Yemen is a country of legendary wealth and ancient glamour. It is the place where the Queen of Sheba once lived and the Maareb Dam once stood. Envious of its wealth, the Romans dubbed it Arabia Felix. But today's Yemen is anything but glamorous. It is war-torn and impoverished, plagued by violent rivalries and tribal grudges. Many expect Yemen to fall apart in 2010, with international intervention not far behind. So dire is the situation that former South Yemeni president Ali Nasser Mohamed said that Yemen was hanging on the edge of a precipice. Opposition leader Abdel-Rahman Bafadel recently declared that the country was sinking in a quagmire of chaos. With the Houthi rebellion continuing in the north, Al-Qaeda operatives active in the centre, and secessionist demands renewed in the south, the country seems to be coming apart at the seams. The international community didn't take notice of Yemen until the Nigerian man who attempted to blow up a US passenger plane said that he had been recruited and trained by Al-Qaeda operatives in Yemen. And when Houthi rebels crossed the country's borders into Saudi Arabia, Yemen made the headlines again. With a US-Western attack on Iran still possible, Washington appears to be contemplating taking a foothold in Yemen. Recently, President Barack Obama said that he would chase down Al-Qaeda terrorists in Yemen. In fact, the US has already sent military personnel into Yemen on the pretext of training the country's security services. The whole pattern of US interest in Yemen reminds us of previous US adventures in Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia, none of which turned out well. What makes one particularly wary is the recent call by the UK government for an international conference on Yemen in London on 27 January. Once again we find ourselves facing an Anglo-American alliance that seems to harbour a hidden agenda. Sadly enough, the Arabs are turning a blind eye to the whole thing. The writing on the wall is all too clear, yet we pretend that it's not there. In fact, Yemen doesn't need to be a problem. There is nothing in Yemen that national dialogue held in a climate of reason and wisdom cannot resolve. But as an ancient Arab poet once said, "When you talk to the living they hear you, and when you talk to the dead you waste your breath."
