On September 11, 2020, Ali Soufan, Founder of The Soufan Center, participated in a virtual hearing assessing the U.S.-Saudi security and intelligence relationship. The hearing was convened by the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI). The hearing was organized to sharpen the Committee’s oversight and inform future legislation on related topics by shedding light on: the benefits of U.S.-Saudi counterterrorism cooperation and the Kingdom’s role in propagating extremist ideologies that have been central to the rise of violent extremism across the globe; how recent Saudi regional policies, to include the Saudi-led war in Yemen, have helped or hindered U.S. national security objectives; and growing public evidence that the Saudi security services, under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, are engaged in a global campaign to intimidate and silence critics of the Saudi government, including American citizens.
Witness List:
- Dr. Agnes Callamard: Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, The United Nations
- Mr. Bruce Riedel: Senior Fellow and Director of the Intelligence Project, The Brookings Institution
- Mr. Ali Soufan: Founder, The Soufan Center