British Home Secretary under Fire for Not Apologizing UK Arms Sale to Saudi Arabia
Local Editor
The British Home Secretary, Amber Rudd, came under fire as she suggested that arms sales to Saudi Arabia are strengthening the British defense industry while refusing to consider the multibillion deals as controversial.
Rudd made the comments while standing in for Prime Minister Theresa May at a live BBC debate for the leaders of seven British political parties.
May had faced criticism for her decision to not take part in the event.
During an often-fractious debate, Rudd was asked about Britain's arms deal with the Middle Eastern state by Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas.
"I will make no apology for being a government that wants to defend this country," said Rudd. "We will make sure that our defense budget is well-funded and we will do that by having a strong economy and make sure we can do that by having a strong industry."
"Saudi has the right," she added, as others began to interject.
In the Yemen, more than 10,000 have been martyred and millions more displaced following the Saudi-led aggression against the most impoverished Middle Eastern country.
Meanwhile, the UK has continued to sell arms to the Saudi regime, sending more than £3 billion of weapons to the kingdom since the conflict in Yemen began in March 2015.
A UK parliamentary committee said it was likely British weapons had been used in Yemen.
Some viewers were outraged at Rudd's stance on the issue.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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