Yemen crisis: Islamic State claims Sanaa mosque attacks

[ENT]

21 March 2015 Last updated at 00:17


Islamic State (IS) say its militants carried out suicide bombings on two mosques in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, which killed at least 137 people.


The attacks are the first claimed by IS - a Sunni group - since it set up a branch in Yemen in November.


Both mosques were used mainly by supporters of the Zaidi Shia-led Houthi rebel movement, which controls Sanaa.


Yemen has suffered from political instability for years and Houthi rebels control nine of the 21 provinces.


The government of internationally recognised President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi has fled to the southern port city of Aden.


Four suicide bombers attacked the Badr mosque, in the south of Sanaa, and the al-Hashoosh mosque, in the north of the capital, as worshippers gathered for Friday prayers.


At the Badr mosque, one bomber entered the building and detonated his explosives while other people were caught by the second bomber near the main gates.


Prominent Houthi cleric Al-Murtada bin Zayd al-Mahatwari, the imam of the Badr mosque, was among those killed, local media reported.


Two more bombers attacked the al-Hashoosh mosque, with one detonating explosives near the entrance and the other running into the mosque itself.
"Blood was running like a river," said survivor Mohammed al-Ansi.


Both mosques were packed for Friday prayers when the bombers struck


Victims were strewn across the floor by the force of the blasts


Hospitals in Sanaa were overwhelmed with the number of casualties
Rebel controlled al-Masirah TV broadcast footage from the al-Hashoosh mosque showing volunteers using bloodied blankets to carry away victims. Bodies were also lined up in the prayer hall.


About 300 people were wounded, medics said, and hospitals appealed for blood donors.


There was another suicide attack on a mosque in the northern city of Saada - a Houthi stronghold - reports said, but only the attacker was killed.


BBC News - Yemen crisis: Islamic State claims Sanaa mosque attacks

[rickschoppers]

Just because ISIS claims responsibility, there is no hard proof they were.

Quit giving these assholes news time!

[wasabi]

Um, those U.S.A drones, flown from Saudi, didn't help much in stopping the onward march, of a backward religion, taking on the Jews in America.
Christians are pawns in the middle.

[Neverna]

Just because ISIS claims responsibility, there is no hard proof they were.

Very true, Rick. However, last month a group of Islamist fighters in Yemen renounced their loyalty to al-Qaeda's leader and pledged allegiance to the head of ISIS, so it may well have been carried out by people who say they support IS or were recent converts/recruits to IS.

I do wonder, though, if the IS leadership supports the bombing. Both mosques were used mainly by supporters of the Zaidi Shia-led Houthi rebel movement, which controls Sanaa. The Houtis have been fighting Al Qaeda in Yemen but they have also more or less carried out a coup in Yemen and are not very popular around the country. It may well be that the bombing was as much a local political/tribal issue as anything else.

Quit giving these assholes news time!

Do you want to close this thread?

[rickschoppers]

^
As ISIS grows and gains more and more news time, many radical groups will want to claim loyalty to them. Did these groups start as ISIS? No!! They are just jumping on the bandwagon to further their causes. Just another dynamic of ISIS growth.

Absorbing every rag tag pile of muslim exremists does not hurt the reputation of ISIS either. It gives the illusion that they are reaching other countries, when in fact these groups were already present and just want to become part of the new popular fraternity.

By stopping world news coverage, you diminish the ability of ISIS to accomplish one of their main goals. Of course TD does not reach millions, but it would be interesting to know how many radical muslims it does reach.

[Boon Mee]

But, but, just 6 months ago Obama was touting Yemen as a success story in the fight against terrorism?

[rickschoppers]

Obama is an idiot.

[Boon Mee]

Obama is an idiot.

And a Red-Diaper Baby.

His legacy is something historians will write about for a long time.

[ENT]

Just because ISIS claims responsibility, there is no hard proof they were.

Very true, Rick. However, last month a group of Islamist fighters in Yemen renounced their loyalty to al-Qaeda's leader and pledged allegiance to the head of ISIS, so it may well have been carried out by people who say they support IS or were recent converts/recruits to IS.

