three conversations from the first person's museum. it begins at 8:00 eastern with a woman recalling surviving in italy. and at 10:00 eastern, holocaust survivor, juliusman talks about growing up in poland and pal les tine in the 1930s and '40s. the state department's ambassador at large for international religious freedom recently spoke at an event hosted by georgetown university in washington, d.c. david saperstein talked about effort to help community escaping the threat of isis. this is 40 minutes. ladies and gentlemen, i'm honored to introduce to you the

man who heads the effort to advance international freedom, ambassador at large david saperstein. am bas tore saperstein is the fourth person to hold this vitally important position which was created by the international religious freedom act of 1998 or has we refer to it, the irfa. the irfa requires the government of the united states to advance religious freedom in its foreign policy. the ambassador and his office at the state department are the executive agents of that policy. the buck as we say stops with them. the ambassador for religious freedom is confirmed by the senate. she the official charged with carrying out u.s. policy, the one who travels the world representing the united states's government and its people to defend those persecuted for

their religious beliefs. and to advance the institutions and habits of religious freedom. ambassador saperstein was confirmed by the senate in december 2014 and assumed his duties on january 6, 2015. prior to becoming ambassador at large he served for 40 years as the director of the religious action center of reform judaism over seeing the national social justice programming for the largest segment of american jury. a rabbi and an attorney for 35 years, rabbi saperstein taught seminars at fist amendment church in state law and at jewish law here at georgetown university law school, law center. in 1999 david saperstein was elected by his peers as the first chair of the u.s.

commission on international religious freedom, a separate and independent body also created by the irfa charged, among other things, with producing policy recommendations on this issue for the president and the congress and the department of state. when david became the first chair of the commission back in, i guess it was 1998 or '99 is when i met him. i quickly came to have a deep respect and affection for this man. he is savvy, persuasive, courageous. most importantly, he's a man of his word. as ambassador he has adopted an aggressive travel schedule to visit the dens of persecution, to urge government to stop persecution and advance religious freedom. and to give hope to the persecuted. david saperstein played an

instrumental role in ensuring that the united states government made the correct decision and declared what is happening in iraq and syria as genocide. i was proud to support him for the position he now serves with such distinction and i'm proud to call him friend. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the u.s. ambassador for international religious freedom, the honorable david saperstein. [ applause ] >> well, it's an honor to hold this position, tom, and it's an honor to be here to address this distinguished group of leaders. i will say in the entire works, since i have been part of it since the beginning, the three constants in all of my work have been tom farr, frank wolf and chris smith. two of them are here today. and they're both great heroes in

the cause for religious freedom. thank you for what you do. and i want to thank the religious freedom project at the berkeley center for cosponsoring this meeting today in part of our ongoing and productive partnership with your, tom, and with rfp. the project does serious work and today we're talking about the most serious of topics. so your excellencies, your graces, fellow ambassadors, ladies, gentlemen and i can say with a great deal of pride, a lot of friends in this room. i am keeply honored to be here. many of you have risked your lives to help victims of daesh violence. while many others have spent your lives fighting against a hateful ideologies of intolerance that fuel daesh's rise, which you have done amongst very vital ways by forging interreligious coalition to promote human rights,

tolerance, inclusiveness and peace, both here in the united states and across the globe and in the east. and too many of you are victims of daesh or groups like it. as we all know, on march 17th secretary of state john kerry, who cares about this issue deeply, made the historic announcement that in his judgment daesh, and aim quoting now, daesh is responsible for genocide against groups in areas under its control, including yazidis, christians and shia muslims. he said that daesh is quote also responsible for crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing directed at these same groups and in some cases against sunni muslims, kurds, other minorities. and he put it plainly when he said daesh is genocidal by self proclamation, by ideology and by

actions in what it says, what it believes, what it does. the fact is that daesh kills christians because they are christian, yazidis because they are yazidis, shia because they are shia. a report to congress redeservedly describe daesh's abuses in the starkest terms we could, not a terribly difficult task given the heinous atrocities daesh continues to perpetrate against so many. amongst those we named were unlawful force displacement, forced religious conversions, slavery, kidnapping, trafficking, sexual violence resulting in wide scale fatal y fatalities and injuries, victims including women and children come from across the spectrum of ethnic and religious groups,

including yazidis, sunni muslims, shia muslims, christians, turk men, sha back, among others. daesh's used public beheadings. kidnapping, rape, forced marriage and sexual slavery, employed trial soldiers from amongst its own recruits as well as capture children. daesh also continue to attack places of worship, schools and public spaces. this assessment, along with statements by the u.s. house of representatives, european parliament, council of europe parliamentary assembly and others have helped focus global attention on the polite of religious and ethnic minorities around daesh. but these must become more than just statements. there must be actions to implement the goals that all of us share in common.

