2014
Genocide Recognition for ISIS Victims
IDC built a successful coalition of Eastern and Western Christians to advocate with Congress and the White House for an official declaration of Genocide directed at ISIS for their crimes against Christians and Yazidis in Iraq and Syria. Congress and the White House both recognized this genocide in 2016.
[In 2014 IDC arranged a meeting between President Barack Obama and Middle Eastern Church leaders. This was the first gathering of its kind to occur.]
2017
Direct U.S. Aid to Christian Victims of ISIS’ Genocide
IDC worked with Vice President Mike Pence to secure over $315 million in humanitarian aid for Christians in Iraq and Syria. Projects are currently being implemented on the ground in the Nineveh Plains.
[Vice President Mike Pence announces the U.S. will provide direct aid to Christian and Yazidi victims of ISIS genocide at IDC’s annual summit in 2017.]
2018
Enacting New U.S. Law to Support Persecuted Middle Eastern Christians
IDC worked with Congressman Chris Smith and Congresswoman Ana Eshoo to pass the 2018 Iraq and Syria Genocide Relief and Accountability Act, which established a new U.S. policy to directly aid Middle Eastern Christians who have survived the ISIS Genocide.
[President Donald Trump signing the Iraq and Syria Genocide Relief Act into law in 2018.]
2019
The House of Representatives and the Senate Officially Recognize the Ottoman Empire Genocide Against its Christian Community
Shortly after, it was also recognized by the Senate.
IDC worked closely with the Armenian National Committee of America and Democratic and Republican Members of Congress to draft and pass Armenian Christian Genocide Recognition in the House of Representatives and the Senate. IDC is committed to ensuring recognition of this genocide, where over 3 million Christians were killed, every year in both the House and Senate. This includes Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, and Maronites.
[The House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted to recognize the Armenian Christian Genocide on October 29, 2019.]
2020
Senate passes S.R.682 to support Lebanon, the last haven for Christians in the Middle East
On August 4, 2020, Lebanon was rocked by an explosion at the Port of Beirut. The explosion took the lives of hundreds of people, displaced hundreds of thousands and caused billions in damages. In Defense of Christians worked with a number of Senators to ensure that S.R.682 was passed to support the last haven for Christians in the Middle East.
“This resolution expresses the Senate’s affirmation that U.S. assistance should be delivered directly to the Lebanese people following the recent explosion in Beirut. Further, it calls on Lebanon to conduct a transparent investigation into the cause of, and responsibility for, the explosion and to prioritize policies and programs that advance the interests of the Lebanese people.”
2021
President Joe Biden Recognizes the Armenian Genocide
IDC commends President Joe Biden for becoming the first U.S. president to recognize the Armenian Genocide, the systematic killing of 1.5 million Armenians between 1915 to 1923. This historic recognition is a positive first step toward rectifying a historic injustice committed against the Christian faithful at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.IDC also remembers the additional 1.9 million Greeks, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Arameans, and Maronites who were also killed for their Christian faith.
Read President Biden’s statement