Sunday, February 19, 2012

Yemen's next president committed to destroying al Qaeda, US deputy national security adviser says

Vice President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi met with US deputy national security adviser John Brennan in Sanaa, Yemen on Saturday, said he was "very encouraged by [Hadi's] comments" on al Qaeda. "He is committed, as well, to destroy al Qaeda, and I consider him a good and strong counterpart," Brennan explained. Yemenis will hold presidential elections on Tuesday. President Ali Abdullah Saleh is supposed to officially hand power over to Hadi. Protesters have demonstrated for over a year now against Saleh's 33 years of presidency. Because the protests weakened the central government, al Qaeda were able to build up and strengthen their power during that time. However, Saleh has been accused of letting Islamist militants become of tool against his opponents, despite Yemen being an ally of the US on the War on Terror.

There has been some discrepancy about how involved the US is in Yemen. Brennan asserted, "We provide to the Yemeni units that fight al Qaeda advice, assistance, and equipment." Yemen has denied the direct involvement of the US, however there is evidence that the US has been using drones against the Yemeni people.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/international/yemen_next_president_committed_national_5A9a8KsB2IRM9mv11qJhuN

Rachel Foy


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