CALLING FOR THE END OF THE SYRIAN CIVIL WAR AND FOR PRESIDENT BASHAR AL-ASSAD TO STEP ASIDE

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CALLING FOR THE END OF THE SYRIAN CIVIL WAR AND FOR PRESIDENT BASHAR

AL-ASSAD TO STEP ASIDE

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HON. STEVE CHABOT

of ohio

in the house of representatives

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mark the seventh anniversary

of the Syrian people's demand for democracy, which began on March 15,

2011.

As a senior Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I have

watched President Bashar al-Assad commit a catalogue of the most

barbaric crimes during seven years of civil war. These include his use

of chemical weapons against civilians, his mass imprisonment and murder

of his own citizens, and his deliberate shelling of noncombatants. His

violence has created a catastrophic refugee crisis, and the death toll

from his brutal war is in the hundreds of thousands.

Worse, Russia and Iran have been keen to expand their influence in

Syria\\--no matter the human cost. Not only has Vladimir Putin propped up

Assad militarily, but he has provided diplomatic cover for Assad's

crimes. Further, Tehran has entrenched itself in Syria by mobilizing

and training numerous proxy fighters. This expanded influence

undermines American interests, threatens Israel, and further

destabilizes the Middle East.

I encourage the Administration to work with Congress and our allies

to bring this war to a needed conclusion; one that transitions Syria

into a post-Assad future.

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