[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 72 (Wednesday, April 30, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H1733]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS

  (Mr. Moore of West Virginia was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. MOORE of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to address a 
grave and urgent crisis, the rampant persecution of Christians in 
Africa and the Middle East.
  Across these regions, our brothers and sisters in faith experience 
violence, displacement, and death for their belief in our Lord Jesus 
Christ.
  No person or community should ever face such brutal conditions for 
acknowledging the name of Jesus.
  In Nigeria, the situation is dire. More Christians face persecution 
there than any other nation combined. Since the outbreak of Boko 
Haram's insurgency in 2009, more than 18,000 churches and 2,200 
Christian schools have been destroyed in northern Nigeria alone. More 
than 50,000 Christians have been killed, and more than 5 million have 
been displaced since 2009, making it the most dangerous country in the 
world for Christians.
  Earlier this month, 54 Christians were slaughtered after celebrating 
Palm Sunday. On Ash Wednesday this year, a priest in north central 
Nigeria was kidnapped and brutally murdered.
  This targeting of religious leaders is not a one-off occurrence. 
Thirteen priests and seminarians were kidnapped in 2024, and nearly 200 
priests and seminarians were kidnapped or killed in Nigeria in the last 
decade.
  In Syria, the Christian population has plummeted from 1.5 million in 
2011 to just 300,000 in 2022, driven by the horrors of the Syrian civil 
war and the rise of the Islamic State. Ancient churches have been razed 
and Christian artifacts destroyed, erasing a Christian heritage that 
dates back to the Apostle Paul.
  With the fall of the Assad regime, Christians are rightly afraid of 
continued violence against Christians as clashes continue in western 
Syria.
  In March, Islamic forces attacked churches, desecrated cemeteries, 
forced Christian women to adhere to Islamic dress codes, and 
confiscated the homes of Christians.
  Unfortunately, U.S. foreign policy blunders have exacerbated the 
crisis for Christians in the region, especially in Iraq. The 2003 U.S.-
led invasion of Iraq, intended to bring stability, unleashed chaos that 
empowered extremist groups like al-Qaida, and, later, ISIS. The number 
of Christians living in Iraq has plummeted from 1.2 million in 2011 to 
around 100,000 now.
  In 2014, ISIS overran Qaraqosh, forcing 100,000 Christians to flee as 
their homes were marked with the Arabic letter ``N'' for ``Nazarene.'' 
Churches were burned and families were torn apart, and the Christian 
mayor of Qaraqosh, a devoted leader working to rebuild his community, 
was recently removed from his post. This decision was driven by an 
Iranian-backed militia leader as a deliberate attempt to erase 
Christian influence in the region.
  The failure to stabilize Iraq post-invasion left Christians 
vulnerable to ethnoreligious cleansing, a tragedy that the 
international community has yet to fully address.
  Mr. Speaker, the United States cannot stand idly by. I urge my 
colleagues to join me in raising our voices for the persecuted, to 
honor their faith and bravery with action, and to ensure the United 
States is a beacon of hope for those suffering for their beliefs in 
Jesus Christ.
  I will introduce a resolution condemning the persecution of 
Christians, and I urge this body to take up that resolution and pass it 
overwhelmingly.

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