Yemen Is Newest Front in US Battle With al-Qaeda

Pentagon has quietly expanded anti-terror efforts over past year

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 28, 2009 5:50 AM CST
Updated Dec 28, 2009 7:52 AM CST

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Yemen Is Newest Front in US Battle With al-Qaeda — This image provided by the U.S. Navy shows damage sustained on the USS Cole after a suspected terrorist bomb exploded during a refueling operation in the port of Aden, Yemen, in this Oct. 12, 2000 file photo. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy, HO, File)

The Christmas Day attempt to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight by suspect who claims to have been trained and armed in Yemen highlights that country's emerging role as a major battleground in the fight against Islamic extremism. The US has quietly opened up a covert offensive against a potent offshoot of al-Qaeda there, sending CIA operatives there a year ago, along with special ops forces to help train Yemeni forces.

The US has doubled its military aid, committing $70 million over the next 18 months and deploying special forces training teams to enhance the capabilities of the Yemeni government of Ali Abdullah Saleh, the New York Times reports in a rundown of the strengthening relationship between the two countries. US intelligence allegedly contributed to airstrikes by the Yemeni military that killed 60 militants on Dec. 17 and Christmas Eve.

(More Yemen stories.)

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