In case anyone has forgotten: In Yemen, there is a real war up north

by: Hassan Al-Haifi
Published:25-01-2010
Apparently, the “War on Terror” has sidestepped all other events in this world and all focus is on Al-Qaeda, especially since a suspected AQ peon managed to get on a plane headed for the USA with some dirty underwear. This latest escapade of AQ phobia, unsuccessful as it was, is a long way off from a number of airplanes being turned into explosive ordnances and ramming into the Wall Street Trade Center twin towers, the US Defense Ministry and the backwoods of Pennsylvania (9/11). God forbid that anything like that should find recurrence in our times or any other times. However, the question of “Has AQ lost its pants?”, is almost inescapable as a comparison of 9/11 and the “failed” post Christmas 2009 bizarre bombing attempt is forced upon the observer. Thank God, it was a failed attempt indeed. However, should all attention be diverted from real ongoing bloody encounters, in which scores of human bodies (civilians and combatants) are daily being torn to shreds, in the same country where the Nigerian bomber is alleged to have begun his long range bombing mission (the material must have been irritating to the underwear wearer on such a long journey).
Two states are currently pinned down in a futile project to eliminate a defiant adversary, who remains undefeatable despite the balance of means of the two states and this adversary tilting heavily in favor of the former. This conflict is resulting in high casualties amongst the civilian population of Yemen’s northern governorates. Many of these civilians are located far away from the “battleground” areas. It is also clear that Saudi Arabia failed in achieving its declared intention of turning back the “infiltrators” into their territory. Saudi entry in the conflict has given the once “local” conflict between the Houthi fighters and the Yemeni Government (which has managed to remain “local” for five increasingly bloody rounds) regional and international dimensions.
Recent efforts to associate the conflict in the north of Yemen to the Yemeni Government’s (and their Saudi counterpart’s) “War on Terror” are somewhat intriguing (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/expatnews/6966691/Yemen-using-war-on-al-Qaeda-to-bolster-regime.html). This effort was given greater momentum at the start of 2009, when Saudi Arabia allowed some 200 of its own suspected AQ “dangerous and wanted men”, who were under the “watchful eyes of the Saudi security organs”, to momentarily escape those eyes and infiltrate to Yemen (http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/02/05/starr.alqaeda.yemen/). This happened just a few months before the Yemeni Government decided to embark on a “scorched earth” campaign against the Houthis, at the behest and with all the backing and support of the Saudi Arabian Government. Is there some link between such questionable occurrences? This is apparent, especially since Saudi Arabia decided that the Al-Houthi job needs bigger and stronger boys to tackle it, as the Yemeni Government faced difficulties with its “scorched earth” effort. Of course, both the Yemeni Government and the Saudi Government, hardly consider the Al-Qaeda threat at par with the threat, which both, rightfully or wrongfully, view the Houthis as being. Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Osama Bin Laden and the home of origin of Al-Qaeda and all manifestations of Salafi/Jihadi culture. Yemen has been an incubator of such a culture for a number of decades (since the early 1970s), on behalf of, and in consort with the Saudis.
Yemen’s war with the Houhis could have probably been managed locally and dealt with in the usual manner of a few engagements on the rocky terrain of Sa’ada and then a truce. Maybe, even a peaceful way out of the seemingly relentless conflict altogether could have been worked out. But it was obvious that this was not in line with the wishes of the neighbors to the North, whether due to ideological considerations or the Saudi perceptions of the regional manifestations of the conflict. The Saudis perhaps felt that they have invested far too much in this drive to eliminate the Houthi threat to have it halted and restarted again (like the five previous rounds). They may have also overestimated their own strength and military prowess. They have unleashed the AQ factor, probably to give them ample cover for the extensive use of all their various firepower capabilities and thus blanket the tragic civilian suffering that is now being witnessed. This civilian “collateral damage” was in addition to the already disturbing high civilian casualties that the Yemeni Government was inflicting. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the United Nations and the ICRC) have all condoned the disproportionate use of force and the unnecessary civilian casualties with respect to both allies (including the direct hits on IDP camps).
Whether the AQ factor is indeed intended for this or not, both the Yemeni Government and the Saudis, individually or collectively have considerable leverage in influencing the direction of the AQ factor. Many observers contend that this factor is being used to take away public and particularly Western attention from the bloodbath in Sa’ada and surroundings, murkily projecting such tragic consequences as of the “War on Terror”. This kind of deliberate confusion was tried with the Bush Administration in the earlier rounds of the Sa’ada War. However, it appears that the former US Administration did not buy this mixed-up logic for too long.
Will the Obama Administration in the United States eventually catch on as well? The unnecessary deaths and displacement of hundreds of thousands of Yemeni civilians should not be added to those already inflicted directly or indirectly by the United States in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. The AQ factor, as dubious as it appears to be, does not justify further senseless and unreasonable suffering of helpless Yemeni citizens with the blessings of the United States, especially in a conflict that is really far away from the anytime callable “War on Terror/Al-Qaeda”.

Yemen Times Issue 1334

25 January 25, 2010

Sa'ada Update: An End to the Fighting Soon?

