US Congress to repeal Caesar Act sanctions on Syria, document shows

The legislation would remove restrictions designed to punish the now-deposed regime of Bashar al-Assad for war crimes.

“The Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019…is hereby repealed,” the draft document states.

The bill requires approval from the House of Representatives before becoming law.

However, the repeal would be conditional on several requirements.

According to the document, the US president must report to various congressional committees initially within 90 days, then every 180 days for four years, certifying that Syria is taking tangible steps to eliminate ISIS (Daesh) and other terrorist groups, that minority rights are respected, that the country is not engaging in military action against neighbors, that it is combating money laundering and terrorism financing, that it is prosecuting crimes against humanity committed by the former regime and taking steps to combat drug production.

If the president determines over two reporting periods that these conditions are not being met, sanctions can be reimposed on the country.

The document also includes additional provisions related to Syria.

According to one section, the US Defense Department must submit reports to Congress on ISIS detention facilities in Syria.

Additionally, the Defense Department, together with US Central Command, is required to provide a report on the status of the conditions-based consolidation of US force posture, basing locations and activities in Syria.

Enacted in 2019, the Caesar Act imposed sweeping secondary sanctions blocking US and foreign entities from engaging with Syria’s government or reconstruction, targeting Assad’s human rights abuses and chemical weapons use.

A series of US sanctions have already been lifted, including the delisting of senior Syrian officials from UN and US terror-related sanctions. The lifting of remaining sanctions requires congressional action, though the administration can waive them for 180-day periods, as it did in November.

President Donald Trump began the process of lifting US sanctions following a meeting with Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia in May. He announced the lifting of sanctions after the meeting and subsequently issued an executive order to formally remove comprehensive US sanctions in June.

The US State Department supported the new Syrian government by revoking the Foreign Terrorist Organization designation of the al-Nusrah Front, also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, in July and removing Sharaa from the Specially Designated Global Terrorist list on Nov. 7.

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