Fifty Yemeni members of parliament have signed a petition calling on Rashad al Alimi, the deputy prime minister for defence and security, to explain himself after apparently lying to parliament about American airstrikes in Yemen that killed dozens of civilians.

According to a Wikileaks document, at a meeting with Centcom commander David Petraeus in January, President Salih lamented the casualties but told Petraeus not to worry: "We'll continue saying the bombs are ours, not yours," he reportedly said.

At this, according to the document, deputy prime minister Alimi interjected, joking that he had just lied to parliament by telling MPs that the bombs in Arhab, Abyan, and Shabwa were American-made but deployed by the Yemeni military.

American airstrikes in Yemen are a hugely sensitive issue and the revelations have been deeply embarrassing for the Salih regime because they confirm its duplicity (which many Yemenis already suspected). They could also complicate future cooperation between Yemen and the US in countering terrorism.

It seems unlikely, though, that Alimi will be forced to resign since he was only doing the president's bidding. The official government line is that the remarks were mis-reported in the US embassy's note – a claim that few Yemenis are likely to believe.

Another incendiary sentence in the document quotes Salih as saying to Petraeus: 

"Tell (Djiboutian President) Ismail Guelleh that I don't care if he smuggles whiskey into Yemen – provided it's good whiskey) but not drugs or weapons." 

Among religious elements, this might be cited as evidence that Salih is not a good Muslim. His fondness for a tipple is well known, though not usually talked about quite so openly. Many Yemenis resort to whisky after chewing qat, because otherwise the qat would keep them awake for most of the night.

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 6 Dec 2010