The Donald Trump administration sanctioned 17 Saudi officials for killing journalist Jamal Khashoggi this week, but Congress wants to go further. Shortly after the announcement, a bipartisan group of six senators introduced legislation to sanction members of the Saudi royal family for their role in Khashoggi’s murder.
The bill also takes aim at the Saudi-led coalition’s war against Yemen’s Houthi rebels by banning US refueling of coalition planes, suspending weapons sales to Riyadh and placing sanctions on any actor — Saudi or Houthi — blocking humanitarian aid.
Why it matters: Immediately after the Trump administration announced the sanctions on Thursday, key senators from both parties said the United States needed to do more to hold Saudi Arabia accountable. The bill indirectly targets Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who many lawmakers believe ordered Khashoggi’s murder, by amending a human rights law to sanction “any individual of the government of Saudi Arabia or member of the royal family” involved in the journalist’s death.
Bipartisan traction: Defense hawk Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., introduced the bill alongside the top Democrats on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Bob Menendez, D-N.J., giving the bill a better chance of passing than previous actions against the Saudis. Yemen war critics Sens. Todd Young, R-Ind., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., are also sponsoring the legislation.
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