The Houthis: The Saudis Continue Attacks

By: Hassan Al-Haifi
For the fourth day in a row the Houthis state that the Saudi Arabian forces continue attacking Yemeni territory with 17 air raids in various areas of Sa'ada Governorate and 148 rockets fired into Sa'ada.

There were some ground encounters in Harf Sufian as well with Yemeni Government forces where the Houthis claim to have detovated a bomb on a tank that was trying to relieve an incapacitated tank from yesterday's attempted ground advance.

On another note sources state that the brother of the Governor of Sa'ada, Sheikh Faris Manna'a, who is also Chairman of the reconciliatiuon committee between the Government and the Houthis in the Sa'ada War, has been taken from his house in Sana'a to an unknown destination. It was not clear what the reason for his arrest was.

In the meantime, a website of the Houthsi reported that the Houthis are negotaiating with the Government for an end to the ongoing conflict between the two parties. There is already agreement in principle on the need to end the fighting and the talks have advanced to the discussion of the instruments needed to implement the various conditions (exchange of prisoners; release of detainees, disengagement; etc.)

Houthis: The Saudis Have Not Stopped Their Shelling and Bombing of Yemeni Territory

The Saudis are continuing their aerial and rocket attacks on Yemeni territory, according to the Media Office of Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi and with 21 air raids and 480 rockets directed against various areas of Sa'ada causing some civilian casualties and destruction of civilian houses.

The Houthis have withdrawn from all Saudi Territroy seized since the Saudi entry in the War last November 2009. This was based on a one sided declared truce by the Houthis, suggesting that if the Saudis continued their attacks on Yemeni territorey, then they will have no choice but to hit back with new fronts and an "open war". Prince Khalid Bin Sultan claimed that the Houthis are still a menace and suggested that the Houthis must be dealt with as rebels of their own Government. He also suggested that it was the Saudis who drove the Houthis back.

The Government forces also attempted some ground advances in Al Iqab and Harf Sufian, which the Houthis claimed to have repulsed after fighting from 0700 Hrs to Noon. There were also 9 air raids by Yemeni Government Forces in various areas of Sa'ada Governorate.

Houthis Withdraw and the Saudis Continue to Bomb

By Hassan Al-Haifi

The Houthi fighters announced through their Media Office that they have withdrawn from all the positions they formerly occupied in Saudi Arabian territory and listed 44 positions including

outposts:
Al-Sabbah, Batul, Al-Irrah, Al-Mujda'a, Al-Jouf, Um Qam'a, Al-Gharisha, Jouf Al-Nuseiby, Al-Khaqaqa, Al-Jabiry Center, Al-Masayel, Qaim Al-Sayyab, Um Dahwah, Um Sharheil, Qarqa'iy, Ra'ashah, Al-'Aqam, Um Ruzmah, Dar Al-Nasr, Qam Qoub, Um Darmiyah, Qaim Sahah, Um Rasabah, Um Qaima, Al-Saibah, Al-Utaimy, Biyout Ahmed Hadi, Um Baisy.

Mountains:
Al-Qurhoum, Al-Hushkoul Al-A'ala, Al-Hushkoul Al-Asfal, Farisa, Al-Mudabba'a, Qumama, Malhamah, Twaibiq, Al-Sabadawy.

The recent battle grounds of Jabal-Al-Dukahn and Jabal Mudawwad were also withdrawn from.

In the meantime the announcement of the Media Office of Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi of Tuesday stated that the Saudis continued bombing and shooting rockets at villages inside Yemen with 9 air raids, one of which lead to the destruction of a house in which 5 were killed and 2 were injured in Mirran. there were 540 rockets shot at various districts in districts within the interior of Sa'ada Governorate.

The Saudi Arabian press did not disclose any official Saudi reaction to the offer made by Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi, the Field Leader of the Houthis (see previous post), but attempted to impress upon the reader by quoting various "informed" sources that the Saudi forces have achieved the victory they have been pursuing, and that the withdrawals "actually occurred a month ago" (when Prince Khalid Bin Sultan, Assistant Defense Minister supposedly claimed that all Saudi territory had been liberated, without any confirmation from any independent sources, while the Houthis continued to claim ongoing air raids and failed ground assaults (with videos showing some of the battles, which the Saudis did not deny or falsify) against many of the outposts they were occupying long after the claim.
In addition, the Saudi prexs continued to try to establish some linkage between Al-Qaida and the Houthis, a claim that can not be substantiated by either ideological congruence or appraoach. In fact the Saudis are actually more closer to the AQ doctrinaire and methodology, since both are strong backers of Salafi/Wahhabi dogma, which is as far away from the Houthis as a bar mitzvah! In addition most financial support and personnel for AQ emanate from Saudi Arabia. But recently the Saudis have sought to show a disassociation between themselves and "terrorism" and for some logically inexplicable reasons to throw AQ with Shiites of Yemen, Lebanon and Iran, which most Moslems find rather intriguing. Even the Vocie of America wrongly makes this assertion in a picture caption in the Radio channels website (http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/-leader-of-a-six-year-insurgency-in-Yemen-announced-that-his-forces-will-pull-back-from-Saudi-Arabia-if-the-powerful-northern-neighbor-promises-to-stop-arming-and-fighting-alongside-the-Yemeni-government--82686477.html), which would seem puzzling.
There was no new announcement from the Houthis as of 0700 hrs Wednesday Morning.

