Letter: Saudis using U.S. arms for war crimes

President Donald Trump has hailed his $100 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia as a job producer for the United States, but he turns a blind eye to what those weapons are likely to be used for.

Human Rights Watch urged Trump to reject the arms deal after a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen committed “serious violations of the laws of war.”

“Coalition aircraft have bombed crowded markets and funerals, maimed countless children, and attacked a boat filled with refugees, often using U.S.-made weapons in unlawful attacks,” said Andrea Prasow, deputy Washington director of Human Rights Watch. “Seven million people face starvation in Yemen. If the Trump administration wants to curtail U.S. support for abuses in the Muslim world, it should immediately end arms sales to Saudi Arabia and demand credible investigations of alleged laws-of-war violations.”

Roger Stone, a longtime political adviser to President Trump and one of his closest allies, said Trump’s meeting with King Salman and Saudi leaders made him “want to puke.” Instead of meeting with the Saudis, Stone tweeted that “Trump should be demanding they pay for the attack on America on 9/11 which they financed.” Fifteen of the 19 suicide terrorists that carried out the 9/11 attacks were from Saudi Arabia.

This story was originally published June 1, 2017 at 2:05 PM with the headline "Letter: Saudis using U.S. arms for war crimes."