US-Backed Yemeni Regime Collaborates With, Supports al-Qaeda

John Glaser, August 31, 2012

Foreign Policy reports there are “many Yemenis who have come to suspect that their government is not fighting, but helping cultivate, jihadi activity in their country.”

According to sources in Yemen’s Interior Ministry and Defense Ministry, as well as independent Yemeni analysts and journalists with intimate knowledge of al Qaeda in Yemen, the Yemeni government is fully aware of a number of al Qaeda cells — and their existence is tolerated and their crimes covered up.

Indeed, this phenomenon is well known in Yemen. As Jeremy Scahill of Nation magazine wrote after visiting Yemen earlier this year: “Since the mujahedeen war against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s and continuing after 9/11, Saleh has famously milked the threat of Al Qaeda and other militants to leverage counterterrorism funding and weapons from the United States and Saudi Arabia, to bolster his power within the country and to neutralize opponents.”

Abdulghani al-Iryani, a Yemeni political analyst, has said has much about the Saleh regime and he told Foreign Policy that the collaboration between the new US-supported Yemeni regime and al-Qaeda militants continues. “At all levels of Yemen’s political elite you have collusion and cooperation with militants and terrorists,” he said.

The piece goes through a number of examples. Yemen’s Political Security Organization (PSO) – “the government’s most powerful internal security apparatus, is deeply connected to al Qaeda” and has provided safe houses for al-Qaeda leaders when needed. The PSO and Yemen’s top political and military leaders also help individual al-Qaeda militants get out of jail and of course have conspired to help pull off some of Yemen’s high profile prison breaks wherein hundreds of al-Qaeda and Ansar al-Sharia members run free.

All of this collusion is done in order to siphon off more taxpayer dollars, military training from Washington, and major weapons systems from America’s defense corporations:

As for why elements inside the Yemeni government would cooperate with or encourage al Qaeda’s activities, the benefit is clear. The United States backed Saleh’s regime with millions of dollars of assistance for his counterterrorism operations — and it now backs the Hadi government in the hope that it can eradicate the terrorist threat and stabilize Yemen. But elements in the government have an incentive to keep the pot boiling: The greater al Qaeda’s profile in Yemen, the more U.S. dollars flow to Yemeni government coffers. And with the country’s history of rampant corruption, it should shock no one if much of that foreign assistance finds its way into politicians’ pockets.

So not only is the Obama administration sending unprecedented amounts of aid and security assistance to the horrible Yemeni regime which systematically acts as al-Qaeda’s lifeline, but they are continuously bombing the “allied” country with drones, generating anti-American hatred and greater al-Qaeda recruitment. Can you imagine a policy more destructive of its stated ends?



59 Responses to “US-Backed Yemeni Regime Collaborates With, Supports al-Qaeda”

  1. chill1184
    August 31st, 2012 at 6:50 pm

    Can we say blowback?

  2. Digna
    September 1st, 2012 at 2:57 am

    The greater al Qaeda’s profile in Yemen, the more U.S. dollars flow to Yemeni government coffers. And with the country’s history of rampant corruption, it should shock no one if much of that foreign assistance finds its way into politicians’ pockets.

  3. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria | Dark PoliticksDark Politricks
    September 3rd, 2012 at 7:07 am

    [...] as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the [...]

  4. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria – We Know the Secrets of the Federal Reserve
    September 3rd, 2012 at 7:51 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  5. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria – Paul Joseph Watson « Stop Making Sense
    September 3rd, 2012 at 7:57 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  6. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria - Rise of the Right
    September 3rd, 2012 at 8:35 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  7. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S. Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria | AltNews
    September 3rd, 2012 at 10:05 am

    [...] as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the [...]

  8. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria | NewsRescue
    September 3rd, 2012 at 12:22 pm

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  9. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria - Breaking News - U.S & World News - EarthThreats.com
    September 3rd, 2012 at 12:29 pm

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  10. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria - Conservative Read
    September 3rd, 2012 at 3:50 pm

    [...] as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the [...]

