An investigation by CNN earlier this month has uncovered reports that Saudi Arabia and its ally, the UAE, have transferred American-made weapons to Al-Qaeda linked fighters Sunni Muslim, and other factions waging war in Yemen. The Saudi-led coalition have been using the US-manufactured weapons as a form of currency to buy the loyalties of militias and influence the complex political landscape, according to local commanders and analysts. In doing so they are breaking the terms of its arms sales with the US.
A US defence official confirmed there was an ongoing investigation into the issue.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has recently announced her 2020 presidential bid, has issued a letter demanding President Trump’s administration explains CNN’s report.
She said: “If this report is true, it raises serious concerns that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other governments have violated their end user agreements with the United States by diverting American weapons to terrorists and other extremists without prior authorisation from the United States.”
As well as using US weapons, the militias are also alleged to possess US-made Oshkosh armoured vehicles.
Anti-tank guided missiles may also have been sold to militias with Al-Qaeda links.
Relations between the US and Saudi became strained after the murder of US journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October last year.
Ms Warren has been a vocal critic of Mr Trump’s sympathetic tendencies towards Saudi Arabia, the biggest importer of US weapons, after the US President sided with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s claim they were not involved in Mr Khashoggi’s death.
Mr Trumps’s statement, issued in November, was in defiance of the CIA which reportedly concluded that the Saudi prince ordered the killing.
On Friday, Ms Warren called for further action against the country.
She tweeted: “Saudi Arabia brutally murdered a journalist in its own consulate and bombed Yemeni civilians with US-armed warplanes.
“And if that wasn’t bad enough, it also may have transferred US weapons to violent extremists.
“It’s time to start holding Saudi Arabia accountable.”