Title: Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons Act
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons Act
This bill addresses detainees in Syria affiliated with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), including by requiring an interagency strategy regarding such detainees.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4996 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4996

To amend the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 to 
modify the establishment of a coordinator for detained ISIS members and 
    relevant displaced populations in Syria, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 28, 2022

  Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mr. Graham) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 to 
modify the establishment of a coordinator for detained ISIS members and 
    relevant displaced populations in Syria, 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 ``Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
        ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee 
                on Foreign Relations, the Committee on the Judiciary, 
                the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, 
                the Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee 
                on Appropriations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee 
                on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, the 
                Committee on Financial Services, the Permanent Select 
                Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on 
                Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
            (2) ISIS member.--The term ``ISIS member'' means a person 
        who was part of, or substantially supported, the Islamic State 
        in Iraq and Syria.
            (3) Senior coordinator.--The term ``Senior Coordinator'' 
        means the coordinator for detained ISIS members and relevant 
        displaced populations in Syria designated under subsection (a) 
        of section 1224 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
        Fiscal Year 2020 (Public Law 116-92; 133 Stat. 1642), as 
        amended by section 5.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) rose to 
        power in 2013 and reached its territorial peak in December 
        2014.
            (2) After the territorial defeat of ISIS in 2019, 
        displacement camps began to house detained alleged ISIS members 
        and families with perceived ISIS affiliation.
            (3) The al-Hol and Roj displacement camps, located in Syria 
        near the Syria-Iraq border, now house a significant number of 
        individuals affiliated with ISIS who live alongside other 
        displaced persons.
            (4) The al-Hol camp currently contains approximately 56,000 
        residents--
                    (A) an estimated 80 percent of whom are women and 
                children; and
                    (B) an estimated 50 percent of whom are under 12 
                years of age.
            (5) The al-Hol camp is severely underdeveloped, with ragged 
        tents, primitive water and sewage facilities, and few 
        healthcare facilities or safe spaces for education.
            (6) International organizations working in the al-Hol and 
        Roj camps, including Save the Children, Doctors Without 
        Borders, and the Norwegian Refugee Council, have all expressed 
        concerns about poor living conditions, criminal behavior, and 
        death threats against volunteers at the camps.
            (7) The Syrian Democratic Forces, essential partners in the 
        ongoing fight to achieve an enduring defeat of ISIS, and who 
        are responsible for guarding the al-Hol camp and other similar 
        camps, assert that they lack the resources to properly secure 
        such camps.
            (8) The United States currently has troops deployed in 
        Syria to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS and support the 
        Syrian Democratic Forces.
            (9) In 2021, 90 incidents of violence were reported inside 
        the al-Hol camp. Syrian and Iraqi camp residents and at least 2 
        aid workers were killed during such incidents.
            (10) Nearly 8,000 of the residents of the al-Hol camp come 
        from roughly 55 countries other than Syria or Iraq, but such 
        other countries have been slow to acknowledge repatriation 
        requests.
            (11) Learning centers in the camps have closed because of 
        COVID-19. Lacking formal education, some of the roughly 28,000 
        children inside the al-Hol camp are being taught by their 
        mothers and are potentially being indoctrinated with ISIS 
        ideology.
            (12) The Syrian Democratic Forces operate 28 prisons that 
        house approximately 12,000 captured ISIS fighters and 
        supporters.
            (13) In January 2022, 10 ISIS fighters entered the Hasakah 
        prison and sought to liberate the approximately 5,000 ISIS 
        prisoners. After a 10-day battle, hundreds of ISIS fighters 
        were able to escape, and their whereabouts are still unknown.
            (14) Beginning approximately on August 25, 2022, and ending 
        approximately on September 18, 2022, Syrian Democratic Forces, 
        supported by United States troops, conducted an extensive 
        security sweep of the al-Hol displaced persons camp, arresting 
        300 ISIS operatives, confiscating explosives, and liberating 6 
        women who had been enslaved by ISIS, at least 1 of whom had 
        been so enslaved since she was a child.
            (15) In April 2022, General Michael ``Erik'' Kurilla, 
        Commander of the United States Central Command, became the 
        first senior official of United States Armed Forces to inspect 
        the al-Hol camp and Hasakah prison. General Kurilla has 
        described the ISIS detainees as ``an ISIS army-in-waiting'' 
        that ``requires a whole-of-government approach focused on 
        engagement with allies and partners.''.
            (16) The first trial on United States soil of a major ISIS 
        figure occurred in April 2022. The ISIS terrorist was sentenced 
        to life in prison for his role in the kidnapping and murder of 
        James Foley, Peter Kassig, Steven Sotloff, and Kayla Mueller.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) ISIS detainees held by the Syrian Democratic Forces and 
        ISIS-affiliated individuals located within displaced persons 
        camps in Syria pose a significant and growing humanitarian 
        challenge and security threat to the region;
            (2) there is an urgent need to seek a sustainable solution 
        to such camps through repatriation and reintegration of the 
        inhabitants;
            (3) the United States should work closely with 
        international allies and partners to facilitate the 
        repatriation and reintegration efforts required to provide a 
        long-term solution for such camps and prevent the resurgence of 
        ISIS; and
            (4) if left unaddressed, such camps will continue to be 
        drivers of instability that jeopardize the long-term prospects 
        for peace and stability in the region.

SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States that--
            (1) ISIS-affiliated individuals located within displacement 
        camps in Syria, and other inhabitants of displacement camps in 
        Syria, be repatriated or, where appropriate, prosecuted, and 
        where possible, reintegrated into their country of origin, 
        consistent with all applicable international laws prohibiting 
        refoulement; and
            (2) the camps will be closed as soon as is practicable.

SEC. 5. MODIFICATION OF ESTABLISHMENT OF COORDINATOR FOR DETAINED ISIS 
              MEMBERS AND RELEVANT DISPLACED POPULATIONS IN SYRIA.

    Section 1224 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
Year 2020 (Public Law 116-92; 133 Stat. 1642) is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (a);
            (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
    ``(a) Designation.--
            ``(1) In general.--The President, in consultation with the 
        Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, the Director of 
        National Intelligence, the Secretary of the Treasury, the 
        Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
        Development, and the Attorney General, shall designate an 
        existing official to serve within the executive branch as 
        senior-level coordinator to coordinate, in conjunction with 
        other relevant agencies, all matters related to ISIS members 
        who are in the custody of the Syrian Democratic Forces and 
        other relevant displaced populations in Syria, including--
                    ``(A) the disposition of such individuals, 
                including in all matters related to--
                            ``(i) repatriation, transfer, prosecution, 
                        and intelligence gathering;
                            ``(ii) all multilateral and international 
                        engagements led by the Department of State and 
                        other agencies that are related to the current 
                        and future handling, detention, and prosecution 
                        of such ISIS members, including such 
                        engagements with the International Criminal 
                        Police Organization; and
                            ``(iii) the coordination of the provision 
                        of technical and evidentiary assistance to 
                        foreign countries to aid in the successful 
                        prosecution of such ISIS members, as 
                        appropriate, in accordance with international 
                        humanitarian law and other internationally 
                        recognized human rights and rule of law 
                        standards;
                    ``(B) all multilateral and international 
                engagements related to humanitarian access and 
                provision of basic services to, and freedom of movement 
                and security and safe return of, displaced persons at 
                camps or facilities in Syria that hold family members 
                of such ISIS members;
                    ``(C) coordination with relevant agencies on 
                matters described in this section; and
                    ``(D) any other matter the Secretary of State 
                considers relevant.
            ``(2) Rule of construction.--If, on the date of the 
        enactment of the Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons Act, an 
        individual has already been designated, consistent with the 
        requirements and responsibilities described in paragraph (1), 
        the requirements under that paragraph shall be considered to be 
        satisfied with respect to such individual until the date on 
        which such individual no longer serves as the Senior 
        Coordinator.'';
            (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``subsection (b)'' and 
        inserting ``subsection (a)'';
            (4) in subsection (e), by striking ``January 31, 2021'' and 
        inserting ``January 31, 2025'';
            (5) in subsection (f)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph 
                (3);
                    (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following 
                new paragraph (2):
            ``(2) Senior coordinator.--The term `Senior Coordinator' 
        means the individual designated under subsection (a).''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(4) Relevant agencies.--The term `relevant agencies' 
        means--
                    ``(A) the Department of State;
                    ``(B) the Department of Defense;
                    ``(C) the Department of the Treasury;
                    ``(D) the Department of Justice;
                    ``(E) the United States Agency for International 
                Development;
                    ``(F) the Office of the Director of National 
                Intelligence; and
                    ``(G) any other agency the President considers 
                relevant.''; and
            (6) by redesignating subsections (c) through (f) as 
        subsections (b) through (e), respectively.

