Patterns of Terrorism Arrests in Yemen
OK, maybe its me but doesn’t it seem that whenever there’s a little external pressure on Saleh, he rounds up a few stooges and says they were about the blow the Embassey? Then there’s a big round of publicity in the West about our partner Saleh aiding in the fight against terror. It could be my imagination, but I think the government produces the same photo of grenades every time.
The four Iraqi teachers previously charged with a “terror plot” have been acquited: “This case has no legal justification and should not have made it to court,” the judge told the courtroom….
(Not to be confused with top Iraqi generals in the Yemeni military like the commander of the 56th battalion of the Iraqi Army in Basrah-we all remember what Saddam did to the Shiites in Basrah- who is now side by side with the jihaddi General Ali Mohsen in Saadda, another Shiite region, along with the Afghan Arabs. Of course all the civilian deaths and the destruction in Saddah were *accidental.*)
Also the recently pardoned Houthis were charged with targeting the Embassey including a pregnant woman and a crippled, brain damaged, ill child. And then theres the six teenagers charged with being affiliated with al-Qaeda. These teenagers may or may not be guilty (I think the evidence consists of a camera), but where are the al-Qaeda grown ups? So in the last few months, we get as terror suspects teachers, teenagers, and a pregnant woman. None of whom has been convicted because of a lack of credible evidence. Nifty.
(Just to clarify, I have the highest respect for Krajeski and the embassy staff for accepting this assignment which is both important and dangerous. Im not minimizing the threat, only saying Saleh is duplicitious about it.)
Related: Ethiopia and Yemen on Tuesday called for cooperation among countries in the region in the fight against the evil of terrorism….The leaders expressed their satisfaction with the development of trilateral cooperation between Ethiopia, Yemen and Sudan–which was not targeted at any other country, the communiqué said.
The Eritreans might see it a little differently, according to the Eritrean Center for Strategic Studies: The trio states of Sana’a axis, namely Ethiopia, Sudan and Yemen, maintain strong ties, one way on another, with terrorism, either through state terrorism or by providing all sorts of support to the elements that have strong connections with Al-Qa’ida organization led by Osama Bin Ladin.
On a lighter note, from the guy who said “Democracy is the rescue ship of all regimes,” just before he started arresting the journalists and bombing the opposition parties headquarters, Saleh:
Speaking on the first day of the Holy Muslim month of Ramadan, Saleh said, ‘We have deployed all possible efforts in combating terrorism, achieving tangible progress, and we will keep on supporting international efforts in that regard.’Saleh added, ‘Terrorism, which constitutes an international evil threatening the world, necessitates the elimination of its causes, including the atmosphere encouraging such an evil.’
Update: M&C: Sometimes they just hold them for an opportune moment. Two grenade tossing would be murderers go on trial after Ramadan after a year in jail, just in time for Saleh’s trip to the US.
