U.S. says al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula behind cargo terror plotBy the CNN Wire Staff
October 29, 2010
(CNN) -- U.S. officials say that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a fairly new arm of the umbrella terrorist organization, is behind an apparent plot to send explosive devices to U.S. destinations via cargo planes.
"Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has been open in its venom toward the United States," John Brennan, a senior U.S. counterterrorism official and an assistant to President Barack Obama, said Friday. "Not only are they intending to do certain things ... they will in fact take steps to carry out those intentions."
Brennan specifically pointed to the botched attempt last Christmas to blow up a Northwest Airlines passenger jet en route from Amsterdam, Netherlands, to Detroit, Michigan, on Christmas Day. U.S. and Yemeni officials have linked the attempt by man who tried to ignite explosives in his underwear to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
Formed in 2009, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is a regional terrorist group known for targeting government and Western interests in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Yemeni forces, with support from their U.S. allies, have stepped up military and political pressure on the group in recent weeks, despite continued threats from its leader.
A key figure in the group is Yemeni-American militant cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, whom U.S. authorities have linked to Fort Hood shooting suspect Maj. Nidal Hasan as well as the man accused in the Christmas Day bomb attempt.
A senior U.S. defense official called al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula a "sophisticated" organization.
Combating the terror group has been a major focus for U.S. counterterrorism authorities, with Friday's incident underscoring the need for U.S. cooperation with Yemen, Obama said Friday.
"We ... know that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula continues to plan attacks against our homeland, our citizens, and our friends and allies," said Obama. "Going forward, we will continue to strengthen our cooperation with the Yemeni government ... to destroy this al Qaeda affiliate."
Brennan said he talked Friday with Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh about the threat posed by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and how to address it, receiving assurances from the Yemeni leader that they'd cooperate on the investigation.
These high-level talks are the latest in a series of collaborative efforts between U.S. and Yemeni officials and forces.
Earlier this year, the United States approved $150 million to train and equip Yemeni forces so they could fight al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Up to 50 U.S. special operations troops are now in the Middle Eastern country training Yemen's military personnel.
In addition, Yemeni and U.S. authorities have been sharing surveillance and other intelligence information culled from inside Yemen, a senior U.S. defense official said.
Many of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's members previously belonged to al Qaeda in Yemen. The National Counterterrorism Center says that group carried out suicide attacks on a Yemeni oil facility in 2006 and mortar attacks two years later on the U.S. Embassy in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, Yemeni military complexes, the Italian Embassy and the Yemeni presidential compound.
Later in 2008, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula detonated two car bombs outside the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, killing 19 people, including six of its own members, according to the National Counterterrorism Center.
Since forming under its new name, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has been tied to a pair of suicide bombings that targeted South Korean tourists.
On Monday, 15 suspected members of the group surrendered in Yemen's southern Abyan province, according to provincial Gov. Ahmed al-Maisari. The surrenders followed meetings with the governor and tribal sheikhs in the towns of Loudar and Moudeya.
This followed a push launched over the weekend by Yemeni and tribal forces after the governor delivered an ultimatum to local tribes to "eradicate" al Qaeda operatives.
"Al Qaeda members should be kicked out," Gen. Yahya Saleh of Yemen's Central Security Forces said. "Like the ideas of the Nazis, anyone who has the ideology of al Qaeda should be brought to justice."
Earlier in the month, Qassim al-Rimi (also known as Abu Hurira al-Sanaei), the military commander of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, posted an audio recording on radical militant websites.
The speaker promised that Yemen's president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, would be punished "for his crimes" and announced that a new army would rid the country of "crusaders and apostates." CNN could not verify the authenticity of the recording.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/10/29/al.qaeda.arabian.peninsula/index.html?hpt=C1
