U.S. pulls citizens out of Yemen
Evacuations ordered amid terror fears
NAIROBI — The State Department on Tuesday ordered the evacuation of much of the U.S. Embassy in Yemen and urged all Americans to leave the country following an alQaida threat that triggered the shutdown of diplomatic outposts across the Muslim world and Africa.
On the same day that Air Force aircraft were flying Americans out of Yemen, a suspected U. S. drone targeted a moving car in the impoverished nation’s Marib province, killing four alleged al-Qaida militants, according to a Yemeni security official.
It was the fourth drone attack targeting leaders of the group in less than two weeks.
Yemeni officials told the Associated Press that one of the dead is believed to be Saleh Jouti, a senior alQaida member.
The State Department said in a global travel alert that all non- emergency U. S. government personnel would be evacuated “due to the continued
potential for terrorist attacks.” It described an “extremely high” security threat level in Yemen and advised U. S. citizens to leave immediately.
“As staff levels at the Embassy are restricted, our ability to assist U. S. citizens in an emergency and provide routine consular services remains limited and may be further constrained by the fluid security situation,” the statement read.
Military officials did not specify how many U.S. citizens were flown out of the country or where they were taken. The British Embassy said that it had evacuated its staff because of the security threats.
The Pentagon said it was keeping an undisclosed number of military personnel in Yemen to support the U.S. Embassy “and monitor the security situation.”
Residents in the capital reported seeing and hearing a low-flying aircraft that many believed to be a U.S. drone.
On Sunday, the United States said it was closing 19 embassies and consulates — including missions in North Africa, the Middle East, East Africa and Bangladesh — until Saturday. The highly unusual shutdowns were a result of in- tercepted communication between al- Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri and Nasir al-Wuhayshi, the leader of al- Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror network’s Yemen branch.
In one communication, al-Zawahri, who succeeded Osama bin Laden as alQaida’s leader, gave orders to al-Wuhayshi to stage an attack, according to a person briefed on the matter. Al-Wuhayshi is still thought to be in Yemen and al-Zawahri in Pakistan, said Bruce Hoffman, a Georgetown University professor and expert on terror groups.
“It’s very worrisome because al- Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is the most effective and threatening affiliate,” Hoffman said. “So now the leader of the most consequential affiliate has an intimate command role in the overall organization. From Zawahri’s point of view, there’s no better exemplar of the Qaida brand than AQAP.”
The presence of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has transformed Yemen into a key front line in the U. S.-led war on terror. A few dozen U.S. Special Op- erations Forces have been stationed in Yemen since last year to train Yemeni counter-terrorism forces and to help pinpoint targets for U. S. and Yemeni airstrikes against al-Qaida targets inside the country. The U.S. military carries out drone strikes in Yemen from its base in Djibouti, while the CIA flies armed drones from a separate base in Saudi Arabia.
Yemen is of strategic importance to the United States because it borders Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter and a key U.S. ally, as well as vital oil shipping lanes.