A M Al-Houthi: Peace Initiative with the Saudis

Breaking News

by: Hassan Al-Haifi

In a recorded statement posted on the You Tube and 4 Share, the Field Leader of the Houthis or Believing Youth Movement, Abdul-Malik Badr Eddine Al-Houthi announced an offer for peace with the Saudi Arabians with the following stipulations:

1) The Houthis will withdraw from all the bases, outposts and camps they took over in Saudi Arabian territory since the entry of the Saudis in the conflict and give them back to the Saudis.
2) The Saudis should stop all attacks on them and, "in particular", on the civilian populations of Yemen that are now daily victims of Saudi aerial, rocket and artillery barrages deep into Yemeni terrirtoy and "far away from the areas of the encounters" between the Saudi military and the Houthis.

He stated this after having given a brief background of the reasons behind the current encouters between the Houthis and Saudi forces. He reiterated that the reason the Houthis were compelled to attack into Saudi territory was because the Saudis allowed the Yemeni forces to use their territory, bases and facilities despite efforts to prevent this.
Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi said that this is the third effort to foster a peace deal with the Saudis and to show the formers' good intents. He suggested that the Houthis have no ambitions whatsoever in Saudi Arabia, but are purely acting in self-defense having only taken over outposts and bases in Saudi territroy that were used by the Yemeni forces against them.

He warned that if the Suadis do not acceot this third gesture for peace, the Houthis will then have no choice but to engage in an "open war" with the Saudis, in which several fronts will be opened and there will be no limits as to what that would entail.

The Saudis have been directly involved in the War in Sa'ada and other Northern Yemeni Governorates since November 2009, but have strongly backed the Yemeni Government effort to crush the rebellion of the followers of the late Hussein Badr Eddine Al-Houthi, who was killed in the First Round of what has now come to Six Rounds of heavy fighting with brief lapses of truces. The Saudis have only been directly involved starting from this current Sixth Round, claiming that they only want to stop the "infiltrators" and push them out of Saudi territory. Both the Yemeni Government and the Saudis have suffered setbacks against the resilient Houthi rebels in a terrain that is among the most difficult terrain in the world.

Al-Houthi made no mention of his adversaries on the Yemeni side in this offer.

Al-Houthis and Al-Qaida in Yemen: What, When and Why

Saudi unexploded bombs

dropped in Sa'ada

Victims of Sa'ada War

Alleged "underwear"
explosive powder

?
What is Next?

By: Hassan Al-Haifi

The first five rounds of the Sa'ada conflict were fought mainly between the Yemeni Government forces and the Believing Youth Movement founded by the late Hussein Badr Eddine Al-Houthi (killed in the First Round in September 2004). That was the only successful round for the Yemeni Government. Hussein Al-Houthi was the son of a very prominent Zeidi scholar (now in his nineties) and a scholar in his own right. The Yemeni Government, under prodding from Salafi and Wahhabi followers projected Hussein Al-Houthi and his followers as Shiites of the 12th Imam or Ja'afari persuasion, i.e., followers of Iran. There is quite a difference between the Zeidi sect and these other 2 Shia sects. The Zeidis may be viewed as predominantly Sunni in doctrine, except for the political view that the caliphate was to remain within the descendants of the House of Ali and the Prophet's daughter Fatima. The Government of Yemen accuses the Houthis; alias Believing Youth (No relations to the Somali group at all) of wanting to reinstate the Imamate. In an Abu Dhabi Satellite Channel interview Hussein Al-Houthi tried to show otherwise: "If I wanted a leadership position, I would seek the Presidency. The only requirement is the ability to read and write. There are 14 tough conditions in order to be an Imam, which most likely I could never fulfill". The Houthis insist that they are only preventing the systematic marginalization and elimination of the Zeidi sect, which many government officials of Salafi persuasion or Saudi linkage have vied to achieve. The former Governor of Sa'ada Yahya Al-Amry (now ironically the Governor of Dhamar, which is another former Zeidi stronghold) was doing all in his power to facilitate the political and spiritual empowerment of the Salafi/Wahhabi organizations. He also tightened restrictions on any cultural, educational and religious activities by Zeidi followers. The Governor tried to arrest Hussein Al-Houthi (an MP) on the premise that the latter was organizing marches in support of the Palestinians, who were then undergoing the worst treatment that Israeli right wing Prime Minister Ariel Sharon could inflict on the Palestinians in the "Second Intifada". Al-Houthi and some of his followers were stopped at a security checkpoint. Al-Houthi sensed that Al-Amry was trying to find any excuse to have him killed. Failing to negotiate his way out of the ambush, he shot his way to escape and Round One began (18 June 2004 - 15 September 2004).
Many observers warned then not to engage in any conflict with the proud and resilient people of Sa'ada. Historically, Sa'ada Governorate has never been forcefully subdued. In the Civil War of 1962 – 1970, Sa'ada and the nearby governorates withheld a modern Egyptian Army that reached 70,000 strong. Ironically at that time, Saudi Arabia was supporting the Zeidi backers of the Imam then, out of fear of the spread of Nasserite Nationalism. President Nasser of Egypt was calling for the overthrow of most traditional monarchies in the Arab World.
The Houthis managed to rebound after every round. The Government was compelled to make temporary truces with the Houthis after each Round. The Fourth Round peace agreement mediated by Qatar actually even called for the exile of all the Houthi family members and leaders. However, the Yemeni Government reneged on some of its obligations (releasing Houthi or suspected Houthi detainees), while continuing the tough campaign against the Zeidis in general.
The Sa'ada War became a profitable enterprise for many players in Yemen, who managed to commit both the Yemeni Government and the Saudi Government (the latter footing the bill for the most part, and probably not too pleased at the growing influential role of Qatar) to insist on the complete defeat of the Houthis. The Houthis grew stronger and more experienced. By the time the Sixth Round flared up last Ramadhan or September 2009, the Houthis had become (at least in their own turf in Sa'ada and Amran Governorates) well in command of the situation. Out of frustration at the Government forces not being able to make headway with the Houthis, the Saudis first provided logistical support to the Government forces: use of Saudi territory for movement or tactical maneuvering and use of facilities. The Houthis found this irritating and finally were forced into a showdown with the Saudis over borderline Mount Dukhan, which was mostly in Saudi territory. Probably the Saudis wish now that they stayed out of the fighting. Observers suggest that Saudi continuing involvement would present insurmountable security risks for the Saudi regime. Long engagements by the Saudis threaten the domestic security situation in the Kingdom, as well as bring embarrassment for the Saudis regionally and internationally. But the Saudis are now stuck with having achieved very little to bolster the Yemeni Government efforts or to regain their lost territory. With the Houthis projecting a David versus Goliath scenario, and the credibility of the Saudis and the Yemeni Government declining, the Al-Qaida factor mow comes to the rescue to bring in a third player: Uncle Sam.
Yemen Times 1330
18 January 2010

