al-Qaeda in Yemen
Is Yemen a haven for terrorism?
Yes. Yemen, located at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is a poor Muslim country with a weak central government, armed tribal groups in outlying areas, and porous borders, which makes it fertile ground for terrorists. Its government has tried to help the United States after September 11, and the State Department calls Yemen “an important partner in the campaign against terrorism, providing assistance in the military, diplomatic, and financial arenas.” But experts say that terrorists live in Yemen, sometimes with government approval; Yemen-based corporations are thought to help fund Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda terrorist network; and Yemenis affiliated with al-Qaeda have targeted U.S. interests in Yemen, including the October 2000 bombing of the navy destroyer U.S.S. Cole in the Yemeni port of Aden. U.S. officials say more al-Qaeda attacks against American interests may now be brewing in Yemen.How big an al-Qaeda presence is there in Yemen?
It’s impossible to say precisely, but dozens of al-Qaeda operatives, including senior officials, may be at large in Yemen, experts say. Yemen was second only to Saudi Arabia in being the source of soldiers for the international Islamist brigade that fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan and that gave birth to al-Qaeda. Thousands—perhaps tens of thousands—of Yemenis fought in Afghanistan or trained in al-Qaeda’s camps there. Yemeni officials say that not every Yemeni veteran of the war in Afghanistan is an al-Qaeda member; nevertheless, Yemeni prisoners make up one of the largest national contingents of detainees at the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.Does al-Qaeda have training camps in Yemen?
Al-Qaeda reportedly had several major training camps in Yemen until the late 1990s, when the Yemeni government uprooted them. U.S. officials say there may be a few smaller ones left.
Link Dump: Human Develoment Report Yemen 2004, ,Zindani and Islah.
