Washington, D.C. May 26, 2017 – U.S. Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) released the following statements after their Syrian War Crimes Accountability Act was passed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“For over six years, Bashar al-Assad has committed horrific war crimes against the Syrian people, including women and children,” said Rubio, chairman of the Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights, And Global Women’s Issues. “Committee passage is another step towards ensuring accountability for the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Syria against innocent civilians. I urge the full Senate to consider this legislation without delay, so that those responsible for the repeated use of chemical weapons and other atrocities against the Syrian people are held accountable.”
“The United States and the international community must promote justice and accountability by providing assistance to train investigators, document evidence, and develop legal options to hold abusers in Syria accountable for war crimes and the brutal victimization of the Syrian people over the last six years,” said Cardin, Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “This bill will be an important step forward in ensuring accountability for these horrific crimes, and I thank Senator Rubio and my colleagues for advancing the bill out of Committee and look forward to full Senate consideration as soon as possible.”
Rubio and Cardin introduced the legislation with Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Bob Corker (R-TN), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), and Todd Young (R-IN) last month.
