Senate puzzles out how to punish Saudi Arabia ahead of unprecedented vote
An overwhelming majority of senators want to punish Riyadh for murdering Jamal Khashoggi and because of the Yemen war. The question is how.
An overwhelming bipartisan majority of senators wants to retaliate against Saudi Arabia for murdering journalist Jamal Khashoggi, arguing that President Donald Trump’s response has been insufficient.
But with a historic vote looming next week, Congress has yet to coalesce around a consensus solution and a wide array of options remain open.
“There’s three different efforts,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., told Al-Monitor. “There’s no effort to combine those efforts. But it’s all going very well.”
The most immediate track does not deal directly with Khashoggi’s murder and instead takes aim at the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen. Early next week the Senate is set to hold an unprecedented vote over ending US support for the war.
