http://news.antiwar.com/2013/08/07/us-drone-strikes-kill-11-yemen-says-plot-foiled/
None of the slain were identified, but the US strikes are reportedly part of an effort to foil an al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) plot against Yemen, which the Yemeni government says is now completely foiled.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 08/07/2013 13:54 -0400
US Drone Strikes Kill 11, Yemen Says Plot ‘Foiled’
Yemen: AQAP Planned to Conquer Multiple Eastern Cities
by Jason Ditz, August 07, 2013
Another US drone strike hit Yemen’s Shabwa Province today, killing at least seven people who were described as “suspects.” It is the second strike in less than 24 hours, with a hit yesterday killing four others. It is also the fifth US strike in less than two weeks.
None of the slain were identified, but the US strikes are reportedly part of an effort to foil an al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) plot against Yemen, which the Yemeni government says is now completely foiled.
According to Yemeni officials, AQAP plotted to take over several cities in southeastern Yemen,including key port towns and the major cities of Hadramaut Province, blowing up pipelines in an attempt to sew confusion.
The ports were seen as the key to the plot, with large numbers of foreign oil and gas workers in place. The AQAP fighters reportedly planned to seize the facilities wearing Yemeni military uniforms and take the foreigners hostage.
While Yemen says the plot is entirely foiled and over, the US has yet to weigh in, nor has it indicated when it plans to reopen its embassies across the region.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-08-07/us-boasts-about-eliminating-al-qaeda-threat-while-it-evacuates-half-muslim-world
( Schrodinger Al Qaeda - destroyed but not destroyed ? )
US Boasts About "Eliminating Al-Qaeda" Threat While It Evacuates Half The Muslim World
- U.S. HAS ELIMINATED 'ALMOST ALL' AL-QAEDA LEADERS IN PAKISTAN
... the State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki reminds us:
- 'WE DO THINK A THREAT STILL REMAINS' FROM AL-QAEDA: PSAKI
So be afraid, maybe slightly less afraid, "but keep funding us too"...
- U.S. STILL CONCERNED ABOUT AL-QAEDA AFFILIATES
because, after all there are many other countries in the world where Al-Qaeda brass is hiding and where US drones haven't murdered thousands of women and children in their quest to "eliminate" whatever threat du jour the US makes up.
Now that Al Qaeda in Pakistan has had " almost " all leaders eliminated , the drones will stop bombing any day now.....Any day now . Or , maybe not ! Between Al Qadea , Taliban , Baloch Liberation Army , TTP .... just so many targets , so few bombs !
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013\08\03\story_3-8-2013_pg1_2
No timetable for end to drone strikes against ‘terrorists’: US
WASHINGTON: The US State Department on Friday said that no timeline could be provided to end drone attacks.
Briefing the newsmen in Washington, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said that US has made significant progress against core al Qaeda by using drones as counterterrorism tools, “but that as we make that progress the need to use these tools will, of course, be reduced”. She said that Secretary of State John Kerry has reinforced the changes that US expects to take place in the programme over time, but there is no exact timeline to provide. “Obviously, a lot of this is driven by the situation on the ground,” she said.
“The goal here is, of course, that as we have success against al Qaeda - which we’ve talked about a lot the success we’ve had in this region of the world against core al Qaeda - that the tool will obviously - we need to use this tactic less going forward, and that’s what the secretary was referencing,” she said.
“I have no exact timeline to provide. Again, the secretary was making the point that we have made, as we’ve talked about, significant progress against core al Qaeda in this region, and that we will continue to do so - that they are a shadow of what they once were, and I think he was reinforcing that point,” she maintained.
The United States has said it looks forward to working with Islamabad on bilateral cooperation and regional issues and in this respect meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was one of main reasons for Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit. As Kerry concluded his visit to Islamabad, the State Department said the chief American diplomat “made clear that one of the main reasons he was going to Pakistan right now was to meet with Mr (Nawaz) Sharif, that we’re looking forward to working with the newly elected civilian government on a host of issues, regional security, energy”.
In reference to bilateral cooperation on enhancing Pakistan’s energy production, Harf noted that Secretary Kerry also visited a power plant in Pakistan.
