U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has issued a statement ahead of the upcoming Arab League summit. The senator’s comments come one year after Bashar al-Assad, whom Risch refers to as a “war criminal,” attended the same summit.
Risch expressed disappointment in Assad’s actions over the past year, stating, “As expected, he has failed to follow through on any promises he made. In the last year, the regime has deepened relations with Russia and Iran through combined military exercises, displaced roughly 195,000 Syrians through military operations, and fueled the $10 billion global illicit Captagon trade which directly funds the regime’s atrocities.”
Furthermore, Risch criticized Assad for exploiting ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza to continue his attacks against innocent Syrians. He said that Assad and his security apparatus have taken advantage of these wars.
The senator concluded by stating that Assad is beyond redemption. He praised efforts by several countries to hold Assad accountable for his actions: “Assad has demonstrated he cannot be rehabilitated. I applaud efforts by the governments of Belgium, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland to hold the regime accountable for torture and war crimes.”
Risch called on his fellow senators to take action against Assad’s regime: “The Syrian people have suffered far too long. The Senate must now step up and pass my Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act to strengthen and extend the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act.”
