Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the Republican Senator Bob Corker, introduced a joint resolution condemning Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the Saudi journalist’s death. The resolution states the Senate “believe Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salam is responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi” and “calls for the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to ensure appropriate accountability for all those responsible for Jamal Khasoggi’s murder”. The US Senate backed a resolution today, December 13, to end US military support for the Saudi Arabian-led war in Yemen showing their anger over the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The vote was the first time either chamber of Congress had backed a move to withdraw US forces from a foreign military engagement under the War Powers Act.
The resolution shows the lawmakers are willing to publicly criticise President Donald Trump and his pledge to stand by Saudi Arabia.
Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist, was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2.
Although the CIA has blamed the killing on the crown prince, Mr Trump has not agreed.
In an Oval Office interview, Mr Trump said of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman: “He’s the leader of Saudi Arabi. They’ve been a very good ally.”
But in a stunning rebuke of President Trump’s stance, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said: “You have to be wilfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organised by people under the command of MBS and that he was intrinsically involved in the demise of Mr Khashoggi.”
At first the Saudi Arabian government denied the death saying the journalist left the consulate alive.
But the kingdom later they admitted Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate, claiming he had been strangled to death after a fight broke out.
On December 11 Khashoggi was named Time Magazine’s person of the year for his work in journalism.