After Dozens of Children Die, Trump Administration Faces Mounting Pressure Over Yemen War by Missy Ryan – Washington Post
Lawmakers increased pressure on the Trump administration over the war in Yemen this week after an airstrike killed dozens of children, urging officials to explain and possibly adjust U.S. support for nations waging war against rebels there.
Democratic members of the House and Senate have sent three separate letters in the past three days to officials at the Defense and State departments and in the intelligence community, asking for an accounting of American involvement in a conflict that critics say has exposed the U.S. government to claims of responsibility for thousands of civilian deaths.
Since Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other members of a mostly Arab military coalition began a campaign against Yemen’s Houthi militants in 2015, the Pentagon has conducted aerial refueling of Persian Gulf planes and provided some intelligence support.
But U.S. officials have sought to distance themselves from the operation as suffering has intensified in Yemen, where coalition pilots have repeatedly struck civilian sites and residents have fallen victim to increasing hunger and disease.
In a letter on Monday to Gen. Joseph Votel, head of U.S. Central Command, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) made reference to the bombing of a bus last Thursday in Yemen’s northern Saada province, which local officials said killed at least 40 children.
In her letter, Warren asked Votel to clarify his recent assertion that Centcom is unable to determine whether the United States assisted specific coalition flights that resulted in civilian deaths. A recent report in The Intercept alleged that U.S. intelligence officials had detailed information about one such strike..