Last December, the United States provided "firepower and other aid" for air strikes against suspected al-Qaeda militants in Yemen. At the time it was hailed as a great success. President Obama even phoned President Salih and "praised Yemen's efforts in the fight on terrorism, particularly [the] raids in which dozens of al-Qaeda suspects were killed and arrested". 

But it wasn't long before local residents began claiming that the raids had killed dozens of innocent civilians. 

Today, the Yemeni government finally admitted that these claims were true. In a statement to parliament, the Deputy Prime Minister for Defence and Security apologised for the deaths of 42 civilians and said the government would pay compensation to their families. I wonder if the US will be providing any of the money.

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 3 March 2010.