House Unanimously Votes to Declare That Islamic State Is Committing Genocide Against Christians

The House voted Monday to pass a resolution that declared the Islamic State to be committing genocide against Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East.

“What is happening in Iraq and Syria is a deliberate, systematic targeting of religious and ethnic minorities," Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) said in a statement. "Today, the House unanimously voted to call ISIS's atrocities what they are: a genocide. We also will continue to offer our prayers for the persecuted.”

[sharequote align="right"]“What is happening in Iraq and Syria is a deliberate, systematic targeting of religious and ethnic minorities."[/sharequote]

The resolution passed 383-0.

The vote came ahead of a Thursday deadline set by Congress for the Obama administration to determine if the Islamic State's actions amount to genocide.

Last week, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told TheBlaze that President Barack Obama has aggressively defended Christians and that won't change regardless of if the State Department calls the targeting genocide.

“This is something the State Department is continuing to look at but certainly has not in anyway delayed the administration taking aggressive action to protect religious minorities that are being targeted by ISIL, including Christians that we know are being targeted by ISIL in that region of the world,” Earnest said.

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