Congresswoman Kelly Defense Amendment To Help Rescue Missing Nigerian Girls Passes House

 PRESS RELEASE

WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives today passed H.R. 4435, the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which included an amendment by Congresswoman Robin Kelly aimed at helping to rescue more than 200 schoolgirls who were kidnapped last month in Nigeria.

Kelly’s amendment requires the Departments of Defense and State to report to Congress on the status of the kidnapped girls as well as to provide background on the U.S. search and rescue effort in Nigeria. The amendment also requires that the two departments provide Congress with a threat assessment of the Boko Haram terrorist group and that they submit recommendations on how the U.S. and Nigerian governments can work together to rescue the kidnapped girls and help protect other girls from a similar fate.

“I, like so many across the world, was outraged at the kidnapping of those young schoolgirls who were exercising their right to get an education. Victimizing innocent children for perverse political purposes should not be tolerated anywhere in the world,” Kelly said. “By Congress having access to more detailed information about this terrorist group and their movements, we will be in a better position to end Boko Haram’s reign of terror.

The 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, including Kelly’s amendment, passed the House and will now be considered in the Senate.

SOURCE: Robin Kelly