In rebuke to Trump, US Congress blocks Saudi arms sales
Washington: The US House voted Wednesday to block USD 8.1 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other allies, a rebuke of Donald Trump that will likely lead to a veto by the president.
Lawmakers, many of whom are outraged with the kingdom over Riyadh's role in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year, approved three resolutions that would prevent the controversial sales announced under emergency measures earlier this year by Trump.
The resolutions blocking the sales have already cleared the US Senate, and now go to the White House, where Trump is expected to issue a veto, the third of his presidency. While the House blocked the sales with a comfortable majority, it was about 50 votes shy of the two-thirds needed to override Trump's veto.
Trump is seeking 22 separate sales of aircraft support maintenance, precision-guided munitions and other weapons and equipment to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan at a moment of heightened tensions in the Middle East.
Critics say the arms sales would aggravate the devastating war in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia is leading a US-backed coalition in a battle against the Iranian-supported Huthi rebels, and which the UN said has triggered the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
"When we see what's going on in Yemen, it's so important for the United States to take a stand," House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Eliot Engel said on the House floor.
The veteran Democrat concurred that the threats from the Iranian-backed Huthis were real, "but that doesn't mean we should just look the other way in the face of violence and the slaughter of civilians."
Trump's administration took the extraordinary step of bypassing Congress to approve the sale in May, as his administration declared Iran to be a "fundamental threat" to the stability of the Middle East.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said the administration was responding to an emergency caused by Saudi Arabia's arch foe rival Iran, which backs the Huthi rebels in Yemen.
Lawmakers including some Senate Republicans have said there were no legitimate grounds to circumvent Congress, which has the right to disapprove arms sales.
Last month Senator Lindsey Graham delivered a stinging rebuke of the arms sales and Riyadh, saying he hoped the vote would "send a signal to Saudi Arabia that if you act the way you're acting, there is no space for a strategic relationship."
The senator was referring to last year's brutal murder of Khashoggi in Turkey at the hands of Saudi agents, an incident that triggered a full-blown crisis in Riyadh's relations with the West.
But Michael McCaul, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, criticized the resolutions as "dangerous" at a time Iran is expanding its reach.
"Iran is stretching its tentacles of terror across the Middle East," he said in a statement. "If we allow them to succeed, terrorism will flourish, instability will reign, and the security of our allies, like Israel, will be threatened," he added.
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AAP questions BJP on continuing alliance with JD(S) after 'sex scandal'
New Delhi, Apr 29: AAP on Monday called the alleged sex scandal involving Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna of the JD(S) "worse than the Nithari serial murders" and questioned why the BJP did not sever ties with the southern party after the incident came to light.
Prajwal Revanna is the BJP-JD(S) alliance candidate from Hassan, which went to the polls on April 26.
The 33-year-old is the son of HD Revanna, former prime minister and JD(S) patriarch HD Deve Gowda's eldest son.
HD Revanna is currently an MLA and a former minister.
Some explicit video clips allegedly involving Prajwal Revanna were circulated in Hassan in recent days.
A case of sexual harassment and stalking was registered on Sunday against HD Revanna and Prajwal Revanna on a complaint by their cook.
She alleged that four months after she started working for them, HD Revanna began to sexually harass her and Prajwal Revanna made video calls to her daughter and had "vulgar conversations" with her.
Former Delhi Commission for Women chief and AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal appealed to the Election Commission to disqualify Prajwal Revanna and demanded that re-polling be conducted in the constituency.
"I am shocked how a man can be such a beast! He fled to Germany as soon as the elections were over! On whose behest did this man leave the country? I appeal to the Indian government that wherever this man is hiding in the world, he should be dragged to the country and strict action should be taken against him," she said in a statement.
"I also appeal to the Election Commission of India that this matter is so disgusting, it is such a big sex scandal that he should be disqualified from the elections and re-polling should be conducted on his seat," she said.
JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy on Monday said there is no question of defending his nephew over the allegations and the party will take "merciless action" if the special investigation team probe proves the charges.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh questioned how Prajwal Revanna was allowed to flee the country.
"This is worse than the Nithari scandal. A former prime minister's grandson is involved in the matter. This is an incident of harassment and exploitation of women and I am surprised that the prime minister is silent," he said.
Calling Revanna's actions "height of bestiality", he said it was an extremely "shameful incident".
"What action should be taken in the matter? How did he flee the country? The prime minister should speak on it. How is JD(S) still a part of the NDA (National Democratic Alliance)? You speak about 'Beti Bachao' and women's safety. Women have been subjected to inhuman behaviour. This is one of the biggest rape scandals in the country," he said.
The Karnataka government has constituted a special investigation team to probe into the alleged sexual abuse of hundreds of women by the MP.
Stating that such incidents cause embarrassment to society as a whole, Kumaraswamy said there is no question of defending anyone.
"Wrong is wrong, irrespective of who has committed it," he said.
