(MENAFN) The US Congress is preparing to revoke the Caesar Act sanctions imposed on Syria, according to a document indicating that this measure has been incorporated into the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026.

The new legislation would erase restrictions originally established to penalize the now-overthrown government of Bashar al-Assad for alleged wartime atrocities.

A draft of the bill explicitly states: "The Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019...is hereby repealed." Before the measure can be enacted, it must still obtain approval from the House of Representatives.

Nonetheless, the annulment of these sanctions would depend on fulfilling a series of stipulations.

As outlined in the document, the US president would be obligated to submit reports to multiple congressional committees—initially within 90 days and subsequently every 180 days over a four-year span—verifying that Syria is making concrete progress toward dismantling ISIS (Daesh) and other extremist factions, upholding minority protections, refraining from military aggression toward neighboring states, countering money-laundering and terror-financing networks, prosecuting crimes against humanity committed by the previous regime, and taking action against narcotics production.

Should the president conclude across two consecutive reporting cycles that these obligations are not being satisfied, the sanctions may be reinstated.

The document additionally outlines further Syria-related clauses and considerations.

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