No halt to blood and gore
23 May 2012 3:26 AM GMT
The killing of 100 people at a military parade rehearsal in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa has brought back deep concerns for both Yemen and the US that the al-Qaeda may not have been dismembered after the killing of Osama bin Laden. The modus operandi was also a signature al-Qeda style, in which a bomber strapped himself with explosives under his uniform and triggered the blast. Ansar al-Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law), a militant group, which swears by its affiliation with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, has claimed responsibility for the attack, declaring that the brutal manslaughter was in response to the actions of the country’s security forces, who are fighting militants in their strongholds in Abyan. The country’s president and chief of army staff were both present at the parade and as per some reports the attack could well have been to assassinate them. They have not been hurt. 222 people have been wounded.
This Iraq style attack has shown that the US campaign against Islamic terrorism is not working as per its plans. At the moment when US President Barack Obama has warned of tougher days in Afghanistan and Iraq is no more at peace with itself than it was in 2003, this attack in Yemen my well open a new front in the US’s campaign, a development that will not please the US military and political establishment. Also, this attack clearly shows that al-Qaeda may have lost its leaders but has successfully outsourced its deadly resources to other sundry groups in the restive West Asia and the Arab peninsula. This is bound to worry the US further because this is a clear sign that the US needs more to do to dismember the al-Qaeda than to surreptitiously kill its almighty leader. Â
In Yemen, President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, has retaliated saying that security forces would become ‘tougher and more determined in pursuing terrorist elements’, a stand that would doubtlessly please the US but may further escalate the chances of retaliatory violence. Â
Al-Qaeda is a hydra-headed monster that has once again raised a hood. This may not be its death throes. The indications are clear that the so called war on terror is clearly not narrowing down but is in all likelihood claiming newer territories.
This Iraq style attack has shown that the US campaign against Islamic terrorism is not working as per its plans. At the moment when US President Barack Obama has warned of tougher days in Afghanistan and Iraq is no more at peace with itself than it was in 2003, this attack in Yemen my well open a new front in the US’s campaign, a development that will not please the US military and political establishment. Also, this attack clearly shows that al-Qaeda may have lost its leaders but has successfully outsourced its deadly resources to other sundry groups in the restive West Asia and the Arab peninsula. This is bound to worry the US further because this is a clear sign that the US needs more to do to dismember the al-Qaeda than to surreptitiously kill its almighty leader. Â
In Yemen, President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, has retaliated saying that security forces would become ‘tougher and more determined in pursuing terrorist elements’, a stand that would doubtlessly please the US but may further escalate the chances of retaliatory violence. Â
Al-Qaeda is a hydra-headed monster that has once again raised a hood. This may not be its death throes. The indications are clear that the so called war on terror is clearly not narrowing down but is in all likelihood claiming newer territories.
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