[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 965 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 965

  Calling for the immediate release of Ryan Corbett, a United States 
citizen, who was wrongfully detained by the Taliban on August 10, 2022, 
   and condemning the wrongful detention of Americans by the Taliban.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 16, 2024

 Ms. Tenney (for herself, Mr. Meuser, Mr. Hill, Ms. Stevens, Mr. Ryan, 
Ms. Titus, Mr. Langworthy, Mr. D'Esposito, Mr. Lawler, Mr. Morelle, Ms. 
Malliotakis, Mr. McGarvey, Mr. Thompson of California, Mr. McCaul, Mr. 
  Wilson of South Carolina, Mr. Costa, Mr. Waltz, Mr. Goldman of New 
 York, Mr. Williams of New York, Mr. Garbarino, Mr. Molinaro, Mr. Tony 
   Gonzales of Texas, Mr. Nunn of Iowa, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. 
 Newhouse, and Mr. Stauber) submitted the following resolution; which 
            was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Calling for the immediate release of Ryan Corbett, a United States 
citizen, who was wrongfully detained by the Taliban on August 10, 2022, 
   and condemning the wrongful detention of Americans by the Taliban.

Whereas United States citizen Ryan Corbett has lived a life of service, by 
        supporting humanitarian projects in Afghanistan by helping the Afghan 
        people start and operate small businesses;
Whereas Ryan Corbett moved his family to Afghanistan in 2010 to help the local 
        population and lived there for over a decade aiding the local Afghan 
        population;
Whereas in 2017, Ryan Corbett founded ``Bloom Afghanistan'' to provide 
        consulting and microloans to Afghan small businesses to help build a 
        self-sustaining local economy of Afghan small businesses;
Whereas Ryan Corbett is known to his family, friends, colleagues, and associates 
        as a loving father, as well as a kind, service-oriented man;
Whereas Ryan Corbett was forced to leave his life, community, and Afghan 
        partners behind during the August 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan 
        and the ensuing evacuation of American citizens;
Whereas in August 2022, Ryan Corbett traveled to Afghanistan for a 10-day trip 
        to check in on his business and employees and was detained by the 
        Taliban;
Whereas the Taliban detained Ryan Corbett without being charged with a crime or 
        granting him due process in any judicial proceedings;
Whereas, on October 10, 2023, Ryan Corbett was designated as wrongfully detained 
        by the Department of State;
Whereas Ryan Corbett is being held in a 9-foot by 9-foot cell with two other 
        detainees, and has been held in solitary confinement for months at a 
        time;
Whereas the Taliban has not granted Ryan Corbett any consular visits by 
        Department of State personnel;
Whereas during his detention, Ryan Corbett has only had 3 phone calls totaling 
        22 minutes with his family, and has only had 2 in-person visits with 
        representatives of the United States protecting power in Afghanistan, 
        Qatar;
Whereas three non-American individuals previously detained with Ryan Corbett 
        have been released and have reported on Ryan's conditions;
Whereas Ryan Corbett's former cellmates stated that prisoners at that facility 
        must survive on scraps of fatty meat, only have access to sunlight once 
        a month, and cannot use the bathroom without permission;
Whereas Ryan Corbett's former cellmates stated that during their captivity, Ryan 
        Corbett was suffering from seizures, fainting, and discolored 
        extremities; and
Whereas Ryan Corbett turned 40 years old during his wrongful detention, and his 
        physical and mental health is rapidly declining due to the stress and 
        harsh conditions, such that his family fears he will not survive his 
        wrongful detention: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) calls on the Taliban to immediately and unconditionally 
        release Ryan Corbett and all other American detainees;
            (2) urges the Taliban to respect Ryan Corbett's human 
        rights and to provide full, unfettered, and consistent health 
        and safety visits to Ryan Corbett while in detention;
            (3) encourages the Government of Qatar, as the protecting 
        power of the United States in Afghanistan, to continue in its 
        efforts to conduct basic health and wellness checks on Ryan 
        Corbett, thanks Qatar for its efforts thus far, and encourages 
        Qatar to be involved in securing the release of Ryan Corbett;
            (4) urges all United States executive branch officials to 
        continue to raise the case of Ryan Corbett and to press for his 
        immediate release in all interactions with the Taliban;
            (5) condemns the Taliban's practice of hostage taking and 
        demands the Taliban to stop detaining United States citizens 
        for political gain;
            (6) expresses sympathy for and solidarity with the families 
        of all other citizens and lawful permanent residents of the 
        United States wrongfully detained abroad; and
            (7) expresses support for the family of Ryan Corbett and a 
        commitment to bringing Ryan Corbett home.
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