Archive: yemen
4th December 2010
A batch of US embassy cables relating to Yemen emerged yesterday, courtesy of Wikileaks. I have linked them below, in chronological order. The New York Times has a commentary on them here, as does the Guardian (here and here).
The content isn't earth-shattering but it does provide some valuable… Read more
29th November 2010
One of the new Wikileaks documents records a 90-minute meetingon January 4 this year between David Petraeus, commander of Centcom, and the Yemeni president, Ali Abdullah Salih.
Some interesting points:
1. Salih repeatedly asked for 12 armed helicopters ("a topic that he would… Read more
27th November 2010
Just two days after a car bomb killed 17 or more Houthi supporters during a Shia religious festival in Yemen, a second car bomb attacked mourners attending a Houthi funeral yesterday. Reports of casualties vary wildly, from two including the suicide bomber (AFP) to 40 or more (UPI).
The latest… Read more
25th November 2010
An explosion said to be from a car bomb killed at least 17 people in the far north of Yemen on Wednesday, according to numerousreports.
The bomb targeted a procession of Houthi supporters celebrating the Eid al-Ghadir holiday (a Shia festival) in the Zaher district of al-Jawf province. A local… Read more
24th November 2010
The popular Egyptian preacher and televangelist, Amr Khaled, has arrived in Yemen for a government-sponsored "hearts and minds" campaign against al-Qaeda.
This could be an important development if, as the Yemen Observer suggests, it marks the start of a concerted effort to challenge the jihadists… Read more
23rd November 2010
The Wall Street Journal reported the other day that US special operations teams in Yemen are training counter-terrorism units created by President Salih and "commanded by his sons and nephews".
I do hope the Obama administration understands what it's getting into here, because working with the… Read more
20th November 2010
As I mentioned last Sunday, there's a debate going on in the Obama administration about the use of drones in Yemen for strikes against suspected militants (as opposed to just using them for surveillance). It's a hugely important debate, with implications for other parts of the world too.
We don't,… Read more
19th November 2010
According to a Yemeni politician, the recent parcel bombs affair was part of "a suspicious plan for harming Yemen's sovereignty and its independence in preparation for imposing foreign agendas".
The remarks – from Salah al-Saiadi, secretary of the Yemeni Popular Democratic party (described as an… Read more
15th November 2010
Yemeni warplanes attacked what are described as al-Qaeda hideouts in the Bani Dhabyan territory east of Sanaa yesterday, according to local reports (Yemen Post in English and Mareb Pressin Arabic).
Significantly, perhaps, the reported use of Yemeni air power comes in the midst of a debate about the… Read more
14th November 2010
In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph today, the new head of Britain's armed forces, General Sir David Richards, says there will be no "clear-cut victory" against Islamist militancy, though it can be contained.
"In conventional war," he tells the paper, "defeat and victory is very clear cut and… Read more
ARAB ART ONLINE: Susan Hefuna: Al Sabr Gamil (Patience is Beautiful) 2007. Ink stained on wood 140 x 170 cm. More information | Click to enlarge