I do wonder, though, if the IS leadership supports the bombing. Both mosques were used mainly by supporters of the Zaidi Shia-led Houthi rebel movement, which controls Sanaa. The Houtis have been fighting Al Qaeda in Yemen but they have also more or less carried out a coup in Yemen and are not very popular around the country. It may well be that the bombing was as much a local political/tribal issue as anything else.

IS are the extreme militant wing of Sunni Islam, and the mosque victims were Shia.

This bombing is the usual story of the Islamic majority, Sunni, murdering innocent minority (Shia) at prayer.

All IS reasoning and action is directed by IS controversial interpretation of the Sunnah and Koran, albeit a reportedly consensus view.

That begs the question; Is that a consensus view held by all Sunni or only the men?

Women and children have no say in that consensus.

[rickschoppers]

Women and children have no say on anything in the fundamentalist Islamic world.

[panama hat]

So a rebel group, IS, kills members of another rebel group, Houthis.

The problem?

But, but, just 6 months ago Obama was touting Yemen as a success story in the fight against terrorism?

Houthis are terrorists. They were killed. Without US involvement . . . what more do you want?
And if you think the world lives in a vacuum, nothing ever changes . . . then you'd better re-think why the earth turns on its own axis

[Neverna]

Houthis are terrorists. They were killed. Without US involvement . . . what more do you want?

Are they terrorists? Or just another armed faction in a civil war?

[stroller]

All IS reasoning and action is directed by IS controversial interpretation of the Sunnah and Koran, albeit a reportedly consensus view.

That begs the question; Is that a consensus view held by all Sunni or only the men?

Consensus view of IS leadership and followers, obviously not all Sunnis or it wouldn't be controversial.

[Neverna]

^^ Giving them the "correct" category could make the difference between them getting sent weapons in crates or weapons from a drone!

[ENT]

Technically, useless.

Thailand feeds on polluted Mekong water from China, rice grown from it is totally contaminated by arsenic, heavy metals and pest/herbicides agricultural, domestic and industrial run off.

It's all they've got in Issan, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and China controls the lot.

[Cujo]

