SANA'A: Since the Yemeni government managed to successfully negotiate an al-Qaeda withdrawal from the town of Rada, situated some 170 kilometers south of Sana'a, the capital, it decided that it was about time to change its approach when it came to fighting off the armed group. Despite the army's best efforts and countless American drone attacks within Yemen's southern province of Abyan, which led to the displacement of thousands of families and a great number of collateral casualties, the Defense Ministry was unable to dislodge the group from its many strongholds, only angering the local population as people felt betrayed and abandoned by the central government. If Yemenis do not necessary like the idea of being imposed with a strict and often unforgiving interpretation of the Sharia Law, or Islamic law, they dislike even more the idea of having a foreign nation, in this case, the United States, trespass within Yemen's territories and conduct its air attacks on Yemeni properties. “Why can't the American work in partnership with the Yemeni air force if they are so keen on bombing al-Qaeda, why do they have to send their own planes? How do you expect Yemenis to react to a foreign air strike? For us it equates to an act of war. I'd like to see how the US would react if Russia decided to blow up warehouses in Washington because terrorists were hiding there,” said Ahmed al-Baydha a tribesman from Abyan. Aware that it was “playing with fire,” the new coalition government now on the eve of the next presidential elections is trying to positively use the influence of its local tribes by enrolling sheikhs as negotiators. “Sheikhs carry much influence and power in Yemen, al-Qaeda militants realize that and they know that without some sort of support from the tribes they are bound to fail; therefore we are including tribal elements to our negotiating tactics,” said an official under anonymity since he was not allowed to discuss such matters with the press. With the help of tribal mediator, Tareq al-Fadli, the government is now attempting to negotiate the release of Zinjibar, Abyan's regional capital. Al-Fadli revealed to Bikyamsr.com that the Islamic militants were so far demanded insurances that Sharia Law be uphold in Zinjibar before they could leave. “It is a positive step, we are getting somewhere and hopefully it will lead to the second phase of our withdrawing campaign,” said the mediator. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/sNUqh Tags: Diplomacy, Militants, Negotiate, Qaeda Section: Latest News, Yemen
