H. Res. 1165 
In the House of Representatives, U. S., 
December 11, 2018. 
Whereas Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with the support 
of Iran and the Russian Federation, has committed wide-
spread atrocities against the people of Syria, leading to 
one of the worst humanitarian crises in over 70 years, in-
cluding the deaths of more than 500,000 people, the de-
struction of more than 50 percent of Syria’s critical in-
frastructure, and the forced displacement of more than 
14 million people; 
Whereas the Assad regime, with the support of Iran and the 
Russian Federation, has conducted violent attacks 
against humanitarian aid workers, supplies, facilities, 
transports, and assets, and impeded the access and se-
cure movement of humanitarian personnel, and has used 
chemical weapons against the Syrian people on numerous 
occasions; 
Whereas since the introduction of Russian forces into Syria 
in September 2015, Russia has deployed over 68,000 
Russian personnel to help sustain the Assad regime, and 
has reportedly transferred the S–300 surface-to-air mis-
sile system to Syria, giving Russia, Iran, Hezbollah, and 
other Iranian-backed militias additional cover for their 
activities in Syria;
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Whereas Iran is estimated to have deployed over 3,000 Is-
lamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and regular 
Iranian military advisers to Syria and approximately 
20,000 militia fighters, including ’Asaib ahl al-Haqq, 
Harakat 
Hezbollah 
al-Nujaba, 
Fatimeyoun, 
and 
Zainabiyoun, which continue to expand their presence in 
Syria; 
Whereas Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats has 
stated ‘‘it’s unlikely Russia has the will or capability to 
fully implement and counter Iranian decision and influ-
ence’’ in Syria; 
Whereas Iran’s positions in Syria, which Iran has used to 
launch rockets and drones toward Israel, are critical to 
Iran’s efforts to create a ‘‘land bridge’’ from Iran 
through Iraq and Syria to Lebanon so that it can arm 
Hezbollah in Lebanon with rockets and missiles, and in-
crease the accuracy of Hezbollah’s munitions; 
Whereas Iranian-backed militias have demolished civilian 
areas, implemented sieges, and evicted civilian residents 
throughout Syria in a campaign of forced displacement, 
where Iranian-funded reconstruction plans to sell housing 
developments to foreign militias risk establishing a per-
manent Iranian presence and obstacle for return of thou-
sands of Syrian families who fled Syria; and 
Whereas the Syrian Government has reportedly signed agree-
ments with Iran and IRGC controlled companies with re-
spect to military cooperation: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) supports a political solution to the conflict 
which will result in the air space of Syria no longer 
being utilized by the Assad regime or Russia to target
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civilians, an end to the sieges carried out by Assad, Rus-
sia, Iran, Hezbollah, and other Iranian-backed militias, 
and the release of all political prisoners; 
(2) opposes international reconstruction funds from 
supporting projects in Syria in areas controlled by the 
Assad regime as long as the Assad regime remains in 
power; 
(3) condemns the Assad regime, the Government of 
the Russian Federation, the Government of Iran, and 
Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed militias for their 
continued support of war crimes and crimes against hu-
manity in Syria, including the widespread use of torture, 
summary executions, prolonged sieges, forced reloca-
tions, and indiscriminate targeting of civilians and hu-
manitarian actors; 
(4) recognizes that as long as the Assad regime re-
mains in power, it will continue to oppress the Syrian 
people, the Russian Federation will continue to expand 
its influence in the Middle East, and Iran will remain 
entrenched in Syria; 
(5) calls upon the President and Secretary of State 
to work towards a sustainable political transition in 
Syria that results in a government in Syria that is not 
a danger to its own people, abandons its chemical weap-
ons program, allows for the safe, dignified, and vol-
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untary return of displaced persons, and does not provide 
Iran with a platform to threaten Syria’s neighbors; 
(6) urges the President and the Secretary of State 
develop a strategy to prevent a permanent Iranian pres-
ence in Syria, understanding that the Russia Federation 
has not proven to be a viable partner to help in this ef-
fort; 
(7) urges the Secretary of State to investigate and 
determine whether the forced displacement of Syrian ci-
vilians from their homes through brutal sieges, starva-
tion, and indiscriminate targeting of civilians, and re-
population with foreign fighters constitutes sectarian or 
ethnic cleansing; and 
(8) calls on the President and Secretary of State to 
determine whether militias operating in Syria under the 
command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps 
(IRGC), 
including 
Harakat 
Hezbollah 
al-Nujaba, 
Fatemiyoun, Zainabioun, and ’Asaib ahl al-Haq are ter-
rorist organizations and meet the criteria for sanctions 
pursuant to Executive Order No. 13460 or 13582. 
Attest: 
Clerk.