The illogic of American intervention in Yemen 3/3

Hassan Al-Haifi
Published:11-01-2010

This observer has often called on the parties now actively engaged in Yemen in one way or another to go back to the historical background of Yemen and try to figure out just how the current picture of Yemen emerged. This is specifically directed to the foreign entrants in Yemeni affairs, including some of the regional powers that have willingly or not put their feet in a very slow sinking quicksand that will surely represent the biggest challenge to confront them. Saudi Arabian role in the developments in Yemen go back to the First and Second Saudi State (1744 – 1818) and (1824 and 1891) respectively (see (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wahhabism) and (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia#History). The Saudi advance was deeper into Yemeni territory in the former and the Imam in Sana'a at the time was for a while compelled to abide by Wahhabi religious dictates (destroy domes and large and elaborate tombs). During the Second State, Yemen was mostly under Ottoman rule and the Saudi/Wahhabi alliance was bogged down in a struggle for power with their rivals the Al Rashid and Al Sabhan clans of Nejd.
After the Egyptian Army, which was backing the Republic after the September 26, 1962 Revolution, left Yemen in the wake of the defeat of the Arabs (Egypt, Syria and Jordan) in the Arab Israeli War of 1967, peace was arranged between the surviving Yemen Arab Republic and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Republicans and the Royalists reached a national reconciliation with ease once foreign influence was minimized.
Saudi influence in Yemeni politics nevertheless remained strong and the Wahhabi Establishment in Saudi Arabia was beginning to send "missionaries" to spread the Wahhabi Salafi creed and to have the latter replace the traditional mainstream Shafer and Zeidi sects that prevailed in Yemen. This was done initially subtly and with little fanfare, as the Wahhabis started to first set up "Quranic Schools" and then Scholastic Institutes for the advanced stages of Wahhabi indoctrination, so that by the end of the 1970s and especially with the helms of authority taken over by the current President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Salafis or Wahhabis had an open mandate to expand as they wish anywhere in Yemen. These institutions also were even beneficiaries of state budget funds as the Wahhabi Scholastic Institutes and Quranic Schools became merged with the Yemeni public educational system. In addition, the religious syllabus of the normal public schools began to be infused with Wahhabi teachings. With ample funding from Saudi Arabia and now even the Yemeni Government, the growth of the Salafi Constituency was eminent. In addition, other sects were not given any further encouragement to educate future generations on Shafer and Zeidi, especially with respect to the latter. The old learning institutes of the Zeidi sects were either closed or faced obstacles that prevented them to teach, as informal as such schools were.
As the tensions between North Yemen and South Yemen grew and declined from time to time, the regime of Ali Abdullah Saleh, either through Saudi prodding or out of need, began to use the newly established Salafi constituency in Yemen as paramilitary units, which presumably were to come as Jihadist forces fighting against unfaithful radical or leftist guerillas. The socialist rebels had dug in heavily in the Central Highland extending from Ibb to Ta'ez and from Utuma to Al-Beidha. This of course gave most of the Salafis greater power than the rest of the citizens of the country and they were accorded more facilities (land, buildings and other assets). It was obvious to most Yemenis that the regime was going to give these Salafis, who eventually formed the Islah Party, all the liberty and maneuverability to make them the number one religious institution.
Yemen was able to give many volunteers to the Mujahideen fighting Soviet occupation in Afghanistan. This would enable these groups to gain considerable armament training. This is where Yemeni Salafi leaders like Abdul Majid Al-Zindani began to gain prominence and were used very aggressively to raise the number of volunteers.
With the ample real estate that the Wahhabis in Yemen were able to acquire, most of them were given to them gratis by the Government or sometimes "donated" by private citizens, foreign elements of the Wahhabi genre, were brought in to teach and train the followers of the faith on paramilitary tasks and further indoctrination in the Wahhabi creed.
With such a large constituency of Salafis, it is easy to see why more extreme radical Wahhabi groups can easily find nests to roost in as they escape from one hot spot to the next, either to avoid being caught or killed. After 9-11, Yemen was found to be a major contributor to AQ activities, especially in terms of personnel.
Despite all the foregoing it is for certain now that the US increased military presence will not bring an end to AQ or any other propagators of terror or religious extremism. While Yemen may have contributed many personnel to Jihadist activities, as long as there is ample funding available to Jiahadist activities, they will just continue to relocate from one niche to another.
On the other hand, to have American forces also engage against the Houthis is not helping one bit against the War on Terror, since the Houthis as the record shows have not engaged in any of the bizarre military and para military violence activities that the Salafi Jihadists engage in (kidnappings, murder, suicide bombings and all the other almost maniacal acts that Salafi gangs have been known to unleash. President Barack Obama should not be goaded by the likes of Joseph Lieberman, who is an extremist of the Zionist genre. Mr. Lieberman would not be serving the interests of the United States if he championed US involvement against the Houthis, since the Houthis have done nothing to undermine anyone's interests in the manner which AQ is suspected of having done so. What Jo Lieberman and the other pro Zionist lobbiests in the US are worried about is that the Houthis might be a menace to Israel (as they see Hezbollah as such). In other words, those who are vying for US involvement on the side of the regime in Sana'a are only serving the interests of Israel, notwithstanding the "newly tailored explosive underwear", which again the Houthis have nothing to do with.
The only reason the observer is pointing this out is that American involvement in Sa'ada on top of being suicidal, will lead to large numbers of civilians getting killed for no apparent reasons, with respect to the US. AQ would simply relocate and set up new domiciles, thanks to the ample funding they have access to, probably from the newly producing oil fields of the Empty Quarter Desert, which used to belong to Yemen, but now have been turned over to our gracious neighbors up North.
For more historical background see
http://www.watchinghistory.com/2010/01/context-in-yemen.html

