WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today convened a hearing on the war in Yemen and efforts to resolve the three-year long conflict and combat the terrorism threat from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which controls significant territory within the country.
“With the arrival of the new administration and the new reality that is emerging on the ground, it is a good time to reexamine the conflict,” said Corker. “We must ask what more can be done to bring about a peaceful resolution and take a closer look at what the possible outcomes could mean for U.S. interests in the region.”
In addition to the threat from AQAP and the humanitarian crisis caused by the war, Corker identified the regional threat from Iran’s support of the Houthi rebels who have targeted U.S. vessels operating in the Red Sea and launched missiles into Saudi Arabia.
“Iran continues to provide arms to the Houthi forces, despite a U.N. Security Council resolution prohibiting such actions,” added Corker. “Houthis have used these weapons to attack U.S. ships off of the Yemeni coast, and they are launching missiles across the border into Saudi Arabia.”
The committee heard testimony today from a panel of experts on Middle East policy and counterterrorism, including Thomas Joscelyn, a fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; Dr. Dafna Rand, a senior research fellow at National Defense University, and Gerald M. Feierstein, former U.S. ambassador to Yemen and the director of the Center for Gulf Affairs at the Middle East Institute.
Click here for complete testimony and video footage of the hearing.
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