secretary kerry in his statement challenged the world to quote find the resources to help those harmed by these atrocities. and last week's pledging conference, and this conference of the delegations from 30 countries and international organizations gathered today, and then in a closed meeting tomorrow, are focused on producing the financial, political and programatic resources. so at the conference last week within an additional $590 million was pledged for human tear assistance. $350 million pledged for critical stabilization efforts. under the new u.n. program, the financial facility for immediate stabilization, $125 million pledged. and for the new program that is

the midterm program, the mid length program here, the financial facility for expanding stabilization, the united states began the pledging with $50 million of its own with many others promising that they would come back with the pledges from their country. and $200 million already pledged for 2017, 2018, much more to come. $80 million just for dedemior t demining that is so vital. so we're convening these meetings today and tomorrow to try to answer that call, to find way to better asis religious and ethnic minorities in iraq and syria. and what we are learning from the conversations we've already had and the rich conversations that are promised in the rest of the afternoon here will be vital to our deliberations tomorrow. we are deeply appreciative. i have to say, tom. where is tom.

he's right here. vi to say, tom, you folks do great conferences. this really has been one of the most fascinating, rich and fruitful conversations that i've been part of and i really want to thank you for the extraordinary effort that you have done. as a state department special adviser for religious minorities in south central asia, expla explaining early this morning, or effort is in partnership with france and jordan as a follow-up to the french-led initiative by former foreign minister. to be clear, what we're deeply concerned about all who have suffered under daesh's reign of terror, at the same time a as this conference represents, we recognize a particular existential threat. we have seen such forces at work in iraq. the yazidi christian and some of

the shia communities are under enormous pressure to survive under daesh's genocidal efforts. iraq once vibrant jewish communities struggle daily under the daesh's efforts at ethnic cleansing. some virtually extinct in their homeland. so we gather to fight for religious freedom for all. we strongly present -- support religious freedom not only because it is the core basic fundamental universal human right, but also because respect for religious freedom is instrumental to peace, security and development around the world. no nation can fulfill its potential if its people are denied the right to exercise their freedom of religion or belief. nor can it have the stability that is known for peace, prosperity, for advancement, for

trong democracy if the nation. and the members of some groups simply because of their religious practices are declared functionally or by law to be second class citizens. all that does is drive religious life underground resulting in frustration, despair and anger, providing fertile ground with seeds of extremism can be sowed. and furthermore, as this conference illustrates, just looking around the room and listening to the diverse views from the questions and comments from the floor, this gathering testifies to the power of what happens when people of different backgrounds, different perspectives, different identities come together with a common purpose. as a richness of america's contribution to the world.

this nation that sociologiyists tell us embodies 2,000 different religions, denominations, faith groups, sects all across america. and our ability to live together and to forge common interfaith approach to the problems that face us is a rich model for others. but we do so not just by its effective effectiveness. because of the fundamental reality that in any country, any society, if any group can be persecuted, then all are endangered. there cannot be safety and security for the religious freedoms of some groups if others are denied. and that required sometimes compromises of how to proceed together, finding common ground even amongst our differences. now tragically daesh and other violent extremist groups in iraq and syria continue to target

members of religion and ethnic minorities with violence. women are subject to severe restrictions, freedom of movement, employment and dress, often trapped indoors out of fear for personal safety. sunni muslims that disagree with the terrorists extremist religious interpretations have suffered barbaric violence. religious, culture sites affiliated with many faiths and cultures have been looted and destroyed. the latter abuses lead to daesh selling pricely antiquities to restock their conference. in response we're pursuing multiple efforts to assist minority communities, including documentation of atrocity support for efforts saying that accountability for perpetrators of this unlawful violence services for survivors of gender based violence, preservation of

cultural heritage and inclosive peace build. we want to recreate the conditions where religious and ethnic minorities feel confident in their future in iraq and syria. our vision is of a sovereign united i rack in which these historic communities can remain in and return to their home. so to our vision is for a syria that is democratic nonsectarian and nonplural isic. that is the goal knowing that the demands on the government of iraq and the international community are still far greater than the resources currently available. what are we doing to achieve that goal. what progress is being made. let me list some of the answers to that question. first and foremost, daesh must be defeated. the efforts of the government of iraq, vetted opposition forces

