LC 46 0877S
The House Committee on Rules offers the following substitute to HR 1066:
A RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the Iranian people's desire for a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear1
Republic of Iran and condemning violations of human rights and state sponsored terrorism2
by the Iranian government; and for other purposes.3
WHEREAS, beginning in 2017 and continuing for several months after protests erupted in4
more than 100 cities, the Iranian regime suppressed such protests with repressive forces that5
resulted in at least 25 deaths and 4,000 arrests, including decorated wrestling champion6
Navid Afkari, who was later executed in September 2020 amidst international outrage; and7
WHEREAS, on November 15, 2019, popular protests against the Iranian regime began and8
spread rapidly to at least 100 cities throughout the country, and reports indicate that Iranian9
security forces used lethal force; about 1,500 people were killed during less than two weeks10
of unrest, and thousands more were detained during these protests; and11
WHEREAS, beginning in September 2022, anti-government protests ignited in response to12
the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22 year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who was arrested by the13
morality police that enforce Iran's mandatory dress code laws; and14
WHEREAS, women and youth have led the 2022 protests in Iran, demanding social freedom15
and political change; and16
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WHEREAS, these protests are rooted in the more than four decades of organized resistance17
against the Iranian dictatorship, which most recently have been led by women who have18
endured torture, sexual and gender based violence, and death; and19
WHEREAS, in several months of continuing protests in hundreds of cities throughout Iran,20
the regime's security forces have killed hundreds and arrested tens of thousands of protesters,21
two of whom, Mohsen Shekari and Majidreza Rahnavard (both 23 years old), were hung on22
December 8 and 12, 2022, in Tehran and Mashhad, while dozens more have been convicted23
of "Moharebeh" (waging war on God) and are at risk of execution; and24
WHEREAS, according to a December 9, 2022, Amnesty International report, "Iran's security25
forces have killed with absolute impunity more than 40 children and injured many more in26
a bid to crush the spirit of resistance among the country's youth and retain their iron grip on27
power at any cost"; and28
WHEREAS, the similarity in slogans and tactics used by protests nationwide reflect the29
overarching demands of the Iranian people and point to the organized, unified national nature30
of the protests; and31
WHEREAS, in the 118th Congress, the House of Representatives passed House Concurrent32
Resolution 7, "Condemning the Iranian regime's human rights abuses against the brave33
women and men of Iran peacefully demonstrating in more than 133 cities"; and34
WHEREAS, House Concurrent Resolution 7 urges the administration to support the people35
of Iran and calls on the international community to publicly condemn violence by the Iranian36
regime against peaceful protestors, to speak out against violations by the regime of37
fundamental human rights, including freedom of expression, assembly and redress of38
grievances of the Iranian people; and39
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WHEREAS, on November 24, 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Council established40
a fact-finding mission to conduct an independent investigation into the ongoing deadly41
violence related to the protests in Iran that began on September 16, 2022; and42
WHEREAS, on December 14, 2022, the United Nations Economic and Social Council43
(ECOSOC) adopted a resolution to expel Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women44
(CSW) for the remainder of its four-year term ending in 2026; and45
WHEREAS, the Department of State's 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices,46
released on April 13, 2022, cites that Iran's "government and its agents reportedly committed47
arbitrary or unlawful killings, most commonly executions for crimes not meeting the48
international legal standard of 'most serious crimes' or for crimes committed by juvenile49
offenders, as well as executions after trials without due process"; and50
WHEREAS, on October 25, 2021, the United Nations Special Rapporteur (UNSR) on the51
situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran Javaid Rehman told the United52
Nations General Assembly that almost all executions in the country constituted an arbitrary53
deprivation of life, noting the "extensive, vague, and arbitrary grounds in Iran for imposing54
the death sentence, which quickly can turn this punishment into a political tool"; and55
WHEREAS, the Iranian regime has arbitrarily and brutally suppressed ethnic and religious56
minorities, including Iranian Kurds, Baluchis, Arabs, Christians, Jews, Baha'is, Zoroastrians,57
and even Sunni Muslims; deprived them of their basic human rights; and has in many cases58
executed them; and59
WHEREAS, the Iranian people have been deprived of their fundamental freedoms, for which60
reason they are rejecting dictatorship and religious tyranny, as evident in their protest61
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slogans, which include, "Down with Khamenei!", "My life for Iran!", "We will fight, we will62
die, we will reclaim Iran!"; and63
WHEREAS, senior Iranian government, military, judicial, and security officials have for64
decades ordered or committed egregious human rights violations and acts of terror; and65
WHEREAS, during the 2022 protests in Iran, tens of thousands of Americans gathered66
throughout the United States to call for the end of the Iranian regime and show solidarity67
with the protestors risking their lives to reclaim their country and establish freedom, human68
rights, and democracy in Iran; and69
WHEREAS, according to a November 4, 2023, National Union for Democracy in Iran report,70
the regime in Iran has taken over 30 dual-national hostages since the beginning of 2018; and71
WHEREAS, the Islamic Republic's malign activities in the Middle East and around the world72
pose a threat to United States' national security interests and those of our allies including73
Israel; and74
WHEREAS, on November 23, 2022, the Department of the Treasury announced additional75
action on Iranian security forces, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)76
forces, for their violent crackdown on anti-government protests throughout Iran; and77
WHEREAS, on October 28, 2023, a statue devoted to Cyrus the Great, the first king of the78
Achaemenid Persian Empire, was unveiled at the Millennium Gate in Atlanta, Georgia,79
commemorating his respect for human rights and signifying the strong ties between the80
people of Georgia and the people of Iran; and81
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WHEREAS, in the 115th Congress, the House of Representatives passed House82
