Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., right, wait to speak during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, regarding developments with Iran and criticizing the Iran deal. (AP)
US Senators McCain, Graham aim to fix JASTA
The Senators propose that foreign governments would only be held liable for terrorist attacks ‘if they knowingly engage with a terrorist organization’
Two US Republican Senators - Lindsey Graham and John McCain – proposed on Wednesday an amendment to the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) that was approved by the Congress in September.
JASTA has been thrusted into the limelight after Congress overrode US President Barack Obama’s veto of the potential bill. If passed, JASTA would allow US citizens to sue Saudi Arabia over the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The Senators propose that foreign governments would only be held liable for terrorist attacks “if they knowingly engage with a terrorist organization directly or indirectly, including financing,” Graham explained.
US-based news website Politico described the “fix” as a way to “narrow the law’s scope and reduce the likelihood that it would produce retaliatory suits against the United States.”
The news does not come as a surprise as many members of Congress believe if JASTA was implemented there could be negative repercussions faced by the United States.
In early October, an Iraqi group was pressing the country’s parliament to ask for US compensation in light JASTA.
