The Following piece is written by a Yemeni-based journalist who writes for Foreign Policy Association (FPA) and, due to serious security concerns, remains anonymous.
As violence continues to escalate in Yemen, the poorest country of the Arabic peninsula, the US and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are losing patience. If Ali Abdullah Saleh was viewed as an important and long standing ally of the two in recent decades, the latest events have forced the two powers to rethink their politic in the region.
The GCC
The Gulf Cooperation Council, under the leadership of King Abdullah has decided to act as a mediator between the embattled Yemeni President and the Opposition, in the hope to help broker a deal, organizing the transition of power. Saleh was actually the first to call upon the Council, saying that he was willing to “discuss his departure” as long as it was in a dignified and peaceful manner.
“The proposal is to have a governing council grouping all the various political parties and tribes for a period that would not exceed three months,” said a Gulf official.
On Tuesday, as the President was receiving ambassadors from the GCC countries, he announced that he would take part in the meeting, only to change his mind a couple of days later, declaring that the Council had no business in interfering with Yemen internal affairs. He went as far as accusing Qatar of having its own agenda. If the Opposition voiced a few concerns over the details of the GCC proposal, it always showed a willingness to discuss all avenues.
Communication Breakdown
As pro-government protesters gather again in the Capital Sana’a in their thousands, pro-democracy protesters are holding an even bigger demonstration at the University.
Once again, Saleh has come out to deliver a willful speech to the cheering crowds. However, this time his tone is dramatically different. Not only is he defiant, but he is vowing to not enter in any more negotiations with his political opponents and to remain at his post until the bitter end. In the light of the recent bloodshed, his words seem to be the promise of more violence to come. But if Saleh is resolute, so are his opponents.
Despite the casualties and the many atrocities witnessed in recent days, more Yemenis are willing to come forward and unite with the Youth. In every city, every village, however remote, the voices of freedom are resounding loud and clear. And as the sounds of guns are being heard in the distance, Yemen is advancing on his tyrant.
Al Qaeda
The kingdom of Saudi Arabia along with the US is getting more and more concerned over the growing threat of Al Qaeda in Yemen.
It is now widely believed that the terrorist organization has established its home in the barren Yemeni mountains.
For many years now, Saleh had been seen as a useful ally to the US in its fight against terror in allowing access to its airspace and intelligence data. However, now that the President is facing an unprecedented political crisis, his attention has been solely concentrated on retaining his power and not in monitoring Al Qaeda’s activities in the country.
This state of affair is a source of great concern for the US as it believes that further attacks on its soil could be fomented at this very moment. But even more worrying, the radicals could use the political crisis to further their hold over this poor country of the Arab World, spelling disaster for its Oil giant neighbor.
Yemen, and to a certain extent the entire Arab World is at an important crossroad. If the West continues to tiptoe around the core problems faced by the country, more preoccupied with dealing with Syria or Libya because they in their views are more strategic interests, it runs the risk of losing all credibility. Given that Yemen is an open doorway to Asia and Africa, the West cannot afford to let it sink into chaos.
