Attacks on religious groups continue to rise in the United States and around the world, prompting renewed efforts to raise public awareness and strengthen the international religious freedom movement. As lawmakers and groups take action to raise awareness, a hearing was held by Congressman Chris Smith, a longtime religious freedom advocate. Capitol Hill correspondent Erik Rosales reports. The full interview can be viewed by clicking here. ### Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, sat down with Tony Perkins on Washington Watch with Tony Perkins to discuss his recent congressional hearing, entitled “Defending Religious Freedom Around the World,” the U.S. deployment of troops to Nigeria, and addressing Christian persecution in Nigeria and China. The full interview can be viewed by clicking here. ### Read more

By Elise Winland Published February 4, 2026 U.S. Rep Chris Smith, R-N.J., warned Feb. 4 that religious persecution worldwide is a “festering and exploding” crisis that demands strong U.S. leadership. Smith, a Catholic who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, made the remarks during a congressional hearing titled “Defending Religious Freedom Around the World.” The hearing examined religious freedom violations in countries, including China, North Korea, Nigeria, and Tanzania, w... Read more

The following are excerpts of Co-Chairman Chris Smith’s (R-NJ) opening statement at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Committee’s February 3rd hearing—his eighth hearing chaired exclusively on Belarus—entitled “Human Rights in Belarus Today: Political Prisoners and the Ongoing Crackdown”: Today, we will examine the ongoing, brutal crackdown on democratic opposition—and indeed, on anyone suspected of sympathy for it, or for the freedom and independence of Belarus. We will also talk about political pri... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, issued the following statement in response to the Senate’s failure to invoke cloture on the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act: “I am extremely disappointed in my Senate colleagues’ failure to invoke cloture on and advance the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act, critical legislation that would have supported pregnant and parenting students seeking to complete their degrees. “This common-sense legislation would have required colleges ... Read more

On Tuesday, February 3rd, Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC) and author of the landmark Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 and multiple reauthorizations, will chair his eighth congressional hearing focused exclusively on the human rights crisis in Belarus. Since 2020, the government of Belarus—a dictatorship led by Alexander Lukashenko for more than 30 years—has been engaged in an ongoing crackdown on democratic opposition. Yet, even as this repressio... Read more

On Wednesday, February 4th, Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa, and Rep. Maria Salazar (R-FL), Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, will chair a joint hearing on the current state of religious persecution throughout the globe and examine the United States’ efforts to defend and advance religious freedom worldwide. WHAT: Congressional hearing on the status of religious persecution throughout the globe, with a focus on Nigeria, China, Sudan, Syria... Read more

By Julian Pecquet Published January 28, 2026 at 12:00 pm (GMT +1) Washington is turning up the pressure on Rwanda as US President Donald Trump’s peace deal for the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to take hold on the ground. Six weeks after the Congolese and Rwandan presidents put their mutual animus on hold for a brief moment to sign the Washington Accords, US lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are threatening sanctions as they grow increasingly frustrated about the ongoing viol... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the House Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Antisemitism and author of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism Act of 2021, issued the following statement on Holocaust Remembrance Day: “Today, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, we honor the lives and legacies of the more than six million Jews who died at the cruel hands of the Nazis, and we recommit ourselves to combating and calling out antisemitism whenever it rears its ugly head. “As acts of an... Read more

By Sean Salai Published Tuesday, January 27, 2026 Hi, this is Sean Salai, culture reporter at The Washington Times. We are out at the 53rd National March for Life, where we are interviewing pro-life leaders. I’m joined by Congressman Chris Smith, Republican from New Jersey, who just stepped off the stage. [SALAI] You mentioned how the abortion pill is baby poison. And a lot of marchers we’ve been talking to today, they’re kind of happy with a lot that the Trump administration has done. They’re p... Read more