Category Archives: Ali Abdullah Salih

Signing off?

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Yemen


The fat lady has sung…

Yemen’s beleaguered president Ali Abdullah Salih has finally signed off on his role after several aborted efforts earlier this year. He has arrived in Saudi Arabia and even the official Saba news agency is reporting that he has agreed to finally sign the GCC-brokered resolution. One can still find a November 15 item in which Salih denies not agreeing to sign the deal. It is hard to imagine that he can back out of this after signing it, especially on Saudi soil. If the fat lady is not singing, she is at least clearing her throat and it sounds like music to those opposing him … But signing does not make it a “done deal” given the stalemate within the army and the dissension between the groups opposing Salih. The next few days will be vital, as the various groups jostle for power and influence, no matter what the GCC deal entails in principle. One result is that Salih receives immunity, a rather sore point that will not go away. The historic deal was covered live on al Jazeera. Stay tuned…

Salih and Groucho: “Hello, I must be going”

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Yemen, YouTube Watch


Get ready to roll the dice again. The almost off-again, persistently on-again Ali Abdullah Salih has once again signaled his stage exit. After some seven months of his citizens shouting “Irhal, ya Ali,” the embattled president of Yemen is once again on the ropes. When he announced yesterday that he would be handing over power, most Yemenis were somewhat skeptical. The old phrase “three times and you are out” rings true in American baseball but hardly in contemporary Yemeni politics. Nor does “the third time’s the charm” charm the majority of Yemenis who want a major change at the top. Does he mean it this time?

There is something about the roller coaster politics in Yemen this year that makes a perfect Marx Brothers (and I don’t include Karl in this family) movie. When I heard Salih’s latest swan song, I could not help but think of the classic song by Groucho Marx as Captain Spaulding: “Hello, I must be going”:

Hello, I must be going.
I cannot stay,
I came to say
I must be going.
I’m glad I came
but just the same
I must be going. Continue reading Salih and Groucho: “Hello, I must be going” →

A third of a century and counting…

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Obama Administration, Yemen

Very few people live for an entire century. I had a great aunt who was born in 1899 and lived into the first part of the 21st century, thus straddling three arbitrarily separated centuries. Imagine someone alive before Henry Ford’s “Tin Lizzy” and the airplane but around to see the cell phone. I realize that a third of a century is not a long period of time against the fourscore and ten of biblical proportions, but it is an eternity in political terms. Few leaders these days survive long enough, no matter how popular or powerful. One who has lasted 34 years is Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Salih, who started out in a military coup in 1978 in North Yemen, helped united north and south in 1990 and has ruled both since with the ongoing pretense of national elections. He is in theory allowed two more years in his last election cycle, which he had “reluctantly” agreed to run in. But in February, hundreds of thousands of Yemeni citizens thought enough was enough and Salih’s support has dwindled dramatically. In early June he was almost killed in a bomb blast, but he has now returned to Yemen and his presence makes the situation in the country even more volatile. In 34 years you make a lot of enemies, but Salih has been defiant, pulling out all the stops to protect his wealth and his power.

The best way to visualize 34 years is to look at the photographic trajectory of his power against the various American Presidents he has associated with as a fellow state leader. The extraordinary picture published by Yemen Press and shown above is quite striking. Continue reading A third of a century and counting… →

Ali Abdullah Salih: Time will tell

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Terrorism Issue, Yemen


Photograph by Yahya Arhab, EPA

Yesterday Yemen’s “embattled” President Ali Abdullah Salih granted an interview to Time Magazine and The Washington Post. While not very enlightening, it does suggest a new sign of desperation. The interview transcript (in English translation of course) is online. He once again played the blame game, insisting that he has been willing all along to abide the GCC agreement and step down.

Then there is the last question. Dodging any direct answer to the official U.S. call for him to step down, he pulls what may be the most desperate part of the interview — talking directly to the American people. The message is one that should resonate with the Tea Partyers who still think President Obama is a Muslim(at least those too dumb to realize who Salih is]. Here is Ali Abdullah Salih, the good dictator who can rid his country of the evil al Qaeda terrorists. Here is the gist:

I want to ask you about Yemen and U.S. relations, which is important: On the day you returned to Yemen …
[Salih] This is the last question. (See a video on the uprisings in Yemen.)

On the day you returned to Yemen …
[Salih] The Yemeni-American relationship is good. In fact, it has not been affected during the past 33 years. And we have relationships with many political powers in Washington, whether they are from the Democratic Party or the Republican Party. There have been some differences during the last Gulf War because of the Yemeni stance, but then the Americans realized that we were right and that we were not just defending the Iraqi regime. Continue reading Ali Abdullah Salih: Time will tell →

Salih’s Latest Speech

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Terrorism Issue, Yemen


[Over at Waq al-Waq, Greg Johnsen has a good read on Salih’s latest speech after his return to Yemen.]

