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West, and Extremists, Bolster Assets In Yemen
In the latest sign that Yemen — the country where the suspect in the attempted airliner bombing recently spent some time — is becoming a focus for both the West and extremists, Britain announced that it and the U.S. have agreed to fund a counterterrorism police unit there.
The news came a day after Gen. David Petraeus, head of Central Command, said that U.S. military aid to Yemen would more than double from last year's $68 million.
Also Friday, Somalia's Islamist rebel group al-Shabab said it was ready to send reinforcements to al-Qaida in Yemen should the U.S. carry out retaliatory strikes, and urged other Muslims to follow suit.
In London, the British government said Sunday that Prime Minister Gordon Brown and President Barack Obama were backing the new Police unit to tackle the rising terrorist threat from Yemen. Obama on Saturday tied al-Qaida's Yemen arm to the Christmas Day attempt to blow up a U.S. passenger jet over Detroit.
Brown's Downing Street Office said the U.K. and the U.S. had also agreed to increase support for Yemen's coast guard operation. Pirates operating in the waters between Somalia and Yemen have seized four ships in the last week.
Downing Street said Brown and Obama will also push the U.N. Security Council to create a larger peacekeeping force for Somalia.
Brown called last week for a high-level international meeting later this month to devise ways to counter radicalization in Yemen. He said an international approach is needed to combat the increasing influence of al-Qaida in Yemen. The terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the failed attack.
Downing Street said the government of Yemen had been consulted over the decision to boost the country's coast guard and police operations.
A senior official in the Obama administration said the United States would pursue every option to fight extremism.
"We welcome international efforts to provide security and economic assistance to Yemen as it takes action to confront a serious terrorist threat," said a U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss diplomatic and intelligence issues.
Petraeus, Yemen leader meet
In Yemen, the country's president met with Petraeus on Saturday to discuss boosting military cooperation.
Petraeus also delivered a letter from President Obama to President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Details of the letter were not released.
On Friday, Petraeus told reporters in Baghdad, Iraq, that U.S. counterterrorism aid to Yemen "will more than double this coming year."
Petraeus said Yemen was struggling to overcome many challenges — including a fall in oil revenues, a very young and rapidly growing population, and an insurgency making full use of the country's of rugged terrain — all of which made the country an attractive possible base for terrorism.
"Al-Qaida are always on the lookout for places where they might be able to put down roots," he said.
The United States and neighboring Saudi Arabia fear al-Qaida could exploit instability across Yemen, which also faces separatist sentiment in the mainly Sunni Muslim south, to turn the country into a launch pad for more international attacks.
U.S. officials have said they were looking at ways to expand military and intelligence cooperation with Yemen, the poorest Arab state.
Washington has increased training, intelligence and military equipment provided to Yemeni forces, helping them to stage raids against suspected al-Qaida hideouts last month.
On look out for Somalis
Yemen also said it was tightening security along its coastline to prevent Islamist militants infiltrating from Somalia.
Yemen has tightened security measures on its coastline, boosting monitoring and inspections, to prevent militants from Somalia from entering the country, the state news agency said.
"Yemen will not tolerate any terrorist elements on its territories and will be ready to retaliate against anyone looking to tamper with its security and stability," Foreign Minister Abubakr al-Qirbi told Saba News.
Al-Qirbi said this week there could be up to 300 al-Qaida militants in Yemen, some of whom may be planning attacks on Western targets.
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Sources: Whitehouse.gov, MSNBC, The Daily Beast, Google Maps
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