Yemen Times Issue 1328
December 11, 2010

COMMON SENSE
For the Arabs, it is the backseat



Hassan Al-Haifi

One is not baffled anymore by the mediocrity of Arab politics and the ungodliness of most of the leadership in the Arab World, with the word being used here more as a symbolic contempt rather than a real feeling of desire to be subordinate to most of the clowns that make up the roster of Arab leaders.
Yes, contempt would be an even kind reaction to the pitiful displays of Arab political and diplomatic maneuverings in a complex and intertwining world that our mostly aged leaderships have yet to even understand, let alone be able to wiggle through.
Thank goodness the Lord Al-Mighty made Islam a global affiliation and never guaranteed that the Arabs (at least in the Arab World) should be at its spearhead. For all the means and resources at their disposal, the Arabs have proven that they are the world's sloppiest and most narrow minded administrators of the bounties God has bestowed upon them.
Having said that, one cannot help but be reassured that the Lord Al-Mighty has bestowed alternative Moslems with intellect and culture to take on the banner and uphold the causes of the Moslem World. Yes, this is indeed reassured by the latest developments one is seeing in many a Moslem country, the leadership of which has learned that to go about life the Arab way is a freeway to failure and very likely doom.
Just by seeing the big concerns that bother the Arab leaders, the observer is aghast that the Arabs, for example can view Iran as a worse threat to them than Israel! But if one sees the current Arab media, one cannot help but notice the fallibility of our own emotions.
Israel has literally forced itself in the heart of the Arab World at the cost of an entire indigenous population of their very own loosing their homeland and becoming chronic victims of the most unholy occupation in history, while our Arab leaders have no qualms whatsoever about the Zionist menace and suffice by lip service treatment of the Palestine issue, while not finding any fault with Israel's doings.
It is really appalling that we only find great relief from fellow Moslems in Turkey, Malaysia and Iran who vehemently speak out against the Zionist menace and its evil doings in the Holy Land. On the contrary, quite a few Arab leaders look forward to the day when Israeli and American jets mount their blitzkrieg on Iran. Ask any Arab citizen about President Hugo Chavez, and they will come back with "God bless him".
But if you mention any of the Arab diehards, who like to call themselves leaders, who are constantly spoon fed by their overpaid media to their people, and all you hear is "May they burn in hell!" Mind you, this observer has no personal grudges against any of our great leaders, as the Lord Al-Mighty has spared me the agony of their wrath and the dubious nature of their displays of gratuity.
However, one cannot help but realize the overwhelming disapproval of the Arab leaders among their constituencies in particular or their nation as a whole. Better yet, all one has to do is ask these leaders why they do not put the love of their people for them to the test by instituting real and free elections and see how much favor they have amongst their constituencies? Then at least they will have some gauge to evaluate the lying cheaply bought pens and propaganda machines they have set up to keep their public image shining.
Of all the Arab leaders that strike most of the Arab citizens as deplorable, those who have a knack for keeping their countries in an unrelenting aura of war and violence are bound to be given First Prize for Horrendous Leadership.
In fact these leaders would not be able to shut their eyes at night if sound barrier breaking jet fighters do not continuously break the silence of the night or if the sounds of ambulances sirens do not scream as they try to break through the congested pot holed streets to take the dead and wounded to the nearest hospitals or to the Martyrs' Cemetery, where they would be honored with the whole slate of the national leadership, who would never dare to send their very own sons to do battle with their ever changing enemies.
May God bless Recep Tayyib Erdogan, Mahathir Mohammed, and yes Ahmedenjad for reminding us how true Moistens sshoudl act and rule.
The Sa'ada War Must End!
If there is any hope for Yemen and its Government getting back its sanity, this would only come if the bloody madness in Sa'ada comes to an end immediately. This is a war without purpose; a war without mercy; a war that will lead to the total deterioration of what ever is left of national pride as Yemenis and as Arabs.
One should also not forget to express one's appreciation for the remarkable mission from Egypt that came and went empty handed, but did not forget to cash in on some of the war funding being administered by outside watchers. The mission truly showed us how much the Arab World is now lacking in leadership. But then Amro Moussa has never been a favorite among news audiences from the Atlantic to the Gulf anyway.

