Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/WASHINGTON: United States House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a resolution on Wednesday, expressing solidarity with citizens in Iran who have been risking imprisonment and even deaths to protest against the country’s ruling elite.
According to Arab News, the 420-1 vote marked the latest round of global condemnation against Iran, which has launched a brutal crackdown on its citizens since the custodial death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September.
Republic Thomas Massie of R-Kentucky was the lone no-vote.
Republican Claudia Tenney of R-New York said, “It is vital that we in the US House of Representatives, the body that is among the greatest symbols of democracy and freedom around the world, stand with one voice to affirm our support for the brave Iranian people,”.
US resolution
The resolution was first introduced in the previous Congress by several Republican and Democratic lawmakers and was revived earlier this month, reflecting a rare point of consensus for the increasingly divided Congress.
Its passage came days after Europe, the US, and the United Kingdom imposed fresh sanctions on dozens of Iranian officials and organisations, including the country’s special forces and police, for their violent clampdown on protesters.
Iranian activists say at least 16 citizens have been sentenced to death in closed-door hearings over charges linked to the protests. Death sentences in Iran are typically carried out by hanging.
