Syria Detainee and Displaced Persons Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4078 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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 13, 2023 Mr. PHILLIPS (for himself, Mr. GREEN of Tennessee, Mr. MOULTON, and Mr. GALLAGHER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 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 popu- lations in Syria, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Syria Detainee and 4 Displaced Persons Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 4078 IH SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF ESTABLISHMENT OF COORDI- 1 NATOR FOR DETAINED ISIS MEMBERS AND 2 RELEVANT POPULATIONS IN SYRIA. 3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 4 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON- 5 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con- 6 gress’’ means— 7 (A) the Committee on Armed Services, the 8 Committee on Foreign Relations, the Com- 9 mittee on the Judiciary, the Committee on 10 Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Se- 11 lect Committee on Intelligence, the Committee 12 on Appropriations, and the Committee on 13 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 14 of the Senate; and 15 (B) the Committee on Armed Services, the 16 Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee 17 on the Judiciary, the Committee on Financial 18 Services, the Permanent Select Committee on 19 Intelligence, the Committee on Appropriations, 20 and the Committee on Homeland Security of 21 the House of Representatives. 22 (2) ISIS MEMBER.—The term ‘‘ISIS member’’ 23 means a person who was part of, or substantially 24 supported, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 4078 IH (3) SENIOR COORDINATOR.—The term ‘‘Senior 1 Coordinator’’ means the coordinator for detained 2 ISIS members and relevant displaced populations in 3 Syria designated under subsection (a) of section 4 1224 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 5 Fiscal Year 2020 (Public Law 116–92; 133 Stat. 6 1642), as amended by subsection (d). 7 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.— 8 It is the sense of Congress that— 9 (A) ISIS detainees held by the Syrian 10 Democratic Forces and ISIS-affiliated individ- 11 uals located within displaced persons camps in 12 Syria pose a significant and growing humani- 13 tarian challenge and security threat to the re- 14 gion; 15 (B) the vast majority of individuals held in 16 displaced persons camps in Syria are women 17 and children, approximately 50 percent of 18 whom are under the age of 12 at the al-Hol 19 camp, and they face significant threats of vio- 20 lence and radicalization, as well as lacking ac- 21 cess to adequate sanitation and health care fa- 22 cilities; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 4078 IH (C) there is an urgent need to seek a sus- 1 tainable solution to such camps through repa- 2 triation and reintegration of the inhabitants; 3 (D) the United States should work closely 4 with international allies and partners to facili- 5 tate the repatriation and reintegration efforts 6 required to provide a long-term solution for 7 such camps and prevent the resurgence of ISIS; 8 and 9 (E) if left unaddressed, such camps will 10 continue to be drivers of instability that jeop- 11 ardize the long-term prospects for peace and 12 stability in the region. 13 (c) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 14 United States that— 15 (1) ISIS-affiliated individuals located within 16 displacement camps in Syria, and other inhabitants 17 of displacement camps in Syria, be repatriated and, 18 where appropriate, prosecuted, or where possible, re- 19 integrated into their country of origin, consistent 20 with all relevant domestic laws and applicable inter- 21 national laws prohibiting refoulement; and 22 (2) the camps will be closed as soon as is prac- 23 ticable. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 4078 IH (d) MODIFICATION OF ESTABLISHMENT OF COORDI- 1 NATOR FOR DETAINED ISIS MEMBERS AND RELEVANT 2 DISPLACED POPULATIONS IN SYRIA.—Section 1224 of the 3 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 4 (Public Law 116–92; 133 Stat. 1642) is amended— 5 (1) by striking subsection (a); 6 (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol- 7 lows: 8 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION.— 9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President, in consulta- 10 tion with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of 11 Defense, the Director of National Intelligence, the 12 Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the 13 United States Agency for International Develop- 14 ment, and the Attorney General, shall designate an 15 existing official in the Department of State to serve 16 within the executive branch as senior-level coordi- 17 nator to coordinate, in conjunction with other rel- 18 evant agencies, matters related to ISIS members 19 who are in the custody of the Syrian Democratic 20 Forces and other relevant displaced populations in 21 Syria, including— 22 ‘‘(A) by engaging foreign partners to sup- 23 port the repatriation and disposition of such in- 24 dividuals, including by encouraging foreign 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 4078 IH partners to repatriate, transfer, investigate, and 1 prosecute such ISIS members, and share infor- 2 mation; 3 ‘‘(B) coordination of all multilateral and 4 international engagements led by the Depart- 5 ment of State and other agencies that are re- 6 lated to the current and future handling, deten- 7 tion, and prosecution of such ISIS members; 8 ‘‘(C) the funding and coordination of the 9 provision of technical and other assistance to 10 foreign countries to aid in the successful inves- 11 tigation and prosecution of such ISIS members, 12 as appropriate, in accordance with relevant do- 13 mestic laws, international humanitarian law, 14 and other internationally recognized human 15 rights and rule of law standards; 16 ‘‘(D) coordination of all multilateral and 17 international engagements related to humani- 18 tarian access and provision of basic services to, 19 and freedom of movement and security and safe 20 return of, displaced persons at camps or facili- 21 ties in Syria that hold family members of such 22 ISIS members; 23 ‘‘(E) coordination with relevant agencies 24 on matters described in this section; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 4078 IH ‘‘(F) any other matter the President con- 1 siders relevant. 