Yemen Times 19 10 2009
Issue 1304

On the Murder of the South Korean Tourists: This is not the Islam the world has always Known

by: Hassan Al-Haifi

Quite often the observer is bogged down by the absolutely horrendous renditions of Islam being displayed by no more than petty criminals and contractors of death, who are surely worthy of the curse of the Al-Mighty for their damnable corruption of the religion of Islam. Surely, most informed and even those majority of simple folk Moslems throughout the world, are now sick to their stomach for the ongoing displays of murder, sadism and masochism being exhibited by some very ill-informed and surely degenerate imbeciles, for whom one prays to be either eliminated or enlightened to return to the true Message of Islam. It is not difficult for most faithful Moslems of the world to know where this gory heretic rendition of Islam emanates from. No matter where one is in the Moslem World, one will find most of the faithful will be able to point to one place that has been responsible for spreading this hypocritical and inimical creed that disguises itself in corny lip service surface adherence to Islam. The theatrical extremism shown by these merchants of death is in itself already a far deviation from what the true faithful Moslems see in Islam. There is no question about it, all this gory violence and ugly images of merciless death, which we are witnessing almost daily is not simply a series of spontaneous impulsive demonstrations of acts unleashed by uninformed religious zealots here and there. This is indeed the work of well organized deviates, who are nurtured to partake in a scientifically and systematically raised culture, which is actually geared to return not just the Islamic world, but the entire human race millennia back to the Age of Ignorance.

For 15 centuries now, the religion of Islam has been a shining beacon of social and spiritual enlightenment and suffice it to say that the religion of Islam is perhaps the only spiritual creed that was never imposed on any of its adherents. Moreover, the religion of Islam produced great models for the reform and rehabilitation of human society, remaining always at the forefront of sound social and spiritual frameworks. There was never any need to impose Islamic dogma and there is hardly any record of human massacres ignited in the name of Islam. The existence of large non-Moslem communities in most of the Moslem World is undeniable proof that Islam lives by the immortal Qur'anic verse, which puts it as simply, yet as powerfully as it can be put for all mankind to understand: "There is no compulsion in religion!" In other words, let people first understand Islam. God is far greater than anyone to suggest that He is in need of anyone's worship or even their souls at the expense of annihilating four innocent Koreans, whose country has never harbored any animosity or antagonism towards any Moslems, either in Korea itself or any other country of the world. In Islam there is no reward for arrogance, for betrayal of trust, for the murder of one's guests, even if such guests are from a hostile country to Moslems and they are here at our behest. On the contrary, the true principles of Islam insist that any people that have entered Moslem homelands are under the protection of the state as well as all the people of the land and any harm against them is in full violation of Moslem codes of hospitality and protection of peaceful passersby, as is dictated in Moslem religious dictates that are not disputed by any Moslems – the Holy Qur'an. No one is naïve to believe that those, who are behind these heinous acts of murder, in Shibam, Mumbai, Karachi, Iraq, Spain, New York are guided by any Moslem dogma, jurisdictional ordinances and long established Islamic institutional pursuits. All these un Godly acts are, simply put, outright murder and a far cry from anything that Moslems for centuries have ever sought to espouse. The planners, the funders and the aiders and abettors of such crimes as the murder of four Korean tourists, the shooters of Indian hotel clerks, maids or waitresses, the blasters of office workers in New York, the murderers of Moslem worshippers in the mosques of Karbala or Baghdad and even the killers of unaware civilian trespassers in restaurants or theaters, in the stolen lands of Judaea and the Negev are accountable to the Al-Mighty and have distanced themselves from any prospects of winning the Lord's favor. The observer is at a loss in finding religious textual foundations that call for the baseless display of schismatic propagations, which work to engrain inter–sectarian hatred, all of which have no origin in the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed – the delivery that was to mark the final testament of God to man for the establishment of an international order, which thrives on tolerance, insists on social harmony and beguiles all source of senseless violence and uncalled for shedding of blood. Before we can hope for people of other religious persuasions to accept our faith or understand our causes – these death squads must be declared as public enemy No. 1 by all genuine believers in Allah and brought out of their covert cover. Otherwise, they will continue to reflect an unholy and God forsaken image of Moslems, which Allah never asked for and our forefathers kept out of touch with for well over fifteen hundred years.