  11. Al-Qaeda Leader Concluded Deal With US, Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters To Syria | Occupy Kuala Lumpur
    September 3rd, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  12. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria | CounterPsyOps
    September 4th, 2012 at 12:53 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  13. Al-Qaeda strikes deal with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia: sending 5,000 fighters to Syria | Hang The Bankers | He Who Controls the Money Supply, Controls the World
    September 4th, 2012 at 4:54 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  14. Lanz von Liebenfels &raquo Al-Qaeda strikes deal with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia: sending 5,000 fighters to Syria
    September 4th, 2012 at 5:34 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  15. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria | Friends of Syria
    September 4th, 2012 at 6:14 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  16. V?dce Al-Káidy se domluvil s USA a Saúdy na vyslání 5 000 bojovník? do Sýrie
    September 4th, 2012 at 7:59 am

    [...] Ovšem, jak zd?raznili pozorovatelé, mnozí podezírají jemenskou vládu, že kultivuje džihádistické aktivity tím, že toleruje p?ítomnost Al-Káidy uvnit? svých hranic. [...]

  17. Yemen Investigates Civilians Killed by US Drone -- News from Antiwar.com
    September 4th, 2012 at 2:05 pm

    [...] amounts of aid and security assistance to the horrible Yemeni regime which systematically acts as al-Qaeda’s lifeline in order to milk more US support, but they are continuously bombing the “allied” country with [...]

  18. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Jihadists To Syria
    September 4th, 2012 at 6:24 pm

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  19. Walter Col
    September 5th, 2012 at 1:10 am

    And just why shouldn´t the Yemeni government have close ties with al Qaeda? The US has had similar ties with al Qaeda right up to and beyond permitting them to safely flee Afghanistan.

    And just why shouldn´t the Yemeni government cry wolf about al Qaeda´s growth and threats to its country? The US has been doing the same thing for years and for the same reasons – to get more power and better armed military.

    The Yemeni government has learned well, but then again they had great US advisers. Now the increased, but nonexistent al Qaeda threat in Yemeni has reinforced the reasons why our DOD says that the al Qaeda threat is growing and they need more funding. DOD gets more funding and Yemeni more military aid. Now that, my friends, is an example of a “circle-jerk”.

  20. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria
    September 5th, 2012 at 4:31 am

    [...] Yemen has denounced al-Fadhli as “one the country’s most dangerous terrorists.”However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the [...]

  21. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria – We Know the Secrets of the Federal Reserve
    September 6th, 2012 at 3:30 pm

    [...] as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the [...]

  22. AL-QAEDA LEADER STRIKES DEAL WITH U.S., SAUDIS TO SEND 5,000 FIGHTERS TO SYRIA « sreaves32
    September 8th, 2012 at 11:13 am

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  23. Yemen Says No.2 al-Qaeda in Yemen Has Been Killed in Air Strike -- News from Antiwar.com
    September 10th, 2012 at 7:56 am

    [...] history of boasting about success in fighting back al-Qaeda, even as parts of the Yemeni regime collaborates with and supports al-Qaeda’s survival in order to milk more US aid and [...]

  24. Yemen Says No.2 in AQAP Has Been Killed in Air Strike -- News from Antiwar.com
    September 10th, 2012 at 7:57 am

    [...] history of boasting about success in fighting back al-Qaeda, even as parts of the Yemeni regime collaborates with and supports al-Qaeda’s survival in order to milk more US aid and [...]

  25. Al-Qaeda Leader Strikes Deal With U.S., Saudis To Send 5,000 Fighters to Syria Paul Joseph Watson | Sailan Muslim - The Online Resource for Sri Lanka Muslims
    September 11th, 2012 at 8:25 pm

    [...] However, as observers have highlighted, the Yemeni government is suspected by many to be cultivating jihadi activity by tolerating the presence of Al-Qaeda within its borders. [...]

  26. Krysta
    September 11th, 2012 at 11:58 pm

    And just why shouldn´t the Yemeni government have close ties with al Qaeda? The US has had similar ties with al Qaeda right up to and beyond permitting them to safely flee Afghanistan.

  27. Gwenda
    September 13th, 2012 at 2:43 am

    According to sources in Yemen’s Interior Ministry and Defense Ministry, as well as independent Yemeni analysts and journalists with intimate knowledge of al Qaeda in Yemen, the Yemeni government is fully aware of a number of al Qaeda cells — and their existence is tolerated and their crimes covered up.

  28. ralph lauren soldes
    November 26th, 2012 at 11:10 pm

    cry wolf about al Qaeda´s growth and threats to its country? The US has been doing the same thing for years and for the same reasons – to get more power and better armed military. ralph lauren soldes

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    The Yemeni government has learned well, but then again they had great US advisers. Now the increased, but nonexistent al Qaeda threat in Yemeni has reinforced the reasons why our DOD says that the al Qaeda threat is growing and they need more funding. DOD gets more funding and Yemeni more military aid. Now that, my friends, is an example of a “circle-jerk”.

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    I'm very sad to see that U.S. is going this way.

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