H. R. 3342 
One Hundred Fifteenth Congress 
of the 
United States of America 
AT THE SECOND SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and eighteen 
An Act 
To impose sanctions with respect to foreign persons that are responsible for using 
civilians as human shields, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sanctioning the Use of Civilians 
as Defenseless Shields Act’’. 
SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 
It shall be the policy of the United States to officially and 
publicly condemn the use of innocent civilians as human shields. 
SEC. 3. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN PER-
SONS THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE USE OF CIVILIANS 
AS HUMAN SHIELDS. 
(a) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.— 
(1) MANDATORY SANCTIONS.—The President shall impose 
sanctions described in subsection (d) with respect to each person 
on the list required under subsection (b). 
(2) PERMISSIVE
SANCTIONS.—The President may impose 
sanctions described in subsection (d) with respect to each person 
on the list described in subsection (c). 
(b) MANDATORY SANCTIONS LIST.—Not later than one year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional commit-
tees a list of the following: 
(1) Each foreign person that the President determines, 
on or after the date of the enactment of this Act— 
(A) is a member of Hizballah or is knowingly acting 
on behalf of Hizballah; and 
(B) knowingly orders, controls, or otherwise directs 
the use of civilians protected as such by the law of war 
to shield military objectives from attack. 
(2) Each foreign person that the President determines, 
on or after the date of the enactment of this Act— 
(A) is a member of Hamas or is knowingly acting 
on behalf of Hamas; and 
(B) knowingly orders, controls, or otherwise directs 
the use of civilians protected as such by the law of war 
to shield military objectives from attack. 
(3) Each foreign person or agency or instrumentality of 
a foreign state that the President determines, on or after the
H. R. 3342—2 
date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly and materially 
supports, orders, controls, directs, or otherwise engages in— 
(A) any act described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph 
(1) by a person described in that paragraph; or 
(B) any act described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph 
(2) by a person described in that paragraph. 
(c) PERMISSIVE SANCTIONS LIST.—Not later than one year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the President should submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees a list of each foreign person that the President deter-
mines, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly 
orders, controls, or otherwise directs the use of civilians protected 
as such by the law of war to shield military objectives from attack, 
excluding foreign persons included in the most recent list under 
subsection (b). 
(d) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions to be imposed on 
a foreign person or an agency or instrumentality of a foreign state 
under this subsection are the following: 
(1) BLOCKING OF PROPERTY.—The President shall exercise 
all of the powers granted to the President under the Inter-
national Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et 
seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all trans-
actions in property and interests in property of the foreign 
person or agency or instrumentality of a foreign state if such 
property or interests in property are in the United States, 
come within the United States, or are or come within the 
possession or control of a United States person. 
(2) ALIENS INELIGIBLE FOR VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.— 
(A) VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.—An alien who the 
Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security 
determines is subject to sanctions under subsection (a) 
is— 
(i) inadmissible to the United States; 
(ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other documenta-
tion to enter the United States; and 
(iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled 
into the United States or to receive any other benefit 
under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101 et seq.). 
(B) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.—Any visa or other docu-
mentation issued to an alien who is subject to sanctions 
under subsection (a), regardless of when such visa or other 
documentation was issued, shall be revoked and such alien 
shall be denied admission to the United States. 
(C) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH UNITED NATIONS HEAD-
QUARTERS AGREEMENT AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL OBLIGA-
TIONS.—The sanctions under this paragraph shall not be 
imposed on an individual if admitting such individual to 
the United States is necessary to permit the United States 
to comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters 
of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 
1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, between 
the United Nations and the United States, or with other 
applicable international obligations. 
(e) PENALTIES.—The penalties provided for in subsections (b) 
and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency Economic 
Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person that knowingly