Bernie Sanders slams US support for 'despotic' Saudi Arabia in Yemen and bashes Trump over Khashoggi: 'No more! Enough death. Enough killing.'
- Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday slammed the US support for Saudi Arabia in the Yemen conflict.
- "No more! Enough death. Enough killing. Enough destruction," Sanders said.
- The conflict in Yemen, a fight between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and a Saudi-led coalition, has claimed thousands of lives.
- The Vermont senator also ripped into President Donald Trump for standing by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday slammed US its support for Saudi Arabia in the conflict in Yemen.
The independent Vermont senator said it was time for the US to send a message to the world it will not "continue to support a catastrophic war led by a despotic regime that has a dangerous, destructive, and irresponsible" military policies.
"No more! Enough death. Enough killing. Enough destruction," Sanders said. "The time is now to tell Saudi Arabia that we are not committing to partner with them in this horrific crisis."
Sanders, the 2016 Democratic presidential candidate, is pushing for the Senate to adopt a resolution ending US support for Saudi Arabia in Yemen alongside Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy and Republican Sen. Mike Lee.
The Senate was set to vote on the resolution later Wednesday.
Sanders in his remarks before the vote characterized the US's role in Yemen as "unconstitutional" given that Congress had not weighed in on the matter. He said Congress had long "abdicated" its responsibility regarding war powers as outlined in the US Constitution, saying it was time for this to change.
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The conflict in Yemen, a fight between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and a Saudi-led coalition, has claimed thousands of lives. After several years of fighting, the war has claimed nearly 58,000 lives, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. Famine and disease have also been a byproduct of the war.
The US has provided military assistance to Saudi Arabia throughout the conflict, primarily through arms sales and logistical support. In August, a US-made bomb was dropped on a school bus in Yemen, killing dozens of children. Sanders mentioned the incident Wednesday as he decried US complicity in the conflict.
The Vermont senator also ripped into President Donald Trump for standing by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the midst of both the war and the ongoing controversy over the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Khashoggi, who was often critical of the crown prince and the royal family in his writing, was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2. The CIA has reportedly concluded with "high confidence" his killing was ordered by the crown prince, but Trump has continued to stand by the crown prince.
"President Trump rejected the findings of the CIA's assessment," Sanders said. "Sadly, President Trump continues to proclaim his love and affection for the Saudi regime."