US House of Representatives approves bill to sue Saudi Government

A bipartisan bill that allows families of the 11 September attacks to sue the Saudi Government was approved by voice vote in the US House of Representatives Friday, Associated Press reported Friday.

The Obama administration has cautioned that if US citizens can take the Saudis to court, then a foreign country could in turn sue the United States. There also is apprehension the bill would undermine a longstanding yet strained relationship with a critical US ally in the Middle East.

Votes from two-thirds of the members in the House and Senate would be needed to override a veto. President Obama has threatened to veto the bill.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia, which was preparing for the annual hajj pilgrimage beginning Saturday.

Under the legislation sent on to Obama, victims’ families would be given the right to sue in US court for any role that elements of the Saudi government may have played in the 2001 attacks that killed thousands in New York, Washington, DC, and Pennsylvania. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were believed to be Saudi nationals.