vafadari, and a fourth not publicly 
        identified United States citizen as well as United States legal 
        permanent residents Afarin Niasari and Nizar Zakka;
Whereas Siamak Namazi was detained on October 15, 2015, falsely accused and 
        convicted on October 18, 2016, for ``collaborating with a hostile 
        government'', and has been held for extended periods in solitary 
        confinement and under constant interrogation;
Whereas former UNICEF official Baquer Namazi, the 80-year old father of Siamak 
        Namazi and has a deteriorating health status, was detained on February 
        22, 2016, falsely accused and convicted to 10 years in prison for the 
        identical crime as his son;
Whereas former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Iranian 
        authorities to release Baquer Namazi to allow his family to care for 
        him;
Whereas UNICEF has issued four public statements on Baquer Namazi's behalf;
Whereas Karan Vafadari, a United States citizen, and his wife, Afarin Niasari, 
        an Iranian national and United States legal permanent resident alien, 
        were detained in late July 2016 and has been held without charge or 
        access to counsel;
Whereas a fourth United States citizen is detained in Iran though his family has 
        wished for him not to be publicly identified;
Whereas Robert Levinson, a United States citizen and retired agent of the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation, traveled to Kish Island, Iran, and 
        disappeared on March 9, 2007;
Whereas the United States Government had ``secured a commitment from the 
        Iranians . . . to try and gather information about Mr. Levinson's 
        possible whereabouts'' but has not received any information thus far;
Whereas Nizar Zakka, a United States legal permanent resident alien and Lebanese 
        national, who is also in a weakened physical state, was unlawfully 
        detained on September 18, 2015, in Iran after attending a women's Arab 
        Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) conference, at Iran's 
        invitation, and was later falsely charged of being a spy sentenced to 10 
        years at the Evin prison;
Whereas, on April 13, 2017, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned the 
        Tehran Prisons Organization and its former head, Sohrab Soleimani, and 
        White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer noted ``The sanctions against 
        human rights abusers in Iran's prisons come at a time when Iran 
        continues to unjustly detain in its prisons various foreigners, 
        including US citizens Siamak Namazi and Baquer Namazi'';
Whereas, on April 25, 2017, at the meeting of the Joint Commission overseeing 
        implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Department 
        of State reported that the United States delegation had ``raised with 
        the Iranian delegation its serious concerns regarding the cases of U.S. 
        citizens detained and missing in Iran, and called on Iran to immediately 
        release these U.S. citizens so they can be reunited with their 
        families'';
Whereas elements of the Iranian regime are reportedly using nationals and dual-
        nationals from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, 
        Germany, and other countries to exact political or financial 
        concessions; and
Whereas reports indicate that the Government of Iran is seeking additional 
        payments or other concessions, including relief from economic sanctions, 
        from the families of hostages and their governments as a condition of 
        release, a practice banned by the 1979 International Convention Against 
        the Taking of Hostages and other international legal norms: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) calls on the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran 
        to release unconditionally Siamak Namazi, Baquer Namazi, Karan 
        Vafadari, Afarin Niasari, Nizar Zakka, and any other United 
        States citizen, legal permanent resident alien, or foreign 
        national being held in Iran;
            (2) urges the President to make the release of United 
        States citizens and legal permanent resident aliens held 
        hostage by the Government of Iran the highest of priorities;
            (3) requests that the United States and its allies whose 
        nationals have been detained consider establishing a 
        multinational task force to secure the release of the 
        detainees;
            (4) urges the Government of Iran to take meaningful steps 
        towards fulfilling its repeated promises to assist in locating 
        and returning Robert Levinson, including immediately providing 
        all available information from all entities of the Government 
        of Iran regarding the disappearance of Robert Levinson to the 
        United States Government;
            (5) encourages the President to take meaningful action to 
        secure the release of Siamak Namazi, Baquer Namazi, Karan 
        Vafadari, Afarin Niasari, Nizar Zakka, and any other United 
        States citizen, legal permanent resident alien, or foreign 
        national being held in Iran if the Government of Iran does not 
        release such United States citizens, legal permanent resident 
        aliens, and foreign nationals; and
            (6) encourages the President to take meaningful action to 
        secure the return of Robert Levinson if the Government of Iran 
        does not locate and return him.
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