09 de septiembre de 2016, 15:58Washington, Sep 9 (Prensa Latina) The US House of Representatives approved unanimously today a two-party bill that would allow relatives of victims of the attacks on September 11, 2001 to suit the Government in Saudi Arabia.
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Passage of the bipartisan legislation will likely prove a pyrrhic victory as the White House has already indicated President Obama will veto the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA). That, according to some observers, reflected the fear that the legislation could make us officials the subject of lawsuits over drone strikes.
“We can no longer allow those who injure and kill Americans to hide behind legal loopholes, denying justice to the victims of terrorism”, House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, a Republican from Virginia, said. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), a sponsor of the bill, said in a statement.
“If they’ve done nothing wrong, they have nothing to worry about”, he added.
Terry Strada, national chair for 9/11 Families United For Justice Against Terrorism, disagreed that the bill could backfire as the White House has warned.
The White House also has cautioned that if the door is opened for USA citizens to take the Saudis to court, then a foreign country could in turn sue the United States.
ThinkProgress writes that the House vote sets off “a diplomatic nightmare for President Barack Obama”, as “t$3 he legislation is sure to antagonize a key US ally in the Middle East which already has tense relations with the administration”.
However, the White House threatens to veto the measure, saying it could strain relations with Saudi Arabia and lead to retaliatory laws against the USA around the world.
The administration for months has argued the legislation could harm the country’s relationship with Saudi Arabia and put USA officials stationed overseas in jeopardy. Saudi officials have denied that their government had any role in plotting the attacks.
“If any foreign government, if it can be shown to have supported a terrorist attack on US soil, American victims ought to have the right to sue that country”, Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs and Judiciary committees, said on the floor Friday.
Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.
Before the vote, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle spoke in favor of the measure, which has stirred opposition from the administration, some foreign policy experts and Saudi Arabia, which has lobbied against it. “It’s time to make this bill a reality, and I hope the President will sign it into law”.
Democrat Senator Chuck Schumer, a co-sponsor of the bill, told reporters in May that he is confident that if the bill is vetoed the Senate would be able to override it because they do not believe the White House arguments stand up.
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But two months ago Congress released 28 declassified pages from a report that reignited concerns a few of the attackers had links to Saudi government officials.