Saudi Arabia launches air strikes in Yemen

A coalition led by Saudi Arabia has launched air strikes against Shia-led Houthi rebels in Yemen, saying it is "defending the legitimate government" of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi.
Saudi jets targeted Houthi positions in the capital Sanaa overnight, along with missile batteries and warplanes.
Mr Hadi fled to an undisclosed location after rebel forces neared his refuge in the southern city of Aden on Wednesday.
A Houthi official warned the coalition that it risked provoking a wider war.
Shia power Iran, which Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia accuses of backing the rebels, also demanded an immediate halt to the strikes, which it said violated Yemen's sovereignty.
"We will make all efforts to control [the] crisis in Yemen," Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said, according to the Isna news agency.
A conflict that pulls in regional powers could disrupt global oil supplies, and the price of Brent crude rose almost 6% after the strikes began.
Homes destroyed
The Saudi ambassador to the US announced the start of "Operation Storm of Resolve" at a news conference in Washington on Wednesday night.
Aftermath of Saudi-led coalition air strikes in Sanaa (26 March 2015)
The damage caused by the Saudi-led coalition air strikes in Sanaa was clear to see on Thursday morning
Yemeni man and boy clear up inside their home after Saudi-led coalition air strike in Sanaa (26 March 2015)
Rescue workers said at least 13 civilians were killed when homes near the airport were destroyed
Adel al-Jubair said it would begin with air strikes, but vowed: "We will do whatever it takes in order to protect the legitimate government of Yemen from falling."
Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya TV reported that the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Morocco and Sudan were sending aircraft, while Egypt, Jordan, Sudan and Pakistan were ready to take part in any ground offensive. Oman is the only Gulf Arab state not participating.
The US said it was providing "logistical and intelligence support".
As Mr Jubair spoke, huge explosions were heard in Sanaa, as warplanes attacked the al-Dulaimi air base near the international airport and other locations. Rebel fighters responded by firing anti-aircraft guns and missiles.
Security officials told the Associated Press that the targets included a missile base controlled by the Houthis, as well as a nearby fuel depot. A camp for a US-trained special forces unit loyal to ousted former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who is backing the rebels, was also hit.
Map showing Houthi areas of influence
A civil defence source told the AFP news agency that 13 civilians were killed when seven homes near the al-Dulaimi air base were destroyed. The Houthis' al-Masirah TV quoted the health ministry as putting the death toll at 18.
There were also reports of strikes in the Houthis' northern heartland of Saada province, which borders Saudi Arabia, as well as in Aden and the third city, Taiz.
An official also told the AFP news agency that 18 people were killed in clashes between rebel fighters and soldiers and militiamen loyal to Mr Hadi in southern Yemen on Thursday.
'Sound of reason'
Yemen's foreign minister, Riad Yassin, told the Saudi TV channel al-Hadath that the air strikes were welcome, adding: "I hope the Houthis listen to the sound of reason. With what is happening, they forced us into this."
President Hadi called on the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) and the Arab League to intervene last week after the presidential palace in Aden was twice targeted by unidentified warplanes and rebels and pro-Saleh troops seized Taiz.
Saudi Defence Minister Prince Mohammad bin Salman (C) is briefed by officers on the military operations in Yemen (26 March 2015)
Saudi Defence Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman (C) was briefed by officers on the operation
Militiamen loyal to President Hadi in Aden (25 March 2015)
Militiamen loyal to President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi have been unable to stop the Houthi advance
Mr Hadi took refuge in Aden last month after fleeing Sanaa, where he had been under house arrest since the rebels took full control of the capital in January.
The president's appeal for help became more urgent on Wednesday when the rebels overran al-Anad air base, a large military facility that is only 60km (37 miles) north of Aden.
Mr Hadi was subsequently moved to a "secure location" after another air raid on his palace and the capture of Aden's international airport by pro-Saleh police.
Senior aides insisted that he remained in the city and had no plans to leave, but security and port officials later told the Associated Press that he had left by boat.
The Houthis have said their aim is to replace Mr Hadi's government, which they accuse of being corrupt, and to implement the outcomes of the National Dialogue that was convened when Mr Saleh was forced to hand over power in 2011 following mass protests.
line
Yemen - who is fighting whom?
Houthi fighters in Sanaa (25 March 2015)
The Houthis have said their aim is to replace Mr Hadi's government, which they accuse of corruption
The Houthis: Zaidi Shia-led rebels from the north, who seized control of Sanaa last year and have since been expanding their control
President Hadi: Backed by military and police loyalists, and by militia known as Popular Resistance Committees, he is trying to fight back against the rebels from his stronghold in the south
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula: Seen by the US as the most dangerous offshoot of al-Qaeda, AQAP opposes both the Houthis and President Hadi.
Islamic State: A Yemeni affiliate of IS has recently emerged, which seeks to eclipse AQAP

Saudi Arabia launches air strikes in Yemen - BBC News

[Cujo]

Yemen is fast descending into a violent cauldron where the competing interests of Shia Houthi rebels, Sunni tribes, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states, Iran, al-Qaeda and now Islamic State are forming a toxic mix.
The situation has got so bad that the US and UK have closed their embassies and evacuated their staff, while Gulf Arab countries have moved theirs to the southern city of Aden.
The Houthis are closing in on Aden, which controls the entrance to the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandab strait, through which about 20,000 ships pass annually.
The city is also the base of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, who has called for military intervention by the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), including the imposition of a no-fly zone, while few people hold out much hope for the promised peace talks in Qatar.
So, is Yemen about to embroil the region in a wider war?
Sectarian strife

