Yemeni Report Explores Al-Qa'ida's 'New Strategy' in Southern Yemen



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He added that these explosives are deemed a real danger should they be used for illegal purposes. The amount of explosives is as follows:

1. 104 ANFO explosive sacks, each contains 20 kilograms of explosives, in other words the explosives weigh two tons and 80 kilos

2. 270 rolls of explosive wire of the Detcord type

3. 750 stopwatches for the explosives

The source said the people brought back 31 rolls of explosive wire and they hope all people will cooperate and bring the explosives back to a secure place. He added: "These explosives became a source of terror for the people."

[Description of Source: Al-Dali: Gateway to the South in Arabic -- Pro-Southern Mobility Movement online discussion forum, focusing mainly on secessionist issues in southern Yemen; URL: http://www.dhal3.com/vb/]

Yemeni 'Field Commander of Mujahidin' in Ja'ar on Al-Qa'ida, Salih, Other Issues

GMP20110407136001 Al-Dali: Gateway to the South in Arabic 06 Apr 11

[Interview with Khalid Abd-al-Nabi , aka Abu-Basir al-Yazidi, the "field commander of the mujahidin in Ja'ar District" by Abd-al-Khaliq al-Hud, in Ja'ar District, Yemen, on 6 April.]

[Al-Hud] Who is behind the attack on the 6 October Factory in Al-Hisn city, which resulted in more than 200 casualties?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Praise be only to God. Prayers and peace be upon the last prophet and all those who supported him. We, the sons of Khanfar District, are not among those who shed the blood of Muslims in vain. According to Almighty God, it is impermissible to shed Muslims' blood. The prophet, prayers and peace be upon him, said: "The Muslim will become burdened when he sheds forbidden blood."

[Al-Hud] According to some websites, the new governor of Abyan has accused you of that incident. He said that you plundered then booby-trapped the factory.

[Abd-al-Nabi] If this was what he said, then everything he said was untrue and unjust. He knows who plundered everything in the factory and then left it empty. They have been feeding us and the people lies for the past 20 years. The entire country has been built on fraud and lies. The most important thing is that people should know that we call for righteousness, honesty, and love. Our people should know the real facts regarding what happened when we were handed control over the ammunition factory.

[Al-Hud] Excuse me, but who handed you control over the factory?

[Abd-al-Nabi] The youth in the area took control over the factory and other facilities in the area after they heard that the forces pulled out. Actually, the youth found the factory empty.

[Al-Hud] Did the security agencies say to hand you the factory with all the ammunition inside?

[Abd-al-Nabi] These places were originally plundered by officials days before the forces withdrew from the area. When the youth entered the place, hundreds of people entered with them and some of them were armed. The factory was huge, as big as a city, and people entered from all directions. The youth tried to advise them to stay away and to explain that the factory is full of inflammable and explosive material that could explode with the slightest friction. As for the claims of the governor, we would like to ask him: why would we booby-trap a place we already control?? We could have used it. Moreover, the guards are still there now, and these are considered to be the property of Muslims and, according to the Shari'ah, it should not be wasted. We had met with and blessed the popular committees in the area and we agreed with them that they should protect and guard these places.

[Al-Hud] Are you trying to say that the factory was empty when you, and the rest of the people, entered?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Some negligible things were found. As I said before, the people who were in charge of the factory took away with them all the valuable and expensive objects and left behind only worthless and harmful things.

[Al-Hud] Speaking of dangerous material, do you know if the factory contained mercury?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Mercury is a very dangerous substance. It can explode from the slightest friction, thermal expansion, or fire. There were huge quantities of mercury in the factory and people did not know the nature of this substance or others. Some people were even emptying barrels of gunpowder, worth more than half a million rial, just to take the empty barrels. Normal people are naive and unaware of the danger and nature of such substances.

[Al-Hud] What about the mercury?

[Abd-al-Nabi] I told you. Some people threw it on the floor because they were unaware of its value. We even heard that people were walking knee-deep in gunpowder in some rooms.

[Al-Hud] So do you think that the explosion of the factory was likely by accident?

[Abd-al-Nabi] It is one of two scenarios; either the explosion happened by accident, or the government is behind this act. As for accusing the youth, they abide by their religion and they view the blood of the Muslims too precious to be shed. Moreover, they have no interest in doing such an act as I have stated before.

[Al-Hud] Shaykh Hamid al-Ahmar and others say that you take your orders from Sanaa.

[Abd-al-Nabi] If Hamid al-Ahmar has indeed said this, then he either does not know what he is talking about or he was being unjust. We tell him: If the president was backing us with the intention of applying God's Shari'ah the same way we want, we would be his soldiers and servants.

[Al-Hud] Would you do so even if he kept his relations with the Americans?

[Abd-al-Nabi] I am just giving you examples. It is known that the Americans and the mujahidin are in two completely different worlds. People have but one choice: either to side with the West, the Americans, and those who support them; or to side with Islam and the carriers of the banner [of Islam], who, in this era, are represented in Shaykh Usama, the Taliban, and the mujahidin who follow them and who are carrying their banner. This is something that is crystal clear. The days of lies and deceit are gone. As for the claim that the president is backing us, this is something that needs proof, evidence, and verification. Praise be to God, we do not sell drugs and we are not night bats either. We can talk while holding our heads up high, in broad daylight, and before all people. We are ready to meet with anyone. We only abide by what was written in the Koran and the prophetic Hadiths. We seek to save the ummah [community of Muslims worldwide] from humiliation and servitude, and to make God's Shari'ah become the ruling law.