SEC. 6. STRATEGY ON ISIS-RELATED DETAINEE AND DISPLACEMENT CAMPS IN 
              SYRIA.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the 
Secretary of Defense, the Director of National Intelligence, the 
Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the United States 
Agency for International Development, and the Attorney General, shall 
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress an interagency 
strategy with respect to ISIS-affiliated individuals and ISIS-related 
detainee and other displaced persons camps in Syria.
    (b) Elements.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall 
include--
            (1) methods to address--
                    (A) disengagement from and prevention of 
                recruitment into violence, violent extremism, and other 
                illicit activity in such camps;
                    (B) repatriation and, where appropriate, 
                prosecution of foreign nationals from such camps, 
                consistent with all applicable international laws;
                    (C) the return and reintegration of displaced 
                Syrian and Iraqi women and children into their 
                communities of origin;
                    (D) international engagement to develop processes 
                for repatriation and reintegration of foreign nationals 
                from such camps;
                    (E) contingency plans for the relocation of 
                detained and displaced persons who are not able to be 
                repatriated from such camps;
                    (F) efforts to improve the humanitarian conditions 
                in such camps, including through the delivery of 
                medicine, psychosocial support, clothing, education, 
                and improved housing; and
                    (G) assessed humanitarian and security needs of all 
                camps and detainment facilities based on prioritization 
                of such camps and facilities most at risk of 
                humanitarian crises, external attacks, or internal 
                violence; and
            (2) a plan to improve, in such camps--
                    (A) security conditions, including by training of 
                personnel and through construction; and
                    (B) humanitarian conditions;
            (3) a framework for measuring progress of humanitarian, 
        security, and repatriation efforts with the goal of closing 
        such camps; and
            (4) any other matter the Secretary of State considers 
        appropriate.

SEC. 7. ANNUAL INTERAGENCY REPORT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than annually thereafter 
through January 31, 2025, the Senior Coordinator, in coordination with 
the relevant agencies, shall submit to the appropriate committees of 
Congress a detailed report that includes the following:
            (1) A detailed description of the facilities and camps 
        where detained ISIS members, and families with perceived ISIS 
        affiliation, are being held and housed, including--
                    (A) a description of the security and management of 
                such facilities and camps
                    (B) an assessment of resources required for the 
                security of such facilities and camps; and
                    (C) an assessment of the adherence by the operators 
                of such facilities and camps to international 
                humanitarian law standards.
            (2) A description of all efforts undertaken by the United 
        States Government to address deficits in the humanitarian 
        environment and security of such facilities and camps.
            (3) A description of all multilateral and international 
        engagements related to humanitarian access and provision of 
        basic services to, and freedom of movement and security and 
        safe return of, displaced persons at camps or facilities in 
        Iraq, Syria, and any other area affected by ISIS activity, 
        including a description of--
                    (A) support for efforts by the Syrian Democratic 
                Forces to facilitate the return and reintegration of 
                displaced people from Iraq and Syria;
                    (B) repatriation efforts with respect to displaced 
                women and children;
                    (C) any current or future potential threat to 
                United States national security interests posed by 
                detained ISIS members or displaced families, including 
                an analysis of the al-Hol camp and annexes; and
                    (D) United States Government plans and strategies 
                to respond to any threat identified under subparagraph 
                (C).
            (4) To the greatest extent practicable under the law and 
        consistent with Department of Justice policy, an analysis of--
                    (A) United States efforts to prosecute detained or 
                displaced ISIS members; and
                    (B) the outcomes of such efforts.
            (5) A detailed description of any option to expedite 
        prosecution of any detained ISIS member, including in a court 
        of competent jurisdiction outside of the United States.
            (6) An analysis of factors on the ground in Syria and Iraq 
        that may result in the unintended release of detained or 
        displaced ISIS members, and an assessment of any measures 
        available to mitigate such releases.
            (7) A detailed description of efforts to coordinate the 
        disposition and security of detained or displaced ISIS members 
        with other countries and international organizations, including 
        the International Criminal Police Organization, to ensure 
        secure chains of custody and locations of such ISIS members.
            (8) An analysis of the manner in which the United States 
        Government communicates on such proposals and efforts with the 
        families of United States citizens believed to have been 
        victims of a criminal act by a detained or displaced ISIS 
        member.
            (9) An analysis of all efforts between the United States 
        and partner countries within the Global Coalition to Defeat 
        ISIS or other countries to share intelligence or evidence that 
        may aid in the prosecution of ISIS members, and any legal 
        obstacles that may hinder such efforts.
            (10) Any other matter the Coordinator considers 
        appropriate.
    (b) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted 
in unclassified form but may include a classified annex.
                                 <all>