At its heart, the current conflict in Yemen is one between the rebels and what remains of the elected Yemeni government.
The Houthis are Shia, from the Zaidi sect. They are opposed not just by the government they have ousted but also by Yemen's many Sunni tribes.
But above all, they are opposed by the jihadists of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and Islamic State, who consider Shia heretics.
Islamic State said it was behind the suicide attacks on mosques in Sanaa used by Houthi supporters On 20 March, IS marked its violent debut in the country with four suicide bomb attacks at mosques popular with Houthi supporters, killing more than 130 worshippers.
The Houthis come from the far north of Yemen and have little popular support in most of the rest of the country.
But they are effective fighters who seized the capital last September (having said they would not) and they are getting a lot of help from some quarters.
The powerful former President, Ali Abdullah Saleh, is widely reported to be backing them, determined to make Yemen ungovernable by his successor, the UN-backed President Hadi.
Iran is also alleged to be supporting the Houthis. The rebels officially deny this, but senior figures have been seen in Iran's holy city of Qom and there are unconfirmed reports of Iranian pilots flying Yemeni planes.
The southern port city of Aden controls access to the Bab al-Mandab strait and the Red Sea All this is enough to seriously rattle the Saudis, who woke up too late to the prospect of a pro-Iranian rebel movement taking over their southern neighbour.
The Saudis, who conducted air strikes against the Houthis on their common border in 2010, say they will not allow Iran "to sow sectarian strife in the region" and have vowed to back Yemen's beleaguered president.
Saudi Arabia is still in the process of building a massive border fence with Yemen and is now bolstering its naval base at the southern Red Sea port of Jizan.
Proxy war fears

"The Saudi military preparation," says security analyst Aimen Deen from the think tank Five Dimensions, "signals, along with the increasing diplomatic efforts, Saudi Arabia's intent to stop the Houthis controlling the Bab al-Mandab strait.
"The pressing question is whether the Royal Saudi Air Force will intervene to prevent Aden from falling to the Houthis. All indications are that the Saudis are preparing militarily to answer this question, but the political decision is not yet taken."
Put bluntly, Yemen is in enough trouble with the ongoing fight between its own citizens.
If Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states get drawn in one side, and Iran on another, the conflict risks getting exponentially worse.
"The looming danger is seeing Yemen merely as a proxy war between the Gulf Co-operation Council states and Iran," says Jon Altman, Middle East programme director at the Centre for Strategic & International Studies in Washington.
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal has denounced what he called "the Houthi coup" "Iran is clearly giving some support to the Houthis, but over the last 10 years that support has been limited and slow to arrive.
"There are no indications that the government of Iran sees Yemen as a strategic priority. If the proxy war route is pursued, the conflict is likely to rage for years."
'No exit strategy'

Yemen is no stranger to outside interference.
In the civil war of the 1960s, Egyptian President Gamal Abdul Nasser sent his country's air force to support the Republicans against the Royalists, dropping chemical weapons from the air.
Aden and its adjacent provinces were British protectorates until the British withdrawal in 1967.
South Yemen was then ruled by communists with Soviet backing, and the Russians established bases there.
The Houthis and their supporters have warned against intervention by other Gulf Arab states and the US In the civil war of 1994, Saudi Arabia allegedly supported the Southerners as they tried, unsuccessfully, to break away from the North.
And for the last 20 years, the US military has maintained a small and discreet military presence in the country, mostly training and advising on counter-terrorism, a presence which has now ended in an abrupt withdrawal after al-Qaeda fighters overran a town close to the base used by US Special Forces.
"The real danger of the civil war," says a senior Western official who asked not to be named, "is that of outside players getting involved."
But outside powers will be thinking carefully before committing themselves to military intervention in Yemen.
It is an expensive, difficult country for anyone to wage war in, the battle lines are blurred and there is no clear exit strategy for either side.

Yemen crisis: An Iranian-Saudi battleground? - BBC News

[Neverna]

"The real danger of the civil war," says a senior Western official who asked not to be named, "is that of outside players getting involved."
But outside powers will be thinking carefully before committing themselves to military intervention in Yemen.
It is an expensive, difficult country for anyone to wage war in, the battle lines are blurred and there is no clear exit strategy for either side.

Which is why they should be let to get on with it themselves. Help them settle their differences, yes, but outside military interference will just make things worse.

[ENT]

Agreed.

[rickschoppers]

Did you spot this, Rick?

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister warned on Monday that "if the Houthi coup does not end peacefully, we will take the necessary measures for this crisis to protect the region.