in syria are conducting a robust campaign of coordinated air strikes, military training and assistance, diplomatic engagement and cooperation, messaging coordination to degrade, delegitimize and defeat daesh. the coalition has conducted more than 14,000 air strikes against daesh in iraq and syria, eliminating thousands of its fighters, cutting off key communications hubs and transit routes significantly weakening daesh's finances. daesh's production of oil has declined by about 30%. their ability to generate revenue in general in the areas under their control has been reduced by at least that month. strikes have destroyed tens of millions of daesh's cash. we've also worked to cut off the illicit sale of antiquities. due to the increasing financial pressure, dash reportedly cut

its fighters pay by half in some areas, turn to increasingly arbitrary taxation and extortion racket to raise funds further under mining credibility. efforts to sup iraqi forcement advancement on the ground as resulted in daesh being pushed out from nearly half of the territory it once held in iraq. 20% of what it held in syria. we've brought military power to assist religious minorities directly as well. two examples that most of you nou know are air strikes in august 2014 to relieve the siege on mount sinjar that saved the lives of thousands of yazidis and the are strikes in march 2014 that enabled a syrian kurdish defense force to reverse a daesh advance in the river valley in syria that threatened predominantly syrian christian

villages. dangers still exist as all of us know. we've seen it recently with the multiple attacks in syria, the most recent in june targeted the second ahead of the orthodox church. the church of the east bishop. on the commemoration of an atrocity committed a 100 years ago. the aon the clergy was thankfully unsuccessful but tragically three guards were killed. in general, too many are still suffering. yazidi women and children still held in captivity. between the two countries, displaced from their homes, mourning the loss of their loved ones because of daesh's reign of terror. we're making progress liberating territories, mostly yazidi and muslim majority areas.

but we look forward to the future liberation of lands belonging to christians and owe indigenous communities and that day is approaching. second, even while we need to secure their rights and opportunities, we must stabilize the condition of members of displaced communities whom we are asking to wait until they can safely return. until then they need stability, a quality of life, a feeling of personal security that provides them with the willingness to remain in the country, and to return to their homes when they decide to do so. we need help ensure that their kids have schools to go to, jobs when they graduate. and their economic opportunities for families. we're engaged in efforts to ensure that those who survive daesh's abuse in captivity are provided support, including psychological and health services that they need to recover their resilience, as well as the livelihood opportunities to support their

families and their selves to rebuild their lives. we're taking action now through the gender based violence emergency response and protection initiative, which provides funds for immediate medical, psychological and social support to survivors of gender based violence. but we acknowledge that these services may not yet have reached the victims in a number of areas and we're trying all of the time to support ngos that are involved in providing these services in much wider areas. this fund is a public/private partnership that can accept contributions from other countries. we're also providing support for implementation of iraq's national action plan on women, peace and security. and one more example. the united states provided $18 million in fiscal year 2015 continuing this year, to the

international organization for migration, the iom in iraq, to provide livelihood support for vulnerable displaced iraqis, conduct rapid response and assessments of newly displaced population, complete community led programs designed to reduce tensions and enhance integration through its community revitalization program. and i think most of you know the challenges that the displaced communities face in terms of the provision of schools for their kids. as part of this program iom has been able to expand and renovate seven primary and secondary schools throughout the iraqi kurdistan region which will allow thousands of idp and host community children access to an education. this is an important start. much more needs to be done in this are regard. now obviously the liberation of mosul will produce enormous new

challenges. this was addressed a couple of times in our earlier conversations through -- and that challenge, those challenges must be addressed in the planning that is taking place along with the military planning. throughout the region, ngos, humanitarian organizations will need rapid, safe access to populations in need. but especially in iraq and the kurdish regions. as undp deputy for iraq as reported, the campaign to free mosul from isil control could adversely affect well over a million people in the short term. and this would make it one of the largest humanitarian crises of recent times. the kurt stan regional government host to more than a million released its plan to support five new cams supported

by the international community that can house up to 420,000 people. the unhcr is seeking funding now and anticipates it will work with the krg to build them. they need sufficient resources for all of these efforts because as you know, up until july 20th, just last week, only 41% of humanitarian needs identified by the u.n.'s 2016 iraq humanitarian response plan were funded as of that day. so we convene the pledging conference for iraq last week here in washington. and the following up with this conference focus on restoration of the liberated communities. as i noted last week -- as i noted earlier, last week our international partners pledged over $2 billion for humanitarian efforts, demining, stabilization which will help meet the needs of the millions of iraqis who have been displaced or otherwise

