A concurrent resolution encouraging the Government of Iran to allow Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd to reunite with their families in the United States as soon as possible.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 45) encouraging the Government of Iran to allow Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd to reunite with their families in the United States as soon as possible.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on the resolution under consideration.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of S. Con. Res. 45, a resolution encouraging the Government of Iran to allow the American prisoners Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd to reunite with their families in the United States as soon as possible.

On July 31, 2009, these three American hikers were taken into custody by Iranian officials near northern Iraq. They were seized because the Iranians said they had crossed into Iranian territory while on a hike in a rural region near the Iraq-Iran border.

The three hikers certainly had no malicious or devious intentions. The area they were hiking through, part of Iraqi Kurdistan, is mountainous but not obscure. In fact, it is becoming increasingly popular with tourists. If the three Americans did, indeed, cross into Iranian territory, they almost certainly did so unknowingly and unintentionally.

At the time of her capture, 31-year old Sarah Shourd was teaching English in Damascus, Syria, where she was living with her boyfriend, Shane Bauer--a writer and photojournalist. Their friend and fellow University of California--Berkeley alumnus, Joshua Fattal, was traveling with them in Iraqi Kurdistan. Their adventure in Iraq turned into a nightmare when they were seized by the Iranians.

This important resolution calls on the Government of Iran to provide these three innocent, young Americans, at a minimum, the opportunity to speak with their families by phone. It also encourages the Government of Iran to free them so they can be reunited with their families in the United States as soon as possible.

Of course, Joshua, Shane and Sarah are not the only Americans currently being held in Iran. The Iranian-American scholar, Kian Tajbakhsh--an urban planner with a doctorate from Columbia University-- was arrested in July, and was sentenced last week to 15-years' imprisonment for his involvement in the peaceful demonstrations that followed the July 12 election fraud.

Another Iranian-American, 71-year old Reza Taghavi, has been imprisoned since May 2008 without a trial or formal charges.

In April, this body passed House Concurrent Resolution 36, regarding the case of the former FBI agent, Robert Levinson, who has been missing in Iran since 2007.

As the United States and the international community engage Iran on its nuclear weapons program, we must not forget the plight of these innocent Americans. I commend Undersecretary of State William Burns for raising this issue with his Iranian counterpart at the October 1 Geneva meeting. I encourage him to continue to do so at all subsequent meetings with Iranian officials until our fellow citizens are freed.

A New York Times editorial this past Saturday said it well, entitled ``More Iranian Injustice.'' The editorial called for the immediate release of the imprisoned Americans, and it went on to read, ``Iran may sit at the negotiating table with the United States and other world powers, but it will never earn the respect it craves if it continues these kinds of human rights abuses.''

I commend Senator Arlen Specter for introducing this timely resolution

in the Senate, and I commend our colleague from Pennsylvania, Allyson Schwartz. This deserves our deep appreciation for their leadership on this issue.

Madam Speaker, we care passionately about the freedom of our fellow citizens, and it is in that spirit that I urge all of my colleagues to support this important resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Schwartz).

Madam Speaker, I am pleased now to yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee).

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I thank him also for carrying this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I am in strong support of Senate Concurrent Resolution 45, which encourages the Government of Iran to allow the three American citizens detained in Iran to reunite with their families as soon as possible.

Since July 2009--I think it was July 31--Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd have been detained by the Government of Iran after inadvertently, inadvertently, crossing the unmarked border with Iran while attempting to hike in the mountains in Iraqi Kurdistan. Now, Sarah is a constituent, but Joshua and Shane, they are all graduates of the University of California in Berkeley, which is located in my district.

I have had the opportunity to talk with family members of Sarah, and I know how difficult it is for them during these trying times and I know how they are doing everything they can do to seek their release.

Reports indicate that for 3 months, the families of these young American citizens have had no contact with the detained, whether in person or by telephone. The lack of information regarding the whereabouts and welfare of their loved ones, as well as any indication of a timeline for their release, is deeply troubling.

