US lifting ban on offensive arms sales to Riyadh as Yemen truce holds

The Biden administration has decided to lift a ban on US sales of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, three sources familiar with the matter tell Reuters, reversing a three-year-old policy to pressure the kingdom to wind down the Yemen war.

The administration briefed Congress this week on its decision to lift the ban, a congressional aide says. A source says sales could resume as early as next week.

“The Saudis have met their end of the deal, and we are prepared to meet ours, returning these cases regular order through appropriate congressional notification and consultation,” a senior Biden administration official says.

Since March 2022 — when the Saudis and Houthis entered into a UN-led truce — there have not been any Saudi airstrikes in Yemen and cross-border fire from Yemen into the Kingdom has largely stopped, the administration official says.