[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 116 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 116

 Condemning the Assad regime for its continued use of chemical weapons 
                       against the Syrian people.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                April 5 (legislative day, April 4), 2017

Mr. Cardin (for himself, Mr. Corker, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Kaine, 
  Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Udall, Mr. Coons, and Mr. Gardner) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Condemning the Assad regime for its continued use of chemical weapons 
                       against the Syrian people.

Whereas, on August 21, 2013, the Assad regime launched rockets carrying sarin 
        gas, a deadly nerve agent, against Ghouta, a rebel-held suburb of 
        Damascus, killing 1,429 men, women, and children, according to United 
        States Government estimates, while injuring another 3,600 people;
Whereas, on September 14, 2013, the Assad regime agreed to enter the Convention 
        on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use 
        of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, done at Paris January 13, 
        1993, and entered into force April 29, 1997 (referred to in this 
        Resolution as the ``Chemical Weapons Convention''), and to allow a joint 
        mission between the United Nations and the Organization for the 
        Prevention of Chemical Weapons (referred to in this Resolution as the 
        ``OPCW-UN'') to oversee the removal and elimination of Syria's chemical 
        weapons program;
Whereas, on September 27, 2013, the United Nations Security Council unanimously 
        adopted Resolution 2118, which endorsed the destruction of Syria's 
        chemical weapons program and agreed that in the event of noncompliance, 
        it would take action under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United 
        Nations;
Whereas, on October 16, 2013, the OPCW-UN was formally established to 
        investigate and destroy Syria's chemical weapons program and stockpiles;
Whereas, on June 23, 2014, the OPCW-UN announced that the last of Syria's 
        declared chemical weapon stockpile had been shipped out of Syria for 
        destruction;
Whereas, on September 30, 2014, the OPCW-UN announced that it had completed its 
        mandate and officially ended operations;
Whereas, on October 14, 2013, the Syria Government entered into the Chemical 
        Weapons Convention;
Whereas the Chemical Weapons Convention has 192 member states and bans all 
        chemical weapons;
Whereas, the Assad regime was subsequently accused of committing more chemical 
        weapons attacks on Syrian civilians in opposition-held areas by using 
        chlorine-based chemical weapons, in violation of the Chemical Weapons 
        Convention;
Whereas, on August 7, 2015, the United Nations Security Council adopted 
        Resolution 2235, which established the UN-OPCW Joint Investigative 
        Mechanism to identify which individuals and entities were responsible 
        for the use of chlorine-based chemical weapons attacks in Syria;
Whereas, on October 27, 2016, the UN-OPCW Joint Investigative Mechanism 
        definitively confirmed that the Assad regime was responsible for the use 
        of chemical weapons in Syria in Talmenes in April 2014, in Qmenas in 
        March 2015, and in Sarmin in March 2016;
Whereas, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2319 on November 
        17, 2016, which renewed the UN-OPCW Joint Investigative Mechanism 
        mandate for one year;
Whereas, the Russian Federation, along with China, blocked a United Nations 
        Security Council Resolution on February 28, 2017, which would have 
        implemented a sanctions regime against the Assad regime for its use of 
        chemical weapons;
Whereas, on the morning of April 4, 2017, another chemical weapons attack took 
        place in the town of Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib Province, killing at least 
        58 people, including 11 children, according to the Syrian Observatory 
        For Human Rights;
Whereas Human Rights Watch reported that dozens of people showed symptoms 
        consistent with exposure to chemicals after aircraft attacked the town;
Whereas the Assad regime is the only entity operating in Syria that the UN-OPCW 
        Joint Investigative Mechanism has confirmed use of aircraft to launch 
        chemical weapons attacks;
Whereas, United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley announced 
        that the United Nations Security Council would hold an emergency meeting 
        on April 5, 2017, to discuss the chemical weapons attack in Idlib 
        province: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) holds the Assad regime responsible for war crimes and 
        crimes against humanity, including its confirmed use of 
        chemical weapons;
            (2) condemns Russia for repeatedly blocking collective 
        response to Bashar al-Assad's confirmed use of chemical weapons 
        though the United Nations Security Council;
            (3) calls on the United Nations Security Council to take 
        immediate, decisive action in response to the Assad regime's 
        continued use of chemical weapons;
            (4) supports the critical work of the United Nations-
        Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Joint 
        Investigate Mechanism;
            (5) expresses alarm that the continued use of chemical 
        weapons by the Assad regime undermines the integrity of the 
        Chemical Weapons Convention;
            (6) reiterates that Bashar al-Assad has lost legitimacy as 
        Syria's leader; and
            (7) insists that Bashar al-Assad must be held accountable 
        for his war crimes and crimes against humanity.
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