Our sympathy go out to the families of the murdered 4 Korean victims and of their Yemeni guide, all of whom were killed in cold blood by these murdering buffoons. Our assurance also goes out to the entire world that Allah, the prophets of Allah (including Jesus, Moses and the prophets of the scriptures, as well as Mohammed never espoused any of this bloody madness. All genuine Moslems of all sects are innocent of such acts, which have no basis in any Islamic doctrinaire except those corrupted doctrinaire who are brainwashed to submit to an order that preaches and covertly propagates a mischievous dogma that thrives on blood and destruction. Every Moslem knows where this ugliness emanates from and can easily point to its point of origin, just as quickly as they can point to Mecca.

Yemen Times Issue 1243
March 19, 2003

On the murder of the South Korean tourists:

This is not the Islam the world has always known


By: Hassan Al-Haifi
Published:12-08-2009

Quite often the observer is bogged down by the absolutely horrendous renditions of Islam being displayed by no more than petty criminals and contractors of death, who are surely worthy of the curse of the Al-Mighty for their damnable corruption of the religion of Islam. Surely, most informed and even those majority of simple folk Moslems throughout the world, are now sick to their stomach for the ongoing displays of murder, sadism and masochism being exhibited by some very ill-informed and surely degenerate imbeciles, for whom one prays to be either eliminated or enlightened to return to the true Message of Islam. It is not difficult for most faithful Moslems of the world to know where this gory heretic rendition of Islam emanates from. No matter where one is in the Moslem World, one will find most of the faithful will be able to point to one place that has been responsible for spreading this hypocritical and inimical creed that disguises itself in corny lip service surface adherence to Islam. The theatrical extremism shown by these merchants of death is in itself already a far deviation from what the true faithful Moslems see in Islam. There is no question about it, all this gory violence and ugly images of merciless death, which we are witnessing almost daily is not simply a series of spontaneous impulsive demonstrations of acts unleashed by uninformed religious zealots here and there. This is indeed the work of well organized deviates, who are nurtured to partake in a scientifically and systematically raised culture, which is actually geared to return not just the Islamic world, but the entire human race millennia back to the Age of Ignorance.

For 15 centuries now, the religion of Islam has been a shining beacon of social and spiritual enlightenment and suffice it to say that the religion of Islam is perhaps the only spiritual creed that was never imposed on any of its adherents. Moreover, the religion of Islam produced great models for the reform and rehabilitation of human society, remaining always at the forefront of sound social and spiritual frameworks. There was never any need to impose Islamic dogma and there is hardly any record of human massacres ignited in the name of Islam. The existence of large non-Moslem communities in most of the Moslem World is undeniable proof that Islam lives by the immortal Qur'anic verse, which puts it as simply, yet as powerfully as it can be put for all mankind to understand: "There is no compulsion in religion!" In other words, let people first understand Islam. God is far greater than anyone to suggest that He is in need of anyone's worship or even their souls at the expense of annihilating four innocently Koreans, whose country has never harbored any animosity or antagonism towards any Moslems, either in Korea itself or any other country of the world. In Islam there is no reward for arrogance, for betrayal of trust, for the murder of one's guests, even if such guests are from a hostile country to Moslems and they are here at our behest. On the contrary, the true principles of Islam insist that any people that have entered Moslem homelands are under the protection of the state as well as all the people of the land and any harm against them is in full violation of Moslem codes of hospitality and protection of peaceful passersby, as is dictated in Moslem religious dictates that are not disputed by any Moslems – the Holy Qur'an. No one is naïve to believe that those, who are behind these heinous acts of murder, in Shibam, Mumbai, Karachi, Iraq, Spain, New York are guided by any Moslem dogma, jurisdictional ordinances and long established Islamic institutional pursuits. All these un Godly acts are, simply put, outright murder and a far cry from anything that Moslems for centuries have ever sought to espouse. The planners, the funders and the aiders and abettors of such crimes as the murder of four Korean tourists, the shooters of Indian hotel clerks, maids or waitresses, the blasters of office workers in New York, the murderers of Moslem worshippers in the mosques of Karbala or Baghdad and even the killers of unaware civilian trespassers in restaurants or theaters, in the stolen lands of Judaea and the Negev are accountable to the Al-Mighty and have distanced themselves from any prospects of winning the Lord's favor. The observer is at a loss in finding religious textual foundations that call for the baseless display of schismatic propagations, which work to engrain inter–sectarian haltered, all of which have no origin in the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed – the delivery that was to mark the final testament of God to man for the establishment of an international order, which thrives on tolerance, insists on social harmony and beguiles all source of senseless violence and uncalled for shedding of blood. Before we can hope for people of other religious persuasions to accept our faith or understand our causes – these death squads must be declared as public enemy No. 1 by all genuine believers in Allah and brought out of their covert cover. Otherwise, they will continue to reflect an unholy and God forsaken image of Moslems, which Allah never asked for and our forefathers kept out of touch with for well over fifteen hundred years.