affected by isil violence. including our contribution that we announced last week, the united states is provided more than $914 million in humanitarian assistance for vulnerable iraqis in iraq and in the region since october 2013. in addition we have contributed more than $5.1 billion for affected syrians since the start of the crisis, including more than more than $2.8 billion inside syria alone to provide emergency food assistance, cash assistance for emergency needs, funding for shelters, much needed counseling and protection programs to the most vulnerable including children, women, persons with disabilities and the elderly. the result of these conferences will play an essential role in closing the gaps between the needs and the resources in iraq. third, the areas liberated from daesh must be stabilized providing security on which

returning residents of all religions and ethnicities can rely. the coalition is trained more than 31,000 iraqi security forces undertaken an extensive police training mission in iraq under italian leadership to secure the areas liberated from daesh and to guarantee the safety and security of displaced populations returning to their homes. we are seeking to expand this training program. and as for other coalition partners who contribute to this effort, we've also begun training defense forces for minority communities, specifically yazidis and christians so far which will be integrated into the peshmerga and or other goi forces. fourth, minorities need to feel they have a greater voice in their governance. respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of religion for all

religious groups is critical. so is the provision of equal citizenship and equal access to justice. take just one small but important example which is number of you worked on. iraq has suspended religiously divisive changes in the card law and those changes should not be revisited. more broadly, the united states supports arrangements where in minorities have greater voice over how their communities are governed within a federal governance framework. you are doing this work and we applaud you. the alliance of iraqi minorities within a.i.m., one of the shining lights in good governance advocacy in iraq worked with a caucus in the council of representative to add language begin in the 2012 budget law to provide for a legal foundation for the

equitable dristribution of the budgets. a.i.m. worked with provencal councils and sub districts as well as the indigenous communities to ensure those funds were used in specific public service projects such as health clinics, roads and schools. fifth, recovery. members of displaced communities will not choose to return to their cities and towns if no livelihood opportunities exist there or if the infrastructure and basic services remain devastated. areas liberated from daesh must have functioning infrastructure such as roads within electricity, sanitation, available means for people to support their families. demining is absolutely critical if we hope the different communities will return to their homes. the united states and international community are taking significant steps to continue expanding their support for this daunting task in isil

liberated areas. and in pursuit of addressing these financial needs, these conferences last week and this week are trying to lay out the resources that would be necessary to help in these recovery efforts. six, it is important to promote accountability for perpetrators of atrocities on all sides. this includes atrocities perpetrated of course by daesh, as well as by shia militias affiliated with the popular mobilization forces who have committed abuses against civilians after areas have been liberated from daesh. must also focus on the wide variety of crimes committed. sexual and gender based violence, mass killings, and accountability in transitional justice mechanisms must reflect the needs of victims and communities. one size will not fit all. to knit back together these communities.

these efforts must include formal and informal forms of reconciliation and accountability. it must pursue high level prosecutions where possible but also address accountability add at local and regional and national levels for followers and for leaders. in this effort, documentation of atrocities is usual, because it preserves information for future accountability efforts and helps to identify survivor needs and connect individuals with services. u.s. government is currently implementing a project that enables iraqi civil society to document violations and abuses, creates protocols in a repository for information gathered, and connects documentation efforts to local and national accountability undertakings. to date, representatives from iraqi civil society organizations that are participating in this project have collected nearly one

thousand narratives from victims and witnesses of atrocities committed in iraq. many in the ngo community are contributing as well to the compilation of evidence and narratives to help in this cause. in syria, the united states supports syria justice and accountability center. one of the premier syrian-led institutions heading this -- leading this documentation effort, sjac works with partners and its team on the ground to collect documentation related to the conflict, including interviews with former detainees that document torture and human detention condition and works directly with survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. another project provides support for the identification, protection, and excavation of mass graves. by collecting information about these sites, we reduce the chances of accidental or purposeful damage to them and provide important forensic

information to hold daesh accountable, especially as the government of iraq and its partners continue to liberate territory from daesh. in addition, we have started to use satellite imagery to look for mass graves behind daesh front lines in syria and iraq. the delegations from abroad who are participating in the conference have photos of some of these satellite pictures in your pacts. seventh, relatedly, to atrocity accountability. the extraordinary tension alluded to in our earlier conversations that will accompany the return of displaced communities to their homes and businesses that have been occupied in some cases by former neighbors, damaged or destroyed during the course of the violence. this must involve transitional justice and reconciliation efforts and other measures to prevent or minimize reprisal violence on all sides.

