The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) and more than 60 national advocacy groups today urged congressional leaders to end all U.S. support for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in their war against the Houthis in Yemen.
In a letter released to Congress today, the groups called on Democratic leaders in the House and Senate to ensure that three key House-passed provisions relating to Yemen are retained in the final FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), considered a must-pass bill for the Pentagon. The NDAA is currently being negotiated by a joint committee of the House and Senate.
Contact: Tim McHugh, Friends Committee on National Legislation, media@fcnl.org; 202-903-2515
“Congress has a moral obligation to end U.S. involvement in the Saudi and Emirati-led intervention in the civil war in Yemen, which has claimed the lives of 85,000 children,” said Diane Randall, FCNL executive secretary. “House and Senate negotiators must do all they can to end U.S. complicity in the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.”
Earlier this year, both the House and the Senate passed resolutions to enforce the 1973 War Powers Act by ending U.S. military participation in the Saudi and UAE-led war in Yemen and to halt arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. However, Pres. Donald Trump vetoed all these measures.
The three amendments would end U.S. support for the Yemen war by stopping logistical support and intelligence sharing for the bombing campaign, banning the sale of precision-guided munitions to Saudi Arabia and the UAE for one year, and halting spare parts and munitions transfers. The letter was addressed to Democratic leaders because none of the Republicans who supported these provisions are expected to be negotiators or conferees.
“A bipartisan majority in both houses has already made it clear they want to end U.S. involvement in this brutal war and create momentum for peace. They have the power to do so by including these provisions in this must-pass defense policy bill,” said Hassan El-Tayyab, FCNL’s legislative representative for Middle East policy. “Passing these provisions in the NDAA is an important first step towards ending the Yemen war and paving the way for a peaceful solution.”
FCNL seeks a world free of war and all threats of war. Peace and security can only be achieved by peaceful means.
