WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US military aid to the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen is of dubious legality because congressional authorizations to use military force (AUMF) are directed at Islamist terror, while the Yemen conflict is a war involving two rivaling branches of Islam, according to a report by the private intelligence firm Soufan Group.
(6/6) The fact that the U.S.-backed war in Yemen is helping al-Qaeda may have pushed Congress to reassert its long-dormant war powers https://t.co/adNkUMEJfT
— The Soufan Group (@TheSoufanGroup) 15 ноября 2017 г.
"The current war in Yemen has nothing to do with al-Qaeda, and is actually one of the more damaging steps the United States has taken in its counter-terrorism struggle since the invasion of Iraq," the report stated.
On November 13, the US House of Representatives expressed a similar view with a resolution stating that US military actions in Yemen were not authorized by congressional AUMF resolutions in 2001 and 2003 to fight terrorism and invade Iraq.
The bill, House Congressional Resolution 81, would bar the US military from participating in any military action, including support for any side, in the Yemeni Civil War except operations against al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
(1/6) On November 13, the U.S. House of Representatives had a remarkable show of unity https://t.co/adNkUMEJfT
— The Soufan Group (@TheSoufanGroup) 15 ноября 2017 г.
"The resolution was a warning shot to the Trump administration, as it follows two previous administrations in the steady spread of persistent US combat engagements," the Soufan report explained.
The non-binding resolution passed with overwhelming bipartisan support on a 366-30 vote.
The report called US support for the Saudi-led coalition one of the least justifiable US military operations since the Iraq war, both in terms of US national interest and the destruction being rained on the country.
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The United States, Saudi Arabia and Sunni Arab allies in the Persian Gulf region are fighting to defeat Houthi rebels, who control the Yemeni capital of Sanaa and much of the country. The Houthis adhere to the Shiite branch of Islam.
The decision by the US House of Representatives, comes in the wake of the recent Yemeni Houthi rebels' missile launch targeting Saudi Arabia. US President Donald Trump, commented on the attack, expressing Washington's support for the Saudi-led coalition.
