[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 118 (Monday, July 15, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E917-E918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2020

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                               speech of

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 11, 2019

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2500) to 
     authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2020 for military 
     activities of the Department of Defense and for military 
     construction, to prescribe military personnel strengths for 
     such fiscal year, and for other purposes:

  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Chair, I rise in strong support of Amendment No. 47 to 
H.R. 2500, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2020, an amendment 
I offered with my good friend from Nebraska, Mr. Fortenberry.
  The Fortenberry-Eshoo amendment declares that the safe return of 
religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq to their ancestral homelands, 
and the restoration of fundamental human rights to these communities, 
remains a priority for the United States.
  Iraq is home to some of the oldest Christian communities in the 
world, yet less than 200,000 Christians remain in Iraq, down from 1.4 
million in 2002.
  Christians and other religious and ethnic minorities suffered 
horrific oppression and violence beginning with the U.S. invasion of 
Iraq in 2003 and again at the hands of ISIS beginning in 2014.
  In March 2016, Congress, under the leadership of Mr. Fortenberry and 
myself, declared this brutal and system persecution constituted 
genocide, one of only three times in history that Congress has made 
such a declaration.
  Despite efforts by Congress to help religious and ethnic minorities 
return to their homelands in Iraq, harassment and threats from armed 
militia groups continue to jeopardize their safety and long term 
security.
  Congress cannot stand by and watch as one of the oldest Christian 
communities in the world is wiped out. As the daughter of parents who 
fled religious persecution in the Middle East, this is personal to me.
  I'm pleased Amendment No. 147 was included in En Bloc 5 to H.R. 2500, 
which will help ensure Congress does not give up on these vulnerable 
populations who continue to face persecution and oppression in Iraq.

[[Page E918]]

  

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