Senate votes to end US support to Saudi-UAE coalition in Yemen

The US Senate voted on Thursday to end American military assistance to the Saudi-UAE coalition’s war on Yemen, which has killed at least 6,652 civilians, including at least 1,200 children, according to latest estimates.

The resolution, approved by 54-46 votes, seeks to end US military involvement in the conflict within 30 days.

“This war is both a humanitarian and a strategic disaster, and Congress has the opportunity to end it,” Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of the bill’s sponsors, said.

This follows the release of an extensive report this week by the Yemen-based Mwatana for Human Rights and US-based University Network for Human Rights which exposed the Saudi-led coalition’s use of US weapons in apparently unlawful attacks on civilians and civilian objects.

There has been a significant spike in weapon sales to the region in recent years. According to new data published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), arms exports to the Middle East increased by 87 per cent between 2009–13 and 2014–18.