NYN | News
The British news agency Reuters reported on Friday, citing five “informed” sources, that U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has decided to lift the ban on selling offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia.
A congressional aide confirmed that the administration notified lawmakers of its decision to lift the ban this week. According to a source, the sales could resume as early as next week.
Reuters noted that lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican parties have raised concerns over sending offensive weapons to the kingdom in recent years, citing issues such as civilian casualties in Yemen and a range of human rights concerns.
Observers believe that the decision to lift the arms sales ban is related to the U.S. pushing Saudi Arabia towards military escalation against Yemen, as mentioned by officials in the Sana’a government weeks ago, as well as moves towards Saudi normalization with Israel.
