By Marc Selinger Published December 12, 2025 Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, said Dec. 11 the U.S. should designate Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia a Foreign Terrorist Organization. At a hearing on Sudan’s civil war, which pits the militia against the Sudanese Armed Forces, Smith accused the RSF of a host of crimes, including a recent deadly attack on a kindergarten. His comments came about six weeks after a bipartisan group of si... Read more

By Chris Massaro Published December 12, 2025 at 10:18 AM EST While the world’s attention has focused on Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, Sudan remains the world’s largest displacement crisis, with some 12 million people driven out of their homes. "Sudan is under the darkest of clouds, a catastrophe that has, for far too long, been met with paralysis by the international community," Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., chair of the House Foreign Affairs Africa subcommittee, said ... Read more

By Lakewood Alerts Published December 11, 2025 A long-debated question about the origins of Lyme disease is poised for federal scrutiny after Congress approved an amendment requiring an investigation into whether the U.S. military once weaponized ticks. The provision, authored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), was included in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 and now awaits the President’s signature. Smith’s amendment, now Sec. 1068 of the defense bill, directs the Government... 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 religious persecution throughout the globe, the violence perpetrated by Hamas and other radical Islamist groups, and his recent House hearing on the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. The full interview can be viewed by clicking here. ### Read more

By The National Published December 11, 2025 Members of the US Congress on Thursday called for accountability in the civil war in Sudan, urging both sides to declare a ceasefire in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands. The Africa Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee met to discuss the US response to the humanitarian crisis. "There will never be peace in Sudan unless there's accountability for the atrocities committed by Gen [Abdel Fatah] Al Burhan of the Sudanese Armed Forc... Read more

By Catherine Yang Published December 10, 2025 China has regressed with respect to rule of law, according to the Congressional-Executive Commission on China’s (CECC) 2025 annual report, released Dec. 10, which highlights the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) long history of breaking promises. The commission was created in 2000 to monitor human rights and rule of law in China. “Broken promises are not an exception; they are a feature of how the CCP deals with the world and with its own people,” comm... Read more

By Madalaine Elhabbal Published December 10, 2025 at 15:30 PM U.S. President Donald Trump is crafting a sanctions plan to increase pressure on the Nigerian government amid ongoing Christian persecution, according to a leading member of Congress. President Trump “is in the process of crafting a comprehensive action plan including sanctions to pursue reform,” according to Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, who described Nigeria as “ground zero,” and the “focal point of the most brutal and murderous a... Read more

By Chris Chase Published December 10, 2025 The U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China’s (CECC) latest annual report – released to coincide with International Human Rights Day – features seafood prominently as it calls on Congress and the U.S. government as a whole to do more to combat forced labor. Seafood from China has been under scrutiny by the U.S. government, in part thanks to a report released by The Outlaw Ocean Project which released findings of a multi-month investigation into... Read more

By Elise Winland Published December 9, 2025 Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., is spotlighting Sudan’s deepening civil war and the mounting atrocities against civilians ahead of a new congressional hearing on the conflict. Smith, a Catholic who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, will lead his 17th congressional hearing on Sudan Dec. 11. He said the scale of mass violence since the Sudanese Civil War began in 2023 demands urgent action from U.S. officials and the international commun... Read more

By Elise Winland Published December 5, 2025 The House approved legislation Dec. 4 to bar federal funding from any K-12 school that receives money from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), as lawmakers sharpen scrutiny of Beijing’s attempts to influence American education. The measure, the PROTECT Our Kids Act (HR 1069), passed by a vote of 247-164, with all 164 opposing votes coming from Democrats. Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey, a Catholic, said the bill, which was introduced by Rep... Read more