Why Yemen, a shaky US ally against Al Qaeda, is cracking apart
| London
Nearly three years听after听Yemen听ousted听a decades-old dictatorship and听began a political transition aimed at听preventing civil war, the fragile nation is once again on the brink of disaster.
Fighting between听Iran-backed听Houthi听rebels听who听control the capital, Sanaa, and Al-Qaeda-linked militants听appears to be intensifying. In recent days,听 between the two groups and their allies have reportedly killed dozens in central Yemen.听And the country鈥檚 political leadership is in tatters.听听
Under President Obama, the US has strengthened security ties to Yemen in order to go after Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which is seen as posing a threat to the US homeland. This includes US drone strikes, which have been stepped up since Houthi rebels stormed the capital in September and asserted control. 听
On Sunday a new largely technocratic听coalition听government was sworn in, bringing on board Houthis听as well as representatives of the southern separatist Herak group.听However, both the ruling party and the Houthi leadership听object to听the representation allocated to the opposition Al-Islah party, one of the main losers in the latest political upheaval.
One man widely blamed for听the current crisis听former president, Ali Abdallah Saleh, who stepped down in November 2011 under a deal brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council. The US accuses Mr Saleh of undermining the central government.听On Monday, , along with two Houthi rebel commanders, for threatening the country鈥檚 peace and stability.
In 2013, after keeping a relatively low profile, Saleh reached out to his arch nemesis the Houthis, a powerful clan in the north that,听like Saleh, belongs to the Zaidi sect. Thanks in part to the former president's tribal allies and military connections, the Houthis were able to march from their heartland听into听the capital,听overcoming听pockets of resistance from Salafist and Al Qaeda linked fighters.
Today the banner "God is Great, Death to America, Death to Israel鈥� adorns Houthi-manned checkpoints in Sanaa and the houses of their supporters.听Analysts say the US drone campaign against AQAP has fed anti-US sentiment and indirectly bolstered the Houthis. AQAP claimed last weekend to have planted two explosive devises targeting the US ambassador to Yemen, although these never went off, according to SITE Intelligence Group. Washington is now mulling a full evacuation of its embassy.
Houthi leaders say their听main goal is but to influence government decision-making.听鈥淭he Houthis possess two mandates: to put pressure on politicians to reach political agreements and compromise, and to preserve security in the areas we control,鈥� Hamza al-Houthi, a member of the movement鈥檚 political office, told the Yemen Times.听
President's position in peril
It is unclear if the 11th-hour听coalition听cabinet听can听steer the nation towards greater stability. In a decision that bodes badly, the ruling General People鈥檚 Congress (GNC) party this weekend pulled its support from听President听Abed Rabbo Mansour,听a member of Saleh鈥檚 party. The move came in retaliation for the UN and US sanctions slapped on Saleh.听
Violence, meanwhile, continues to grip the country. Analysts warn that AQAP will seek to position itself as the protector of Sunnis, and that Saudi Arabia will back anti-Houthi tribes and Sunni insurgents to counter the influence of Shiite Iran, which is accused of arming and supplying the Houthis.
Most analysts听argue听that Obama鈥檚 strategy failed to degrade Al-Qaeda in Yemen听at a time when the US is stepping up its campaign to stop the self-declared Islamic State that is ascendant in Sunni areas of Iraq and Syria. 听听
鈥� is the lack of any new attempt by Yemen鈥檚 Al-Qaeda branch to attack the US homeland, but this comes at the cost of contributing to the destruction of Yemen,鈥� wrote analyst Charles Schmitz in a Nov. 4 article for The Middle East Institute.听
