Yemen’s embattled President Ali Abdullah Salih
There is an interesting discussion between political scientists Charles Schmitz of Towson University (and President of the American Institute for Yemeni Studies) and Gregory Johnsen, moderator of the blog Waq al-Waq, on the context of the current protests in Yemen, especially on the role of President Ali Abdullah Salih. It is well worth looking at the video which can be viewed here: http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/35377.
On April 1, pro-government protesters clung to poles bearing the country’s flag, demonstrating their loyalty to the regime; photograph by Karim Ben Khelifa for Newsweek
by Gregory Johnsen, Waq al-Waq, April 4, 2011
Following weeks of on-again, off-again negotiations, in which Salih appeared to back away from tentative deals to step down, forces loyal to his government opened fire on protesters today in Taizz, killing at least 15 according to al-Jazeera.
Other forces in Hudaydah also cracked down on protesters today, firing live bullets and tear gas and injuring more than 300 according to the breaking news tracker on Mareb Press. (Note: many of these injuries are the result of tear gas.)
There are also early reports of renewed clashes in Sanaa.
All of this comes shortly after the New York Times published a piece today suggesting that the US is ready to abandon President Salih.
The piece is getting a lot of play on al-Jazeera, and on nearly every Yemeni news website.
It is unfortunate that the Obama administration’s policy only began “to shift in the past week.” Salih’s demise has been self-evident for much longer than that, and consistent US refusals to see that and the resulting dithering and calls for negotiations (asking protesters to give up the only leverage they have) has only put U.S. security interests more at risk.
Salih’s last-ditch attempts to hold on to power have resulted in a security breakdown in other parts of the country, as parts of the military defected and others abandoned their posts. This breakdown has opened up a great deal of space for AQAP – anyone think they aren’t taking advantage of the current situation?
I argued nearly a month ago that the US needs to ask more than just: what comes after Salih? Continue reading Two Bad Options in Yemen
The photographer Karim Ben Khelifa is reporting from Yemen and has a superb display of photographs on The Daily Beast.
The Shia in Bahrain have recently been distancing themselves from Iran whilst attention is diverted to Libya [REUTERS]
Predominately Shia protesters are calling for political reform not alignment with Iran, researchers argue.
by Genieve Abdo and Jasim Husain, al-Jazeera, April 3, 2011
Listening to the rhetoric coming out of Tehran, one might assume that Bahrain’s Shia opposition is relying on help from its co-religionists next door. But, in fact, the opposite is true: the Shia opposition wants nothing more than for Tehran to stay out of the sectarian dispute unfolding in the tiny kingdom.
The major demand of the mainstream opposition is to turn the country into a constitutional monarchy, much like those in Europe. Other selected goals include: an elected government; a free press; an unrestricted civil society; and an end to discriminatory practises against religions other than the Sunni minority, such as unequal employment practises, unfair distribution of wealth, and the elimination of all forms of administrative and financial malpractice. Continue reading Misunderstanding Bahrain’s Shia protesters
The Dragon Blood Tree is native to Socotra. It gets its name from the red sap that the trees produce, which was used in the past by the locals for healing. Kay van Damme
Foreign researchers flee Yemen leaving conservation programmes in trouble
As the protests in Yemen intensify, foreign and local biologists are worried about the future of conservation efforts on the biodiversity rich island of Socotra.
by Mohammed Yahia, Nature Middle East, March 22, 2011
Public protests in Yemen that began on 27 January have escalated, with security forces now using extreme violence to disperse demonstrators. Snipers killed over 50 people last Friday with shots mostly in the heads and chests. Several generals and soldiers have defected and now side with the protesters. As Western countries warn their citizens against travel to the country and are evacuating those already there, biologists are worried that conservation efforts in one of the region’s richest areas for biodiversity, is under threat.
Socotra Archipelago, dubbed the Galápagos of the Indian Ocean, is one such place concerning biologists. It lies about 380 kilometres south of mainland Yemen in the Arabian Sea. The main island, Socotra, is the largest Arabian island. With over 300 unique plant species, a third of the island’s flora is endemic, found nowhere else in the world. More than 90% of the reptile species on the island are unique.
