H.R. 9626 — Introduced in House

I 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 9626 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 20, 2022Mr. Khanna (for himself, Mr. Crow, Mr. Malinowski, and Ms. Jacobs of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services A BILL To require an independent report on Department of Defense practices for distinguishing between combatants and civilians in United States military operations, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Report on DoD Practices to Distinguish Between Civilians and Combatants Act of 2022. 2. Report on Department of Defense practices regarding distinction between combatants and civilians in United States military operations (a) Report The Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter into an agreement with a federally funded research and development center to prepare an independent report on Department of Defense practices regarding distinguishing between combatants and civilians in United States military operations. (b) Elements The report required under subsection (a) shall include the following matters: (1) A description of how the Department of Defense and individual members of the Armed Forces have differentiated between combatants and civilians in both ground and air operations since 2001, including in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen, including— (A) relevant policy and legal standards and how these standards were implemented in practice; (B) target engagement criteria; and (C) whether military-aged males were presumptively targetable. (2) A description of how the Department of Defense has differentiated between combatants and civilians when assessing allegations of civilian casualties since 2001, including in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen, including— (A) relevant policy and legal standards and the factual indicators these standards were applied to in assessing claims of civilian casualties; and (B) any other matters the Secretary of Defense determines appropriate. (c) Submission of report Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report setting forth an unaltered copy of the assessment under this section, together with the views of the Secretary on the assessment. (d) Definition of United States military operation In this section, the term United States military operations includes any mission, strike, engagement, raid, or incident involving United States Armed Forces.