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From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Tue Nov 02 2010 - 13:08:17 EST
Army 'might need to intervene in Yemen'
The new head of the Armed Forces has refused to rule out military
intervention in Yemen to stamp out the growing threat from al-Qaeda
terrorists based there.
By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter
Published: 7:00AM GMT 02 Nov 2010
General Sir David Richards, the Chief of the Defence Staff, said there was
no desire to "open up another front there" but suggested that in future it
"might be" necessary.
David Cameron told Parliament that Britain would "take every step to cut out
the terrorist cancer that lurks in the Arabian Peninsula", but Gen Richards
said an intelligence-led approach was the current strategy.
Yemen, the source of the two bombs found on cargo aircraft last week, has
become an al-Qaeda stronghold in recent years. The radical cleric Anwar
al-Awlaki is based in the country.
Asked if an Afghanistan-style military intervention was the right approach
for Yemen, Gen Richards told the BBC: "It might be, but right now it is not
considered to be the case and clearly the Yemeni government does not believe
it needs our help and they are extremely on-side, like most Islamic nations
are actually."
Gen Richards, who succeeded Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup on Friday,
added: "Clearly, the primary agencies dealing with this are our intelligence
and security agencies. But the military are already helping with their [the
Yemenis'] training.
"I don't think we want to open up another front there and nor do the Yemenis
want us to do that.
"So we have to find other ways of doing these things and in the meantime
making sure Afghanistan doesn't revert to becoming, if you like, a 'second
Yemen' – that is the Army's primary duty at the moment.
"Our role is to remain very close to them, to help them where they most need
it and in the meanwhile focus our efforts on Afghanistan and assisting
Pakistan to ensure they don't become the threat Yemen is beginning to be.
Alan Duncan, the international development minister, said aid money would be
channelled to Yemen in an attempt to prevent it becoming a failed state.
He warned that the country was on the brink of collapse because of extreme
poverty and said the next few months could prove pivotal to its future.
Britain already donates £50 million a year to Yemen, which will be increased
in an attempt to prevent the country descending into anarchy.
"The lesson from other countries is that if we sit around and analyse a
country on the edge of collapse for too long, by the time we decide to do
anything about it, it's already too late," said Mr Duncan.
"That may be just where we are heading with Yemen."
He warned that if Yemen was allowed to collapse, "it could lead to a litany
of chaos, with no water, no energy, no food, civil strife, al-Qaeda
flourishing, increasing radicalisation and a regional and international
threat to many nations' securities".
Investigators in Yemen are trying to track down the woman who posted the
parcel bombs in Sana'a, the capital, last week. She had stolen the identity
of Hannan al-Sawami, a 22-year-old computer science student.
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