I 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3082 
To require a report on the designation of the Libyan faction of Ansar 
al-Sharia as a foreign terrorist organization, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 11, 2013 
Mr. POE of Texas (for himself, Mr. DESANTIS, Mr. KINGSTON, Mr. YOHO, 
Mr. GOHMERT, Mr. PITTS, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. WALBERG, Mr. 
KING of Iowa, and Mr. WILSON of South Carolina) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require a report on the designation of the Libyan faction 
of Ansar al-Sharia as a foreign terrorist organization, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ansar al-Sharia Ter-
rorist Designation Act of 2013’’. 
SEC. 2. REPORT ON DESIGNATION OF THE LIBYAN FAC-
TIONS OF ANSAR AL-SHARIA AS A FOREIGN 
TERRORIST ORGANIZATION. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) Ansar al-Sharia Benghazi first announced 
itself in February 2012. The group is led by Mu-
hammad al-Zahawi, who had previously been an in-
mate of former President Muammar al-Qaddafi’s in-
famous Abu Salim prison. 
(2) On August 6, 2013, the Department of Jus-
tice filed sealed criminal charges against Ahmed Abu 
Khattalah, a senior commander within Libya’s 
Islamist militia Ansar al-Sharia. According to the 
Wall Street Journal, Mr. Abu Khattalah was seen at 
the United States consulate in Benghazi during the 
September 11, 2012, attack that killed United 
States Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Sean 
Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty. 
(3) On October 17, 2012, the New York Times 
reported that Libyan authorities named Ahmed Abu 
Khattalah as a commander in the September 11, 
2012, attack on the United States consulate in 
Benghazi. 
(4) On August 8, 2013, the Washington Insti-
tute for Near East Peace issued a report in which 
it highlights Ansar al-Sharia’s establishment of 
training camps in Libya for jihadists preparing to 
fight with extremist rebels in Syria. 
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(5) Abu Sufian Bin Qumu, leader of the Ansar 
al-Sharia faction in Darnah, Libya, is a former 
Guantanamo Bay inmate with close al-Qaeda ties. 
Bin Qumu was an associate of Usama bin Laden 
and is believed to maintain connections to senior al- 
Qaeda members. 
(6) According to a report published by the Li-
brary of Congress in August 2012, Ansar al-Sharia 
‘‘has increasingly embodied al Qaeda’s presence in 
Libya, as indicated by its active social-media propa-
ganda, extremist discourse, and hatred of the West, 
especially the United States’’. 
(7) According to a report published by the Li-
brary of Congress in August 2012, al-Qaeda’s senior 
leadership in Pakistan has dispatched operatives to 
Libya to establish a clandestine terrorist network 
there. The report concluded that al-Qaeda is on the 
verge of a fully operational network inside Libya, 
and Ansar al-Sharia is one of the brands employed 
by al Qaeda operatives. 
(b) REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of State shall, in consultation with the intelligence 
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community, submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees— 
(A) a detailed report on whether the Liby-
an faction of Ansar al-Sharia, meets the criteria 
for designation as a foreign terrorist organiza-
tion under section 219 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189); and 
(B) if the Secretary of State determines 
that the Libyan faction of Ansar al-Sharia does 
not meet such criteria, a detailed justification 
as to which criteria have not been met. 
(2) FORM.—The report required by paragraph 
(1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may 
include a classified annex if appropriate. 
(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
(A) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COM-
MITTEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congres-
sional committees’’ means— 
(i) the Committee on Homeland Secu-
rity and Governmental Affairs, the Com-
mittee on Armed Services, the Committee 
on Foreign Relations, and the Select Com-
mittee on Intelligence of the Senate; and 
(ii) the Committee on Homeland Se-
curity, the Committee on Armed Services, 
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the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the 
Permanent Select Committee on Intel-
ligence of the House of Representatives. 
(B) 
INTELLIGENCE
COMMUNITY.—The 
term ‘‘intelligence community’’ has the meaning 
given that term in section 3(4) of the National 
Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 401a(4)). 
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that the Libyan faction 
of Ansar al-Sharia meets the criteria for designation as 
a foreign terrorist organization under section 219 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189) and 
should be designated as such. 
SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this Act may be construed to infringe 
upon the sovereignty of the Government of Libya to com-
bat militant or terrorist groups operating inside the 
boundaries of Libya. 
Æ 
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