The Problems of Partnering with Yemen

[IndianaGreen]

The Problems of Partnering with Yemen

By Peter Bouckaert and Christoph Wilcke, April 7, 2010

The March capture in San`a of a New Jersey man with alleged ties to al-Qaeda has renewed public concern over potential threats of terrorism from Yemen. On March 14 and 15, Yemen's air force again carried out airstrikes against what the government said were terrorist hideouts in Abyan province, in the south of the country. But as in other countries where terrorist organizations coexist with corrupt and repressive central governments and home-grown insurgencies, the fight against terrorism in Yemen is fraught with the pitfalls that come with a rampant disregard for human rights.

A year ago, the Saudi and Yemeni al-Qaeda branches merged into al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. This group has carried out several spectacular attacks, at home and abroad, over the past nine months. Last August, it wounded Saudi Arabia's chief counterterrorism official in an assassination attempt, and in November it killed several top Yemeni security officials. Then the group claimed responsibility for the failed plot to blow up a U.S. airliner over Detroit on Christmas Day.

The United States and other countries trying to combat this group should tread carefully when relying on Yemen's government to do the heavy lifting. An exclusively military counter-terrorism focus using airstrikes may alienate local allies, as in Afghanistan. One lesson in counterterrorism from Afghanistan and Pakistan is that armed militant groups thrive when the government does not enjoy the support of its people.

http://www.fpif.org/articles/the_problems_of_partnering_with_yemen