July 05, 2007

Yemen Appeases Al-Qaeda

The Yemeni government has a deal with al-Qaeda. No attacks in Yemen in exchange for releases and a "hands off" approach. They also often get state jobs and money. The recent terror bombing in Yemen was al-Qaeda negotiating for more releases. The methods of release include direct negotiations, "rehabilitations", sham trials, and repetitive escapes.

The following is a very good article that explains direct negotiations. The whole thing is worth a read: AP via Yahoo. Here's a bit:

SANA'A, Yemen - Yemen is pioneering a novel approach for dealing with convicted al-Qaida operatives: Let them roam free as long as they promise to be law-abiding

For example, Ali Mohammed al-Kurdi says he sent two suicide bombers to Iraq and trained others. He was sentenced to death for his part in a hotel bombing in Yemen's port city of Aden, escaped and was re-arrested.

Fawzi al-Wajeh, a bodyguard of Osama bin Laden's, was convicted in the 2002 bombing of a French oil tanker and was one of 23 al-Qaida men to escape from a Yemeni high security prison last year. He later surrendered.

Naseer Ahmed al-Bahri, another bin Laden bodyguard, fought in Bosnia, Afghanistan and Somalia. He was jailed for nearly two years without charge after returning from Afghanistan.

All three continue to idolize bin Laden and they back jihad, or holy war, against U.S. forces, whether it's in the Middle East or Afghanistan. Yet they are now back on the streets because they signed an agreement with the Yemeni government promising to obey the law.

Yemen's policy of negotiating agreements with al-Qaida operatives appears to be unique among the nations working with the United States in its anti-terror campaign. Breaking the agreement means returning to prison or causing a relative, who often acts as a guarantor, to be jailed to finish out the sentence.

The risks of direct negotiations with al-Qaeda are of course a) regional instability as the deal only calls for no attacks in Yemen, b) spread of the ideology internally as the regime perpetuates the culture of acceptance of targeting civilians in certain situations c) that the regime is not co-opting the militants but rather the militants are co-opting the regime instiutions and d) as we saw this week, that emboldened terrorists will re-negotiate with the regime using car bombs, a skill probably picked up in Iraq.

As we know, according to US officials, 90% of suicide bombings in Iraq are perpetrated by foreigners, and Yemenis and North Africans make up the largest contingents of suicide bombers. The Syrians let them cross into Iraq, but they come from Yemen. There is an established suicide bomber production line in Yemen. The bombers are young guys who get sucked into the death cult. One Yemeni newspaper tallied 1800 Yemeni men who went to Iraq and listed them by town and age (mostly 18-24). And US officials constantly castigate ... Syria.