US role in Saudi war on Yemen unconstitutional: Congressman
-
Yemeni school children walking outside a school, that was damaged in a Saudi airstrike in the southern Yemeni city of Taez
The US government’s support for Saudi Arabia in its brutal war against Yemen is “unconstitutional,” says House Representative Ro Khanna, who is working on a legislation to end the US military’s involvement in the deadly aggression.
Speaking to Democracy Now! in an interview published on Monday, the California Democrat said Washington’s military support for Saudi Arabia in forms of mid-air refueling flights and targeting intelligence had never been approved by lawmakers.
“Unfortunately, we have been aiding Saudi Arabia. We have been fueling the Saudi—refueling Saudi planes. We’ve been assisting Saudi Arabia with targeting. And none of this has been approved by the United States Congress,” said Khanna.
Earlier this month, Khanna and three other senators introduced a resolution under the War Powers Act, which gives Congress 15 days to vote on Washington’s involvement in the devastating war which has claimed the lives of over 12,000 Yemeni civilians since it began in March 2015.
While the US military started helping the Saudi-led conflict under command of then President Barack Obama, the cooperation grew dramatically larger under his successor, Donald Trump, who secured major arms deals with the oil-rich kingdom during a trip in May.
Khanna said in his interview that ordinary Americans “would be appalled” if they knew “what we were doing.”
EA
