Muslim congresswomen criticize Saudi Arabia on Yemen

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON (AA) - Congress' two Muslim female lawmakers on Tuesday called out Saudi Arabia and criticized the U.S. for supplying the kingdom with weapons for its war in Yemen.

"Saudi Arabia is consistently ranked among the worst human rights abusers in the world and is responsible for famine/cholera outbreak in Yemen. Yet it is the top buyer of U.S.-made weapons," congresswoman Ilhan Omar said in a tweet. "Why is Donald Trump siding with weapons manufacturers over human rights activists?"

U.S. lawmakers have recently taken up more efforts to criticize U.S. President Donald Trump for his continued support for Saudi Arabia’s war efforts in Yemen, which has left the country in ruins and created one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the world.

Last month, the House of Representatives voted to pass a measure to end support for the war efforts.

Saudi Arabia has been leading a coalition of countries against Yemen's Houthi rebels since 2015, when Riyadh and its Sunni-Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at rolling back Houthi gains that began in 2014.

The campaign has devastated Yemen’s infrastructure, including its health and sanitation systems, prompting the UN to describe it as one of the worst humanitarian disasters of modern times.

Omar’s tweet was in response to a post by fellow Muslim lawmaker Rashida Tlaib, who said Trump would "rather give Lockheed and the Saudis money for missiles," than provide funding to Medicare and Medicaid services.

Both congresswomen have been vocal about Saudi Arabia in the past, with Omar also saying "we need to reign in arms sales to human rights abusers like Saudi Arabia.

"I will not shy away of criticism of any government when I see injustice —whether it be Saudi Arabia, Somalia, even our own government!" she tweeted in January.