“In marine habitats, the extensive coral reefs bordering the island harbour a remarkably high biodiversity and provide an important source for local inhabitants. Both local culture and nature are strongly intertwined and mutually dependent,” says Kay van Damme, an ecologist at Ghent University, Belgium, and chairman of Friends of Socotra. Continue reading The Yemen Protests and the Environment
Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar
Yemen’s future hinges on its two most powerful men
By Sudarsan Raghavan, The Washington Post, Thursday, March 31, 11:25 PM
SANAA, Yemen — They are from the same village, the same tribe and the same clan. Once as close as brothers, they rose together in Yemen’s military, shared the same political vision, the same lofty desires. One is a conservative Islamist with reputed links to Osama bin Laden. The other is one of America’s closest counterterrorism allies.
For 32 years, Ali Abdullah Saleh and Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar have controlled this poor but strategic Middle East nation, the former as its ubiquitous president and the latter as its invisible yet most influential military leader. Now, they are engaged in a highly personal battle to shape the future of Yemen and their own places in history.
“They are like Siamese twins, one body with two heads,†said Hassan Zaid, a top opposition leader. “Now, each head is trying to cut off the other’s head and take control of the whole body.â€
Over the past two months, the momentous events in Yemen have echoed those around North Africa and the Middle East: a populist rebellion, fueled by decades of injustice, rising up to demand its leader’s ouster.
But the twist that has emerged in the past two weeks has injected a narrative of Shakespearean proportions, one tightly focused on the two rivals, shrewd men from humble beginnings who grew wealthy and powerful amid allegations of corruption and ruthlessness, and who have now turned on each other. Continue reading Yemen’s future …
As millions of dollars worth of U.S. and NATO military weapons are now raining down on the millions of dollars worth of weapons in Libyan leader Qaddafi’s recently expanded arsenal, there is a scenario that must make all the arms manufacturers of the world unite in smugness. Over a month ago Der Spiegel ran an article with the following news:
Helicopters from Italy, communication technology from Germany: When the arms embargo against Libya was lifted in 2004, the country’s dictator Moammar Gadhafi went on a shopping spree in the European Union. Now he is using those weapons against his own people — to the EU’s shame… According to an EU report, European Union member states provided the dictator with defense equipment worth €344 million ($474 million) in 2009 alone.
It must be a bit easier to destroy Qaddafi’s military machine, since the ones now destroying it are the ones responsible for creating it. One used to hear the fatalistic mantra: the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. It seems that the EU and NATO have replaced the Lord these days. I am not in any way defending Qaddafi, a brutal maniac who has plundered Libya for over four decades. Nor am I convinced one way or the other if the no-fly-in-the ointment strategy will work. But I recall the poignant words of author Jean Makdisi in her brilliant Beirut Fragments (Persea Books, 1990, p. 45):
“I ponder, for the ten thousandth time since this damnable war began, on the happiness of the manufacturers and salesmen of arms and ammunition. Every roar, whistle, and crash translates itself in my mind to the sound of a cash register, the tinkle of champagne glasses, and the hum of conversation at a very expensive restaurant somewhere. The glisten of shrapnel, the smoke billowing out of someone’s ruined home, the rumble of the big guns, are all echoed in my imagination as the glitter of jewelry, the smoke of cigars lazily puffed out of appreciative lips, and the rolling of drums for a hip-swinging, carefree dance. The screams of a terrified, burning child become the laughter of those who reap the gains of this havoc.”
Abdullah Hamiddaddin will be providing a lecture entitle “Whither Yemen” on Thursday, March 31, 2011 at Columbia University in 208 Knox Hall from 12:30-2:00 pm. the discussion will be about how to frame the current struggle in Yemen, the importance of tribal politics, and the overrated threat of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. This is sponsored by Columbia’s Middle East Institute.
For more details, click here:
