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The United States stops refueling planes of the Saudi Arabian coalition engaged in Yemen, announced Saturday an initiative that would put an end to one of the most controversial aspects of the United States. US aid to the Saudi war effort.
Saudi Arabia, in a statement issued by the Saudi Official News Agency (SPA), said that it had decided to request the cessation of US air refueling for its operations in Yemen because she could now charge it alone.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Washington supports the Saudi decision.
The change comes as the US-based American journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been assassinated and Democratic and Republican lawmakers have threatened to tackle the refueling operations next week in Congress.
Critics of the Saudi campaign – including Democrats who won control of the House of Representatives on Tuesday – have long questioned the US's involvement in the war, which killed more than 10,000 people, displaced more than two million people and resulted in a widespread famine in Yemen since it began in 2015.
"I have been asking for this for over three years," said Ted Lieu, D-Calif. "We should not support the war crimes of the coalition, and look forward to continuing to monitor the role of the United States in Yemen when we will be in the majority at the next Congress."
Even though the administration of President Donald Trump has condemned the killing of Khashoggi, the White House has sought to preserve its relations with Saudi Arabia.
Any coordinated decision by Washington and Riyadh to end the refueling could be an attempt by both countries to prevent further action by the Congress.
Sens Sense Todd Young, R-Ind., And Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Had warned that the Trump administration was running out of time to act.
"If the administration does not take immediate action (…), we are ready to take further action when the Senate resumes its work," said Young and Shaheen.
The Pentagon, the State Department and the White House declined to comment.
A flawless stayMore time for bombers
Earlier this year, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis defended US military support for the Saudi coalition forces in Yemen, when lawmakers weighed in forcing the Pentagon to end Washington's commitment to the dispute.
Mattis argued that the suspension of US military support could increase the number of civilian casualties, with US refueling giving pilots more time to choose targets. He told them that cutting support could jeopardize counterterrorism cooperation and reduce US influence over Saudi Arabia.
Mattis also claimed that it would encourage Houthi rebels lined up in Iran, who fired missiles at Saudi Arabia and targeted commercial and military ships off the coast of Yemen.
Stopping the refueling could have little practical effect on the war. US officials told Reuters that only one fifth of the Saudi-led coalition aircraft needed in-flight refueling from the United States.
In recent weeks, Mattis seemed to express a growing sense of urgency to end the conflict. At the end of October, Mattis joined US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to call for a ceasefire.
