Whereas the transnational Salafi-jihadi organizations ISIL and al Qaeda are utilizing the conflict in Syria and the actions of the Assad regime to recruit and mobilize fighter and popular support; Whereas the crisis in Syria has led to the creation of terrorist safe havens controlled by ISIL and al Qaeda, along with other extremist groups, which have become bases from which to plan, direct, and inspire attacks against the United States and its allies and partners; Whereas the spread of violence perpetuated by the Syrian conflict and the flow of refugees is a threat to the security of United States allies in the Middle East and Europe, placing immense domestic and humanitarian burdens on Syria’s neighbors, most notably Lebanon and Jordan, as well as Turkey and Iraq; Whereas the Syrian conflict has allowed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxies to increase their influence in parts of Syria and potentially threaten Israel’s borders; Whereas United Nations Security Council resolutions 2332 (2016), 2268 (2016), and 2139 (2014) call for the implementation of a cessation of hostilities in Syria and reaffirm the international community’s support for the immediate, direct, and uninhibited access of humanitarian workers throughout the Syrian Arab Republic; Whereas the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that the Syrian conflict has created 4,800,000 refugees and 6,600,000 internally displaced persons; Whereas widespread and systematic attacks on civilians, schools, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure, in violation of international humanitarian law, continue in Syria, in particular as result of the actions of the Assad regime and its Russian and Iranian supporters; Whereas widespread and systematic violations of the human rights of the people of Syria continue to be perpetrated by the Assad regime