Resolution 4744, which called on the United States to "condemn Iranian human rights abuses83
against dissidents, including the massacre in 1988 and the suppression of political84
demonstrations in 1999, 2009, and 2017, and pressure the Government of Iran to provide85
family members detailed information that they were denied about the final resting places of86
any missing victims of such abuses"; and87
WHEREAS, on January 13, 2022, a United Nations report urged "the international88
community to call for accountability with respect to long-standing emblematic events that89
have been met with persistent impunity, including the enforced disappearances and summary90
and arbitrary executions of 1988 and the November 2019 protests"; and91
WHEREAS, the killings of thousands of political prisoners in 1988 were carried out based92
on a fatwa to execute all political prisoners who remained loyal to the Iranian Resistance, and93
subsequent death commissions were formed on July 19, 1988, whose members included the94
current Iranian regime's President, Ebrahim Raisi; an official from the Ministry of95
Intelligence; and a state prosecutor, to implement the fatwa; and96
WHEREAS, the United States should be involved in any establishment of an international97
investigation into extrajudicial killings of Iranian dissidents; and98
WHEREAS, senior Iranian government, military, judicial, and security officials have for99
decades ordered or committed egregious human rights violations and acts of terror; and100
WHEREAS, on June 30, 2018, tens of thousands of people gathered in Paris at the Free Iran101
gathering where they supported advocates for a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear102
Republic of Iran and calls for the universal right to vote, free elections, and a market103
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economy and advocates for gender, religious, and ethnic equality, as well as a foreign policy104
based on peaceful coexistence and a non-nuclear Iran; and105
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2018, the Belgian Federal Prosecutor's Office announced it had foiled106
a terrorist plot against the "Free Iran 2018–the Alternative" gathering held on June 30, 2018,107
in support of the Iranian people's struggle for freedom; and108
WHEREAS, Assadollah Assadi, a senior Iranian diplomat based in the Iranian embassy in109
Vienna, Austria, was arrested in Germany and in February 2021 was convicted in Belgium110
and sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment in connection with the planned terror plot in Paris111
at the Free Iran gathering; and112
WHEREAS, Assadollah Assadi served as the third secretary of the Iranian embassy in113
Austria; and114
WHEREAS, instead of representing the interests of the Iranian people, the Iranian regime115
has long used its Foreign Ministry and diplomatic representations abroad to orchestrate terror116
plots and whitewash gross human rights violations in Iran; and117
WHEREAS, on December 15, 2022, the Special Court for Combatting Corruption and118
Organized Crime (SPAK) in Albania sentenced an Iranian national to ten years in prison on119
terrorism related charges, including attempts to engage in espionage and the assassination120
of Iranian dissidents in Albania; and121
WHEREAS, Iran's malign activities in the Balkans pose a serious threat to United States'122
national security interests; and123
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WHEREAS, on November 23, 2022, the Department of the Treasury announced additional124
action on Iranian security forces, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)125
forces, for their violent crackdown on antigovernment protests in Iran's Kurdistan Province126
and surrounding areas; and127
WHEREAS, according to the statement issued by the Department of State on128
November 23, 2022, "The United States continues to support the Iranian people as they129
protest nationwide."; and130
WHEREAS, the House of Representatives recognizes Iran as the number one state sponsor131
of terrorism worldwide and furthermore condemns any actions to allow the Iranian regime132
to facilitate nuclear or other terroristic plots; and133
WHEREAS, Qasem Soleimani was the world's most prolific terrorist, personally culpable134
for the deaths of over 600 Americans and the maiming of thousands more, including the135
torture and killing of tens of thousands of people across the Middle East; and136
WHEREAS, Qasem Soleimani was personally sanctioned by the United Nations and the137
European Union and was designated a terrorist by the United States of America; and138
WHEREAS, Qasem Soleimani trained terrorist armies throughout the region, breeding death139
and chaos in Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, as well as in many other140
nations; and141
WHEREAS, Qasem Soleimani "was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats142
and service members in Iraq and throughout the region," according to the United States143
Department of Defense; and144
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WHEREAS, the strength and decisive action taken by former President Donald J. Trump in145
eliminating Qasem Soleimani was a monumental achievement in the War on Terror, sending146
a clear message that the United States of America will not allow her citizens to be attacked147
by terrorists without retaliation; and148
WHEREAS, the Iranian regime recently engaged in a terror plot in Jordan that killed three149
American soldiers who were from Waycross, Savannah, and Carrollton, Georgia.150
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that151
the members of this body condemn past and present Iranian state sponsored terrorist attacks152
against United States citizens and officials as well as Iranian dissidents, including the Iranian153
regime's terror plot against the "Free Iran 2018–the Alternative" gathering in Paris.154
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body call on relevant United States155
government agencies to work with European allies, including those in the Balkans where Iran156
has expanded its presence, to hold Iran accountable for breaching diplomatic privileges as157
well as on nations to prevent the malign activities of the Iranian regime's diplomatic missions158
with the goal of closing them down and expelling its agents.159
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body stand with the people of Iran160
who are legitimately defending their rights for freedom against repression as well as161
condemn the brutal killing of Iranian protestors by the regime.162
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body recognize the rights of the163
Iranian people and their struggle to establish a democratic, secular, and non-nuclear Republic164
of Iran.165
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized166
and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the167
public and the press.168
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