The State Department comments came after Kerry, on his first visit as secretary of state, met the top Pakistani political and military leaders and the two countries announced revival of the strategic dialogue on wide-ranging issues of common interest.
The United States and Pakistan agreed on Thursday to re-establish a “full partnership”, hoping to end years of acrimony over US drone strikes on Pakistani soil, the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and other grievances. agencies
Briefing the newsmen in Washington, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said that US has made significant progress against core al Qaeda by using drones as counterterrorism tools, “but that as we make that progress the need to use these tools will, of course, be reduced”. She said that Secretary of State John Kerry has reinforced the changes that US expects to take place in the programme over time, but there is no exact timeline to provide. “Obviously, a lot of this is driven by the situation on the ground,” she said.
“The goal here is, of course, that as we have success against al Qaeda - which we’ve talked about a lot the success we’ve had in this region of the world against core al Qaeda - that the tool will obviously - we need to use this tactic less going forward, and that’s what the secretary was referencing,” she said.
“I have no exact timeline to provide. Again, the secretary was making the point that we have made, as we’ve talked about, significant progress against core al Qaeda in this region, and that we will continue to do so - that they are a shadow of what they once were, and I think he was reinforcing that point,” she maintained.
The United States has said it looks forward to working with Islamabad on bilateral cooperation and regional issues and in this respect meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was one of main reasons for Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit. As Kerry concluded his visit to Islamabad, the State Department said the chief American diplomat “made clear that one of the main reasons he was going to Pakistan right now was to meet with Mr (Nawaz) Sharif, that we’re looking forward to working with the newly elected civilian government on a host of issues, regional security, energy”.
In reference to bilateral cooperation on enhancing Pakistan’s energy production, Harf noted that Secretary Kerry also visited a power plant in Pakistan.
The State Department comments came after Kerry, on his first visit as secretary of state, met the top Pakistani political and military leaders and the two countries announced revival of the strategic dialogue on wide-ranging issues of common interest.
The United States and Pakistan agreed on Thursday to re-establish a “full partnership”, hoping to end years of acrimony over US drone strikes on Pakistani soil, the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and other grievances. agencies
Recap of Sunday Al Qaeda plot - more details .... Yemen says the plot has been completely squashed , so why is the US silent ????
Yemen 'foiled' plot to seize oil facilities | |
Security forces claim to have stopped alleged al-Qaeda plot, as drone strike kills six in southern province.
Last Modified: 07 Aug 2013 13:09
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Security has been tightened across the country since the embassy threats were made public [Reuters]
| |
| Yemeni security forces have foiled a plot by alleged al-Qaeda operatives to take over oil and gas export facilities and a provincial capital in the eastern part of the country, a government official has said. Rajeh Badi, a press adviser to Yemeni Prime Minister Mohammed Salem Basindwa, said the plan involved dozens of al-Qaeda members dressed in Yemeni army uniforms storming the facilities on the 27th night of Ramadan, which was on Sunday. "The plot aimed to seize the al-Dabbah oil export terminal in Hadramout [province] and the Belhaf gas export facility, as well as the city of Mukalla," Badi told the Reuters news agency, referring to the Hadramout provincial capital. He said the plot was prevented by deploying extra troops around the targeted facilities and banning anyone from entering. It was not immediately clear if the alleged plot was linked to threats which prompted the US to close diplomatic missions across the region and withdraw many of its personnel from Yemen. Drone strike Also on Wednesday, a US drone strike killed at least six people in southern Yemen, the fifth in less than two weeks.
Residents who rushed to the scene found only charred bodies, they said. Hakim al-Masmari, the editor of the Yemen Post, told Al Jazeera that local sources indicated at least one of the people killed in the US drone strike on Wednesday was "an al-Qaeda member". At least 20 people have been killed in drone strikes since July 28, when a strike killed at least four members of Ansar al-Sharia, a local armed group affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), one of the most active branches of the network founded by Osama bin Laden. US sources have said that intercepted communication between bin Laden's successor as al-Qaeda leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, and the Yemen-based wing was one part of the intelligence behind the alert last week that prompted the closure of the embassies. In addition to the US evacuations, the United Kingdom, France and Germany have also closed their missions, and other European countries have taken extra precautions. Belgium, Italy and The Netherlands advised their citizens to leave. | |
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