Yes. It does seem SA is a bit nervous as I stated in another thread. It appears things are escalating and that a ME coalition is being formed. Time for all others to bow out, but that will never happen. Saudi Arabia has not ever been able to do anything on their own without western assistance, ie build roads, bridges, run hospitals, etc. etc., but if you ask them, they will say they can.

[thaimeme]

"The real danger of the civil war," says a senior Western official who asked not to be named, "is that of outside players getting involved."
But outside powers will be thinking carefully before committing themselves to military intervention in Yemen.
It is an expensive, difficult country for anyone to wage war in, the battle lines are blurred and there is no clear exit strategy for either side.

Which is why they should be let to get on with it themselves. Help them settle their differences, yes, but outside military interference will just make things worse.

We've seen the "help" - never in a true positive manner.

[ENT]

Saudi and the Emirates import more arms there than all the other Arab nations combined ($8,600 million) in the ME and Gulf areas. India's ($5,670 million) the next biggest importer of arms, dwarfing Pakistan's imports of $633 million and Bangladesh's $672 million import bill.

Saudi's got enough monetary and military/arms clout to dump on all it's neighbours, except Iran.

[Neverna]

The US is lifting its military aid freeze against Egypt. Obama has informed al-Sisi that F-16 fighter jets, missiles and M1A1 tank kits would be delivered.

"The president explained that these and other steps will help refine our military assistance relationship so that it is better positioned to address the shared challenges to US and Egyptian interests in an unstable region, consistent with the longstanding strategic partnership between our two countries," the White House said in a statement detailing the call between the two leaders.

The aid comes as Egypt has tried to take a leading role in forming an Arab military alliance to fight terrorism in the Middle East.

Egypt is part of an Arab offensive against Houthi rebels in Yemen, and also fighting Islamic State in Libya.

US lifts military aid freeze against Egypt - BBC News

[ENT]

Great.

Now the sand monkeys can deal to each other full tit ahead.


More fire power, more bombs, more planes, more sand monkeys along with their donkies and camels and korans having an all out allawalla war in Yemen.

They'll help reduce the muzzie population heaps,....well not that many, but enough to piss each other off and improve the global gene pool.

YAY!!!

Great stuff!!

[ENT]

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- There’s no fog of war here. It’s more like a high-gloss, stage-crafted showcase of Saudi Arabia’s new military swagger.

Every evening since the Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen began last week, the fortress-like grounds of the defense ministry in Riyadh has opened to journalists.

They listen to a briefing on the latest battlefield events, see some black-and-white warplane video clips of missiles destroying suspected rebel buildings and convoys, and pose a few questions. All pretty standard fare for reporters covering any conflict.

But the Saudis have added their own sense of purpose and pride. The event has become something of a possible dress rehearsal for a country that could be quickly moving out of the background of American-directed security agreements and taking regional matters into its own hands.

The optics leave no doubt that Saudi Arabia is in charge. The news conference opens with 30-second made-for-TV spot showing Saudi armed forces with a baritone voice-over from the country's new monarch, King Salman. “It’s all about my people,” he says. “You cannot touch any of them.”

Then enters the spokesman for the mostly Arab coalition backing up the Saudi attacks against Shiite rebels in Yemen that drove out the country’s president and – Saudi Arabia and its allies fear – could open the door wider for influence by Shiite power Iran.

Most of the Saudi arsenal has been purchased from the United States. But in a rare display of military self-sufficiency in the Persian Gulf, there is no overt sign of U.S. partnership.

Instead, the news conference seeks to reinforce Saudi Arabia’s time in the spotlight across the Arab world – via powerful networks such as Saudi-owned Al Arabiya.

Before showtime Tuesday, an aide picked about a half-dozen questioners from local and foreign journalists. He asked one correspondent to ask his question in French, apparently to highlight Asseri’s polyglot skills.

When a question ran long, the aide made hand signals to Asseri to cut it short. The Saudis want a tight, on-point and – of course — embarrassment-free broadcast.

After Tuesday’s event, some Saudi journalists swarmed around the aide. They demanded to know why it seemed some foreign reporters seemed to get preference in asking a question.

The aide’s reply: Sometimes the local questions ramble. We need to keep it moving along. There’s a viewing audience at home to think about.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...r-new-swagger/