Members of the Florida congressional delegation cheered the U.S. State Department for designating Islamic State (ISIS) terrorism as genocide.
U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., noted on Thursday that the State Department had only recognized genocide during a conflict once before: back in 2004 in Sudan.
“The administration made the right decision to recognize the magnitude of ISIS’s horrific acts,” Buchanan said. “ISIS is the face of evil and there is no room for equivocation. Their actions clearly constitute genocide.”
Buchanan pointed to ISIS actions against Christians in Iraq and Syria, noting that there are less than 300,000 in Iraq now while some estimates showed 2 million before the rise of that terrorist group.
On the other side of the aisle, U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, also praised the Obama administration for insisting ISIS was committing genocide.
"I applaud Secretary Kerry’s decision to designate the shocking and inhumane actions by ISIS against Christians, Yazidis, and Shia Muslims as genocide,” Deutch said. “Their ruthless tactics, from the massacres of innocent civilians based on their faith to the besiegement and starvation of entire religious communities to the destruction of cultural heritage sites, make clear that ISIS seeks to intentionally and systematically destroy these religious minorities."
Deutch noted the House passed a similar resolution without opposition on Monday declaring ISIS was committing genocide. The resolution from U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., had more than 210 co-sponsors including 12 from Florida: Republican U.S. Reps. Gus Bilirakis, Curt Clawson, Ander Crenshaw, Carlos Curbelo, Ron DeSantis, John Mica, Jeff Miller, Bill Posey, Tom Rooney, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Dan Webster and Ted Yoho.
"This designation mirrors the resolution we just passed through the House of Representatives, which stated that these atrocities qualify as crimes against humanity and genocide, and calls on other world leaders to do the same," Deutch said. "Going forward, our mission must be to completely destroy ISIS. Concern for human rights must guide our foreign policy, and I encourage the administration to respond resolutely and send a message to the world that genocidal acts will not go unpunished."
On Monday, U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., part of the House leadership as senior deputy majority whip, urged the Obama White House to declare ISIS was committing genocide and pointed to terrorist actions in the Middle East.
“This campaign includes mass murder, beheadings, crucifixions, rape, torture, enslavement, and the kidnapping of children, among many other unspeakable atrocities,” Ross said. “We must call this exactly what it is: genocide.
“The House of Representatives led the push to recognize genocide in Sudan and has recognized genocide in numerous other situations, and we will continue to do so in the name of justice and national security,” Ross added. “I strongly urge our president to step up as our Commander-in-Chief and declare ISIS's evil terrorist acts as genocide."
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
