1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protection of Civilians in Military Operations Act . 2. Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress— (1) to commend the Department of Defense for the measures it has implemented and is currently implementing to prevent, mitigate, track, investigate, learn from, respond to, and report civilian casualties resulting from United States military operations; (2) to agree with the Department that civilian casualties are a tragic and unavoidable part of war, and to recognize that— (A) the Department endeavors to conduct all military operations in compliance with the international law of armed conflict and the laws of the United States, including distinction, proportionality, and the requirement to take feasible precautions in planning and conducting operations to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and other protected persons and objects; and (B) the protection of civilians and other protected persons and objects, in addition to a legal obligation and a strategic interest, is a moral and ethical imperative; (3) that the Department has submitted to Congress three successive annual reports on civilian casualties resulting from United States military operations for calendar years 2017, 2018, and 2019, and has updated reports as appropriate; and (4) to recognize the efforts of the Department, both in policy and in practice, to reduce the harm to civilians and other protected persons and objects resulting from United States military operations, and to encourage the Department to make additional progress in— (A) developing at all combatant commands personnel and offices responsible for advising the commanders of such commands, and integrating into command strategy, the promotion of observance of human rights and the protection of civilians and other protected persons and objects