credible, inclusive, judicial, investigative capacity is critical to give all of those displaced hope that there will be justice. simultaneously, religious and community leaders must take the lead in reconciliation in peacemaking. cycles of violence must end, and it won't happen unless all of us are committed to making that a reality, even as accountability processes are pursued. otherwise, there will be no peace in tend. eighth, as part of its ethnic cleansing efforts, daesh has eviscerated the cultural and historic heritage of the region. the secretary cited this destruction of cultural and religious heritage when he said that daesh was responsible for crimes against humanity. but it is also a crime against history. my office has taken the lead in coordinating efforts in the field.

and i commend knox's teams for his leadership in this regard. and working with the smithsonian institution, we are working with local communities in iraq to help them determine how they can best preserve their religious and cultural heritage, including by preserving churches, shrines, synagogues, mosques. in closing, i want to highlight the new opportunity i mentioned several times to assist minorities after liberation. the creation of the u.n. development program's funding facility for immediate stabilization or ffis, or the funding facility for expanded stabilization, the ffes, these funds restore its central services, provide small grants to businesses, assist local government with recovery, address small infrastructure, medium size infrastructure needs. that includes utilities and the general structures of the

communities. and support reconciliation efforts. these are the fundamental building blocks for communities to thrive. donors have provided a pledge over 200 million from almost 20 partners including more than 32 million pledged by the united states. undp has also created a similar mechanism as i indicated, called ffes. and the difference is that focus is on the midterm assistance program. because you can't just do it for a year if there is not going to be continuity of funding. so we're looking out several years and asking countries to participate in it. in both ffis and ffes, we're working with the united nations so that countries and private donors can provide funds to specific projects for assistance. which can include minority areas to specific sites. we hope that this will bring significant international engagement. with countries feeling a sense

of partnership with these local communities in restoring those communities and making return possible. and that all this will help give minorities confidence that they have a future in ancestral homelands. and that is our message to the international community. it is indispensable that we find the resources to assist all in need, no matter what their faith, no matter what their religious or ethnic identities so that as many as possible will want to stay in their homes and feel confident in their future. so much remains to be done in order to achieve a lasting defeat of this barbaric group, and to ensure that religious diversity survives. as secretary kerry has said, daesh represents barbarism in its purist, most evil form. from the slaughter of minorities to the systematic oppression of women, daesh rejects every civilized norm. but to truly defeat daesh in its

message, nothing so vividly or effectively repudiates daesh's goals or efforts at ethnic cleansing and genocide than to ensure the security of the very people that daesh has targeted. the protection of their human rights and the success of our joint efforts to allow the return of iraq and syria's displaced populations. your excellencies, your graces, my fellow ambassadors, we aspire for all people in the region, regardless of their beliefs, to enjoy universal human rights and fundamental freedoms, including religious freedom. i am proud that we have played a lead role in responding to daesh's atrocities and our dedication to promoting religious freedom, including the rights of members of minority groups in iraq and syria remains strong. but there is much work we must do together. and let's be honest, we all know

whatever we have achieved, this is a very hard undertaking. achieving the goals and implementing the programs described above will not be an easy task. it requires creativity, vision, and tenacity if we are to achieve our goals. but that is exactly why we have cause for hope. creativity, vision, and tenacity are not in short supply in this room. the powerful growing innovative grassroots advocacy and aid work that we have heard about today and we see manifested in this room throughout iraq and syria is having real results. yazidi and christian and turk and kurdish and yes, sunni and shia aid organizations are coming to the aid of their own and others in a spirit of selflessness and common cause, calling for an end to

discrimination, persecution and conflict. and calling for political inclusion and reawakening of iraq and syria's historical diversity. we see the work of father benoka running medical clinics, of efforts to provide health care, help survivors of gender-based violence his aid in documenting this. in human rights and governance. and strong advocacy for democracy and pluralism in syria and kareem's activism and his faith. and we have seen with the krg's nurturing the rebirth of a small jewish community. in the face of this catastrophe, you and so many others in this room and around the world, together with committed governments in the international community have gathered here this month will make the world listen and attend and respond. so i want to express my sincere gratitude for your efforts in defending pluralism in iraq and syria, and protecting their religious and ethnic minorities

and advocating for the enjoyment of religious freedom for all by members of populations whose voices are too often muted or ignored. thank you all for your significant contributions to a more peaceful, tolerant, and freer near east. it is a model the entire world needs so urgently today. thank you. [ applause ] tonight on american history tv prime time, holocaust survivors tell their stories of how they madette through world war ii. we begin next with anna grosz recalling