Senate fails to override Trump veto on Saudi-led war in Yemen

This April 10, 2019, file photo shows a view of the site of an airstrike by Saudi-led coalition in Sanaa, Yemen. A U.N.-commissioned report says the war in Yemen has set back its development by more than 20 years. The study commissioned by the U.N. Development Program found that if the war ends this year, it will have caused economic losses of $88.8 billion. | AP Photo/Hani Mohammed, File

WASHINGTON — The Senate has failed to overturn President Donald Trump’s veto of legislation that would have ended U.S. military assistance for the Saudi-led war in Yemen against Iran-backed rebels.

Congress has grown uneasy with Trump’s close relationship with Saudi Arabia as he seeks to further isolate Iran. But the Senate’s 53-45 vote to override the veto fell short of the required two-thirds.

The U.S. is providing logistical support and intelligence-sharing for a war that’s killed thousands of civilians and left millions more on the brink of famine.

When explaining the veto, the White House said that support doesn’t constitute engaging in hostilities.

Opposition to the war gained strength in Congress last year after Saudi agents killed Jamal Khashoggi, a commentator who’d lived in the U.S. and written critically about the kingdom.