Our sympathy go out to the families of the murdered 4 Korean victims and of their Yemeni guide, all of whom were killed in cold blood by these murdering buffoons. Our assurance also goes out to the entire world that Allah, the prophets of Allah (including Jesus, Moses and the prophets of the scriptures, as well as Mohammed never espoused any of this bloody madness. All genuine Moslems of all sects are innocent of such acts, which have no basis in any Islamic doctrinaire except those corrupted doctrinaire who are brainwashed to submit to an order that preaches and covertly propagates a mischievous dogma that thrives on blood and destruction. Every Moslem knows where this ugliness emanates from and can easily point to its point of origin, just as quickly as they can point to Mecca.

Yemen Times Issue 1243 19 3 2009

The illogic of American intervention in Yemen (2/3)

Hassan Al-Haifi
Published:04-01-2010

In the wake of recent American concern about the rather dubious recent jump in the presence of Al-Qaida in Yemen, one cannot help but ask, what factors raise the contention within the Barack Obama Administration that Yemen is now indeed the new home base for AQ's "menacing" activities throughout the world? Most knowledgeable observers are inclined to suggest to President Obama that his understanding of the real situation in Yemen needs a lot of reinforcement. It is not a rare occasion to see a US Administration sometimes pursuing a policy that is reliant on questionable events and circumstances almost aimed at misdirecting that policy to make it conducive to interests that are not necessarily at par with US interests. In Yemen, there are a multitude of problems that would rank the AQ threat as actually being among the lowest in ranking amongst these problems. This comes notwithstanding the many apparently orchestrated events here in Yemen and elsewhere which prompted this recent US rush to show its tough muscles again with little hope for success.
Needless to say, AQ is a menacing evil that Yemen could do well without. Many Yemenis inside and outside the political spectrum and who have a broad view of the overall scenario that is looming over Yemen are looking for the plausible solution to this menace. However these Yemeni observers would have to suggest that the course of US policy for Yemen as being promulgated by the US media and as announced by Barack Obama himself raise more questions and dig more unwanted graves than would be welcome at this moment. Surely, this AQ threat is indeed a malleable irritant that seems to find its rightful niche whenever the covert masters of this highly suspicious phenomenon find it suitable to shift locale, tactic and victims.
However, before embarking on another highly costly military and security operation and bringing more sources of tragedy and pain for the overwhelming majority of Yemeni citizens, we suggest again that the United States Government make a careful assessment of what AQ is really all about and what allows it to continue its menacing and irritating presence in the world arena? This is not to say that an increasing American presence in Yemen is viewed with disfavor because of a "hatred" of Uncle Sam (does anybody still remember him?). On the contrary, increasing American attention for Yemen can be healthy and even welcome, if channeled properly and is based on the real mutual interests of both the American people and the Yemeni people. The vibes emanating from Washington these days continue to suggest that the US Government considers all the solutions to the problems of the world as resting on expensive and complicated military/security operations. Thus the inputs are fed into a computer and within a few minutes, hours or days the blue print is drawn out for the appropriate military and security steps to be taken and the initially modest needed funding to fuel the effort, that will soon increase manifold to accommodate for increased needs or changing tactics. This kind of strategic and tactical planning ignore the all important factor of the human cost, whether in US (and allied) personnel or the thousands and eventually millions of innocent civilians that are eventually killed wounded or rendered homeless, poor, destitute and perpetually hopeless. One is quite convinced that such monumental costs hardly result in accomplishing any advances against terrorism, in all its manifestations, especially the dubious AQ version. All one has to do is retract over the last decade and attempt to draw up a scorecard on the "War on Terror". If the Iraqi example can be used in this context, the inescapable conclusion that one can draw is that terrorism of the largely ineffective AQ, suicide bomber and the miscalled Jihadi genre entered Iraq with the US invasion of Iraq.
President Obama promised in his campaign for the Presidency that he would eventually get to the root of the "terrorist" mobs and uproot them once and for all. As such, they would not continue to pose a threat, etc. to American security, American interests (overseas) and to "western civilization", as some extreme right wingers in the US and other "western" countries would like to suggest. This promise was made on the pretext that the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan was obviously not the home of origin of AQ and other forms of so called Islamic fundamentalist dogma and the alleged terror that comes with it. Yet, the Taliban and their AQ allies did manage to wrench control of Afghanistan from a moderate Government, thanks mainly to substantial tactical, reconnaissance support mainly from the Pakistani intelligence service. PIS were (by the latter's' own admissions) were actually working under contract for Saudi Government agencies and Quasi Government "religious" agencies and institutions towards this purpose. It has always struck the observer with awe, how the very capable Pakistani intelligence organs (thanks to American training and logistical support during the Cold War), turned their eyes away from the strong growing seeds of a Taliban culture that were simultaneously also being planted in Pakistan as well.
Will the elimination of AQ in Yemen actually be realized as the Obama Administration hopes? If so, will it end the AQ and Jihadi terrorism that is now dealt with by Barack Obama by following a merry-go-round approach lead to any ultimate success of eliminating AQ and its irritating bogus threat to the US and to a considerably greater extent to the Moslem World? The ramifications of this new American intervention in Yemen will be the focus of next week's Common Sense.

Yemen Timea No. 1326 5 Jamuary 2010