The Ministry of the Interior is confirming that three hostages have been killed, but still no word on the fate of the the other six. This brief from the MOI […]
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Well that didn’t last long. Nasir al-Wahayshi, the head of AQAP (who many people seem to under estimate, which I think is a mistake) has three articles in this issue, […]
Last week, before all the craziness, I asked whatever happened to Ali Muhammad al-Hisam, the kidnapped deputy director of political security, whom AQAP had threatened to execute in 48 hours […]
If you are anything like me then you can’t wait to read each new issue of the New York Review of Books. The latest issue, which arrived in my mailbox […]
For those too cheap or otherwise unable to buy the latest issue of the American Interest but still want to read the article you can access it here. The site […]
Foreign Policy, in collaboration with the Fund for Peace, has published their annual “Failed States Index“, a highly scientific ranking of failed states. In what can only be interpreted as […]
The main consultant who worked on the ICG report on Sa’dah sent me this thoughtful response to my post earlier today:Regarding the fact that the report considers the Saada conflict […]
Dina Temple-Raston, a reporter a NPR who I greatly respect, has this new piece up entitled: “For al–Qaeda in Yemen, Targeting the US is Personal.”On the surface a story and […]
If the Yemeni government wants to ease tensions in the South it needs to be seen addressing some of the grievances in the South, at least that is the opinion […]
Tariq al-Shami, the GPC’s head of media, is arguing for links between the Huthis, al-Qaeda and the Southern movement, which once again turned violent in the past couple of days. […]
I am briefly breaking my self-enforced silence and blogging break to ask who the Washington Post’s Dana Priest is referring to in the following sentence:“U.S. military teams and intelligence agencies […]
In an effort to continue to expand Waq al-waq, we have created another sticky on the side of videos of AQ in Yemen – for those that can’t get enough.
Brian noted yesterday that we have been neglecting the south and southern issues here at Waq al-waq and he is right, but that is not the only thing we have […]
Al-Mansurah Prison in Aden, which hosts a number of different prisoners including al-Qaeda suspects, has recently increased security. Al-Mansurah last featured in some al-Qaeda media releases back in 2008 when […]
Given all the time and attention the Yemeni military has spent on the Arhab tribe recently, which we have followed here at Waq al-waq by also spending a great deal […]
John Brennan, counter-terrorism chief (via Ambinder)Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is an extension of al Qaeda core coming out of Pakistan. And, in my view, it is one of […]
I’ve been using “al-Houthi”, but Greg called and yelled at me for like 45 minutes and said to drop the “o”. He explained there aren’t any “o’s” in Arabic, and […]
The news that Saudi Arabia is bombing targets inside Yemen and is becoming much more intimately involved in the Huthi conflict is sparking, as it should, a great deal of […]
In what one can only imagine was an awkward and stiltedly polite conversation, “Information Minister Hassan al-Lowzi has met with a delegation of Human Rights Watch headed by Joe Stork, […]
News Yemen reports on recent clashes, which led to the deaths of six soldiers, although an al-Huthi spokesman is denying the report. The spokesman is also warning the government against […]
Al-Quds al-Arabi is the latest paper to feel the wrath of the Ministry of Information, as editions last week were confiscated by the government. This story by al-Tagheer (which has […]
Over at Foreign Policy.com Ian Bremmer tells us why we should care about Yemen’s future – a subject close to Waq al-waq’s heart. I disagree with his take on the […]
Friday is traditionally a slow news day in the Middle East, and today is no different. Al-Sharq al-Awsat has this piece on the protests this week, claiming that two soldiers […]
Al-Sharq al-Awsat and al-Quds al-Arabi both devote their coverage of Yemen to yesterday’s death sentence handed down to the six al-Qaeda suspects. Following the sentencing it seems as though the […]
Earlier this year Sultan al-Sam’ai, a MP for YSP from Ta’izz, helped to form the “Popular Movement for Justice and Change,” which as this piece from al-Tagheer points out is […]
Despite the warnings of my better angels, I couldn’t resist a quick read through of the Nasir al-Wahayshi interview posted to jihadi sites. What can I say, for me a […]
Friday December 17 marked the one year anniversary of the US air strikes in Majalla, which killed, along with some al-Qaeda operatives, a number of women and children. The incident […]
Available videos of talks on al-Qaeda in YemenJanuary 2010: The Yemen Crisis: Some Ground Truths (Princeton)January 2010: Big Think Interview, Big ThinkDecember 10, 2009: Yemen’s Three Layers of Crises, National […]
All at once, it seems, Yemen’s neighbors have decided the whole “let it become a failed state” plan might not be in their best interests. Kuwait has agreed to float […]
I have thought for some time now that a book that is really needed is some sort of jihadi dictionary, explaining common words phrases and allusions that often pepper jihadi […]