2 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—If, on the date 3 of the enactment of the Syria Detainee and Dis- 4 placed Persons Act, an individual has already been 5 designated, consistent with the requirements and re- 6 sponsibilities described in paragraph (1), the re- 7 quirements under that paragraph shall be considered 8 to be satisfied with respect to such individual until 9 the date on which such individual no longer serves 10 as the Senior Coordinator.’’; 11 (3) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘subsection 12 (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 13 (4) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘subsection 14 (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 15 (5) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘January 31, 16 2021’’ and inserting ‘‘January 31, 2028’’; 17 (6) in subsection (f)— 18 (A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 19 paragraph (3); 20 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 21 following new paragraph (2): 22 ‘‘(2) SENIOR COORDINATOR.—The term ‘Senior 23 Coordinator’ means the individual designated under 24 subsection (a).’’; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 4078 IH (C) by adding at the end the following new 1 paragraph: 2 ‘‘(4) RELEVANT AGENCIES.—The term ‘relevant 3 agencies’ means— 4 ‘‘(A) the Department of State; 5 ‘‘(B) the Department of Defense; 6 ‘‘(C) the Department of the Treasury; 7 ‘‘(D) the Department of Justice; 8 ‘‘(E) the United States Agency for Inter- 9 national Development; 10 ‘‘(F) the Office of the Director of National 11 Intelligence; and 12 ‘‘(G) any other agency the President con- 13 siders relevant.’’; and 14 (7) by redesignating subsections (c) through (f) 15 as subsections (b) through (e), respectively. 16 (e) STRATEGY ON ISIS-RELATED DETAINEE AND 17 DISPLACEMENT CAMPS IN SYRIA.— 18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 19 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec- 20 retary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of 21 Defense, the Director of National Intelligence, the 22 Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the 23 United States Agency for International Develop- 24 ment, and the Attorney General, shall submit to the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 4078 IH appropriate committees of Congress an interagency 1 strategy with respect to ISIS-affiliated individuals 2 and ISIS-related detainee and other displaced per- 3 sons camps in Syria. 4 (2) ELEMENTS.—The strategy required by 5 paragraph (1) shall include— 6 (A) methods to address— 7 (i) disengagement from and preven- 8 tion of recruitment into violence, violent 9 extremism, and other illicit activity in such 10 camps; 11 (ii) efforts to encourage and facilitate 12 repatriation and, as appropriate, investiga- 13 tion and prosecution of foreign nationals 14 from such camps, consistent with all rel- 15 evant domestic and applicable international 16 laws; 17 (iii) the return and reintegration of 18 displaced Syrian and Iraqi women and 19 children into their communities of origin; 20 (iv) international engagement to de- 21 velop processes for repatriation and re- 22 integration of foreign nationals from such 23 camps; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 4078 IH (v) contingency plans for the reloca- 1 tion of detained and displaced persons who 2 are not able to be repatriated from such 3 camps; 4 (vi) efforts to improve the humani- 5 tarian conditions in such camps, including 6 through the delivery of medicine, psycho- 7 social support, clothing, education, and im- 8 proved housing; and 9 (vii) assessed humanitarian and secu- 10 rity needs of all camps and detainment fa- 11 cilities based on prioritization of such 12 camps and facilities most at risk of hu- 13 manitarian crises, external attacks, or in- 14 ternal violence; 15 (B) an assessment of— 16 (i) rehabilitation centers in northeast 17 Syria, including humanitarian conditions 18 and processes for admittance and efforts to 19 improve both humanitarian conditions and 20 admittance processes for such centers and 21 camps, as well as on the prevention of 22 youth radicalization; and 23 (ii) processes for being sent to, and 24 resources directed towards, rehabilitation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 4078 IH centers and programs in countries that re- 1 ceive returned ISIS affiliated individuals, 2 with a focus on the prevention of 3 radicalization of minor children; 4 (C) a plan to improve, in such camps— 5 (i) security conditions, including by 6 training of personnel and through con- 7 struction; and 8 (ii) humanitarian conditions; 9 (D) a framework for measuring progress of 10 humanitarian, security, and repatriation efforts 11 with the goal of closing such camps; and 12 (E) any other matter the Secretary of 13 State considers appropriate. 14 (3) FORM.—The strategy required by para- 15 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but 16 may include a classified annex that is transmitted 17 separately. 18 (f) ANNUAL INTERAGENCY REPORT.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 20 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and not 21 less frequently than annually thereafter through 22 January 31, 2028, the Senior Coordinator, in co- 23 ordination with the relevant agencies, shall submit to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 4078 IH the appropriate committees of Congress a detailed 1 report that includes the following: 2 (A) A detailed description of the facilities 3 and camps where detained ISIS members, and 4 families with perceived ISIS affiliation, are 5 being held and housed, including— 6 (i) a description of the security and 7 management of such facilities and camps; 8 (ii) an assessment of resources re- 9 quired for the security of such facilities 10 and camps; 11 (iii) an assessment of the adherence 12 by the operators of such facilities and 13 camps to international humanitarian law 14 standards; and 15 (iv) an assessment of children held 16 within such facilities and camps that may 17 be used as part of smuggling operations to 18 evade security at the facilities and camps. 19 (B) A description of all efforts undertaken 20 by, and the resources needed for, the United 21 States Government to address deficits in the 22 humanitarian environment and security of such 23 facilities and camps. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:52 Jul 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4078.IH H4078 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 13 •HR 4078 IH (C) A description of all multilateral and 1 international engagements related to humani- 2 tarian access and provision of basic services to, 3 and freedom of movement and security and safe 4 return of, displaced persons at camps or facili- 5 ties in Iraq, Syria, and any other area affected 6 by ISIS activity, including a description of— 7 (i) support for efforts by the Syrian 8 Democratic Forces to [Text truncated for display. 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