Salih’s Speech (Instant Analysis)
by Gregory Johnsen, Waq al-Waq, September 25, 2011

Days after dramatically returning from Saudi Arabia, President Ali Abdullah Salih did what he does in these situations: he gave a speech.

The international media will likely lead with the fact that Salih called for early elections (in fact, here is an early al-Jazeera piece saying just that). But what this analysis misses is the caveat – that ever present out – that Salih gave himself, saying that elections would only take place in the context of the GCC deal.

The GCC deal, as those of you who read Waq al-waq frequently know, is worthless. Not only is it impossible to enforce – as Salih’s will-I, won’t-I dance illustrates – but there are so many loopholes in the plan that even if Salih did sign it he could easily manipulate the aftermath of the deal to ensure that a trusted ally or relative succeeded him as president, or find some excuse to continue in power.

To that end, Salih reaffirmed that his vice president Hadi is authorized to negotiate and eventually sign the GCC deal. This is worthless. And Salih knows it.

Numerous high-level Yemeni figures have already signed the deal, the signature that is missing is Salih’s. This is yet one more evasion from a president who sees his strategy of duck and delay starting to pay-off. Continue reading Salih’s Latest Speech →

Is 4 million enough to get the point?

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Obama Administration, Terrorism Issue, Yemen


Salih returns to Yemen, but probably not the best public relations to photograph him in front of an exit sign

In a move that took almost everyone by surprise, Ali Abdullah Salih returned to Yemen Friday from his recuperation stay in neighboring Saudi Arabia. It is not clear which Ali Abdullah Salih returned. Is it the one who has promised at least four times to abide by a GCC-brokered sweetheart deal that would give him immunity if he agrees to step down? Is it the Ali Abdullah Salih who was badly burned and almost killed in a bomb explosion last June and was considered unlikely to ever return to Yemen? Is it the father who cannot control his succession-mongering son and relatives from trying to kill off any possible opponents to their eventual takeover? Is it the Ali Abdullah Salih who has survived dancing on the heads of snakes for over three decades? Could it even be Ali Abdullah Salih the peacemaker, calling for negotiations?

In a way it does not really matter. Yesterday it is estimated that some 4 million Yemenis took to the streets all over Yemen protesting his regime and any attempt to perpetuate it. To be sure there are still some supporters, but the overwhelming majority of Yemenis have demonstrated, quite literally, that it is time the Arab Spring blossom into a new political system in Yemen. Meanwhile, it seems all the sides jostling for power are more interested in self promotion than love of their country. The cowardly attacks of the Republican Guard on the protesters will only make these regimists all the more hated. The battle for Sanaa is bringing life to a grinding halt in the capital city and taking the life of far too many innocent civilians caught in the crossfire. All of Yemen is suffering. Continue reading Is 4 million enough to get the point? →

Still no Irhal for Ali

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Contemporary Art, Yemen

The protests that began way back in February in Yemen have yet to abate. Since that time the country has come to an economic standstill, perhaps even a backslide, and the brink of civil war. Fate intervened on June 3, when President Ali Abdullah Salih was severely injured in a bomb blast at his residence mosque. It was a full month later before he appeared on television and only a week ago when he was discharged from the hospital in Saudi Arabia. Rumors continue to circulate that he will return, although this seems more and more unlikely given his lingering health problems. Meanwhile, like all long-standing dictators, reminders of his power still dot the landscape. The picture above is a heart-shaped image in the southern city of Mukalla. I suspect it may no longer be unblemished. Way back when this all began I thought the protests would not unseat Salih, then changed my mind and thought it would happen soon. But all bets are off because there is no way to predict the turn of events that will occur. I strongly suspect Salih will not return to Yemen and he will grudgingly sign the accord he almost did three times in the past. But as I find so often inscribed in the manuscripts I read, الله اعلم.

Ali Abdullah Salih: First Take

"Arab Spring", Ali Abdullah Salih, Yemen, YouTube Watch


Yesterday, July 17, is a day that will live in history. Not because it was the day of my 35th anniversary, but because 33 years ago Sunday Ali Abdullah Salih came to power in Yemen. Yemen Press has posted a video of his first speech. Yemen remains in stalemate as President Salih remains in Saudi Arabia, despite all the rumors of his return to Sanaa. But stalemate is a downward slope as the government has ceased to function and even basic commodities are hard to get. We are watching a country self-destruct. The fact that videos get posted and Twitter whirls away over the continuing protests overshadows the obvious: Yemen has been a military dictatorship far too long to transition overnight into a practical democracy. Hopefully in another 33 years we will not see yet another first take of a military leader rebroadcast on the Internet…