•HCON 121 IH 
Whereas the Russian Federation has not only enabled the 
Government of Syria’s perpetration of these crimes but 
has committed its own violations of international law by 
leading deliberate bombing campaigns on civilian targets 
including bakeries, hospitals, markets, and schools, con-
trary to United Nations Security Council Resolution 
2254, adopted on December 18, 2015, which demanded 
‘‘that all parties immediately cease any attacks against 
civilians and civilian objects’’; 
Whereas the attacks by the Government of Syria and its al-
lies have focused on civilian targets and the United 
States-backed opposition, and have led to the expansion 
of the Islamic State in Syria; 
Whereas other parties to the conflict in Syria, including the 
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and the al-Nusra 
Front, have engaged in torture, rape, summary execution 
of government soldiers, kidnapping for ransom, and vio-
lence against civilians; 
Whereas these continued violations of international law, with-
out any promise of accountability, jeopardize hope for es-
tablishing a meaningful and lasting peace through the 
Geneva and Vienna processes; 
Whereas Syria is not a state-party to the Rome Statute and 
is not a member of the International Criminal Court; 
Whereas the United States supports the collection and anal-
ysis of documentation related to the ongoing violations of 
human rights, the coordination of Syrian and inter-
national actors working on documentation and transi-
tional justice efforts, and education and outreach on 
transitional justice concepts and processes, including ef-
forts of the Syria Justice and Accountability Center 
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•HCON 121 IH 
sponsored by the United States and various other states 
and multilateral institutions; 
Whereas the international community has previously estab-
lished ad hoc or regional tribunals through the United 
Nations to bring justice in specific countries where war 
crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide have been 
committed; 
Whereas ad hoc or regional tribunals, including the Inter-
national Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the 
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and the 
Special Court for Sierra Leone, have successfully inves-
tigated and prosecuted war crimes, crimes against hu-
manity, and genocide, and there are many positive les-
sons to be learned from such tribunals; and 
Whereas any lasting, peaceful solution to the conflict in Syria 
must be based upon justice for all, including members of 
all factions, political parties, ethnicities, and religions: 
Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That Congress— 
(1) strongly condemns the continued use of un-
lawful and indiscriminate violence against civilian 
populations by the Government of Syria, its allies, 
and other parties to the conflict; 
(2) urges the United States and its partners to 
continue to demand and work toward the cessation 
of attacks on Syrian civilians by the Government of 
Syria, its allies, and other parties to the conflict; 
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•HCON 121 IH 
(3) urges the Administration to establish addi-
tional mechanisms for the protection of civilians and 
to ensure consistent and equitable access to humani-
tarian aid for vulnerable populations; 
(4) urges the United States to continue its sup-
port for efforts to collect and analyze documentation 
related to ongoing violations of human rights in 
Syria, and to prioritize the collection of evidence 
that can be used to support future prosecutions for 
war crimes and crimes against humanity committed 
by the Government of Syria, its allies, and other 
parties to the conflict; 
(5) urges the President to direct the United 
States representative to the United Nations to use 
the voice and vote of the United States to imme-
diately promote the establishment of a Syrian war 
crimes tribunal, a regional or international hybrid 
court to prosecute the perpetrators of grave crimes 
committed by the Government of Syria, its allies, 
and other parties to the conflict; and 
(6) urges other nations to apprehend and de-
liver into the custody of such a Syrian war crimes 
tribunal persons indicted for war crimes, crimes 
against humanity, or genocide in Syria, and to pro-
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•HCON 121 IH 
vide information pertaining to such crimes to the tri-
bunal. 
Æ 
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