Congress to probe war in Yemen
A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of Oct. 5.
Congress shifts its attention to the war in Yemen this coming week amid rising concerns about the civilian death toll.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds a hearing Oct. 8 on the US role and stategy in Yemen and the Gulf counties. The hearing comes as the Saudi-led coalition against Houthi rebels is being blamed for killing more than 130 people in a missile strike against a wedding party Sept. 28.
The rising death toll — 4,500 people killed through late September, according to the United Nations, more than half of them civilians — is putting pressure on lawmakers to play a bigger role in overseeing US support for the coalition. The Obama administration remains supportive of the offensive against the Iran-backed rebels and declined to support Dutch calls for an independent UN probe this past week, ensuring passage of an alternative Saudi plan for a national investigation by Yemen.
In the House, the Foreign Affairs panel on the Middle East on Oct. 6 holds the first in a series of hearings on the humanitarian crisis in Syria. Witnesses include representatives from Save the Children, Mercy Corps, World Vision and the Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere.
