Dozens of US
Lawmakers have urged President Barack
Obama to publicly address Saudi Arabia's "systematic
human rights violations" when he visits the kingdom Friday. With their decades-old alliance fraying amid tensions over Washington's efforts to reach a nuclear deal with Iran and its reluctance to engage more forcefully in Syria, regional issues are expected to take precedence when
Obama meets with King Abdullah on the US leader's second visit to Riyadh since taking ****** in 2009. Sixty-five members of Congress urged him to nevertheless bring up the prickly subject of
human rights in Saudi Arabia, including efforts by women activists to challenge the country's ban on female drivers. "We
urge you to combine symbolic actions with direct advocacy for
human rights reforms," the lawmakers, led by conservative Trent Franks and
rights champion Frank Wolf, wrote to the president late Wednesday.
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