Under article 36 of the Vienna Convention, consular officers shall be provided access to an arrested, detained, or imprisoned national without delay. I was relieved to hear that on September 30, 2009, Swiss officials were finally granted consular access to the three detained American citizens. However, like my colleagues, like all of us, we are deeply concerned that these officials and the three lack freedom of communication, which is also provided for by the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

This resolution importantly calls upon the Government of Iran to allow for Joshua, Shane, and Sarah to communicate by telephone with their families in the United States, who continue to passionately appeal to the Government of Iran for their timely and safe release. On September 22, President Ahmadinejad stated his intent to ask the Iranian judiciary to ``expedite the process'' of this case, as well as to ``look at the case with maximum leniency.''

In accordance with this resolution, I hope that the Government of Iran will live up to its promise and act without delay to ensure that these young American citizens may be reunited with their families and loved ones.

I stand in support of this resolution today. I want to thank the State Department and all of our colleagues for doing so much to try to gain the release of these three young individuals as soon as possible.

I thank my colleagues for their support of this resolution.

I appreciate the opportunity to speak on this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of three young American citizens who have been detained by the Government of Iran for nearly 3 months now.

On July 31, 2009, Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd were taken into custody after purportedly crossing into the Iranian territory while hiking in Iraqi Kurdistan. It is a peaceful region of northern Iraq which has become increasingly popular as a hiking destination for many Westerners. During the hike, it seems they accidentally crossed over an unmarked border into Iran.

As a result, these three young Americans, all graduates of the University of California-Berkley, have since been detained in Iran. While Swiss diplomats were finally permitted access to Josh, Sarah and Shane on September 29, the three have still not been allowed to have any contact with their families.

In response to this action, I have sponsored in the House--and Senator Arlen Specter has spearheaded in the Senate--Senate Concurrent Resolution 45, which encourages the Government of Iran to allow Josh, Shane and Sarah to communicate by telephone with their families in the United States. More importantly, it also encourages the Government of Iran to allow them to reunite with their families here in the United States as soon as possible.

This resolution was unanimously passed by the Senate on October 6.

Josh, whose family is from Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, which I represent; Sarah; and Shane did not commit any malicious acts. They were three young Americans who have traveled extensively throughout the world seeking to learn about different societies and different cultures. Unfortunately, they made a single mistake: They got lost. For that they have been held for nearly 3 months with almost no contact with the outside world.

As a mother, I can well imagine the pain and frustration the families of the three young adults feel as they wait, hoping, doing all that they can but with little power to compel action by Iran to free their children. I know, especially through my conversations with Mrs. Fattal, how important this resolution is to them and their families.

I urge the Government of Iran to reunite Josh, Sarah, and Shane with their families, and I ask my colleagues to support this concurrent resolution and the strong but compassionate plea for action that it contains.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, on July 31 of this year, the Iranian regime detained three U.S. citizens--Joshua Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd--who were hiking in northern Iraq and who allegedly strayed across the border by accident. Almost 3 full months later, Iran still holds them captive. This case should alert us once again to the true nature of the Iranian regime.

Almost 30 years ago, on November 4, 1979, this regime took 53 American hostages at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, and it held them for 444 days. Three decades later, this is a regime that continues to hold American citizens hostage. This is a regime that remains the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world--from Beirut to Buenos Aires. This is a regime that continues to support Iraqi and Afghan violent Islamist groups, which are responsible for the deaths of Americans. This is a regime that openly seeks to wipe out our ally, the democratic, Jewish State of Israel, off the map, and it acts accordingly. This is a regime that continues to relentlessly pursue unconventional weapons and the missiles to carry them.

Using conventional means, Iran has inflicted considerable damage on U.S. citizens, on our interests and on our allies during its 30-year war against America.

I strongly support Senate Concurrent Resolution 45, which draws attention to the fact that Iran continues to hold U.S. citizens hostage. The regime must release these young Americans immediately and unconditionally, and the United States and other responsible nations must fully recognize the nature of the regime, and they need to apply every form of economic and political pressure in our arsenal--now, not later--to compel the regime to abandon its dangerous course.

Madam Speaker, with that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Con. Res. 45, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the concurrent resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating to the concurrent resolution be printed in the Record.