[Al-Hud] How will you deal with the new regime in the post-Salih phase, and do you expect the regime to fall soon?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We hope that this oppressive regime would fall. We hope that God would replace this regime with a better one. As for how we are going to deal with that regime, we will cross that bridge when we get to it.

[Al-Hud] Speaking of Shaykh Usama, do you communicate with him or with members of the Taliban?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Our means of communicating with them, may God preserve them, is through the Koran. We share with them the same approach, path, and goal, which is to establish God's Shari'ah. Otherwise, we have no other means of communicating with them.

[Al-Hud] If you do not communicate with Shaykh Usama, the Taliban, or Al-Qa'ida, then where do you get the weapons from?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Anyone who calls for this matter [applying Shari'ah] in any place on earth will have our support. Shaykh Usama calls for the establishment of God's Shari'ah and the expulsion of the Jewish and Christian infidels, the enemies of Islam, and their agents and followers from the Muslim land. Shaykh Usama calls for steering the ummah back to the path of glory, dignity, and pride.

[Al-Hud] You mean to say that you share a common goal but not the means of communication?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We have a well-established approach and firm fundamentals, regardless of the time or place. We understand the Koran and the Sunnah the way the pious ancestors understood them, may God be pleased with them.

[Al-Hud] My question to you is where did you get these weapons from?

[Abd-al-Nabi] As you know, all people in Abyan and its surroundings are armed. We have only our personal weapons, like other people. Whoever claims to support us should say so in public and prove his claim. We got the weapons we have through humble personal efforts and by the help of God. We do not use our weapons to shed blood, wreak havoc, kill, plunder, or steal. What keeps us from doing that is God's Shari'ah and our belief that we are seekers of justice.

[Al-Hud] As I have heard and read, you have seized Ja'ar and declared it an Islamic emirate. Do you have the tools and means to establish such an emirate, especially at this hectic time?

[Abd-al-Nabi] This is not true. No one has declared an Islamic emirate or state. Popular committees have been set up to supervise the area. We support them in their effort to make this experience a role model for all the surrounding areas.

[Al-Hud] Why were you chosen of all people to receive the armored vehicles, tanks, and weapons as we saw on TV?

[Abd-al-Nabi] This has been exaggerated greatly. The armored vehicles that we found were actually wrecks that the army left behind because they were useless, and there was no tank.

[Al-Hud] Did the army leave them behind or hand them to you?

[Abd-al-Nabi] They left them behind. We find it strange that some people are trying to exaggerate this issue to achieve political goals at the expense of the truth. How come no such clamor was raised when the army left behind brigades with heavy munitions to the rejectionist [a pejorative Sunni term for Shiites] Huthists in Shabwah, Lawdar, Mudiyah, and other places?

[Al-Hud] Do you have any presence in those places?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We are not an organization. Our approach is what is written in the Koran and the prophetic Hadiths; whoever believes in this is on our side.

[Al-Hud] If you are not an organization, then who do your brothers -- who were imprisoned for attacking the USS Cole in Aden and the oil tanker Lumberg in Hadramawt, and for targeting the Western interests and embassies in Yemen -- follow?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We are not involved with Al-Qa'ida but we share with them a common goal and belief. About your question on prisons, yes we have brothers in the prisons. Thousands are imprisoned, even women and children younger than 16 years old. Anyone who seeks God's Shari'ah is considered a terrorist.

[Al-Hud] What is your next step after you have seized the city of Ja'ar and its surroundings?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We have not discussed that yet. Our main concern is to secure people's basic needs; health, education, food, post delivery, and communications among other things, in collaboration with the popular committees.

[Al-Hud] As I was coming here, I saw many armed youths. Where do they buy weapons in a country afflicted with poverty and need?

[Abd-al-Nabi] You know that all the people of Yemen are armed. Armament in tribes is perfectly normal in these areas and others. It is nothing to raise an eyebrow.

[Al-Hud] What about being targeted by the army and security forces?

[Abd-al-Nabi] The prophet, peace be upon him, permitted self-defense, even against the closest kin. In Shari'ah, if repelling a transgressor, who attacks honor, land, or property, cannot be done without killing him, then he must be killed. If he gets killed in such a situation, he will be a sinner before Almighty God, while the killer will be rewarded for defending his honor, property, blood, or religion. I would like to take this opportunity to send a message to every officer and soldier and tell them that Almighty God said: "Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah, and those who reject Faith Fight in the cause of Evil," [partial Koranic verse, Al-Nisa, 4:76]. They know whom this regime represents. If they think that this regime has followed God's Shari'ah and worked in line with the belief that there is no god but God, they are mistaken. If [they believe that] the regime has done otherwise, I advise the soldiers and officers to fear God, because ranks, money, and positions will not help them. We have to be either God's soldiers or Satan's, God forbid.

[Al-Hud] As far as you know, who perpetrated the attack on the Political Security [Intelligence Service] building in Tawahi in mid-July 2010?

[Abd-al-Nabi] I have no idea.

[Al-Hud] Some parties accused certain people in Abyan Governorate of perpetrating that attack.

[Abd-al-Nabi] We only know what we heard from media outlets.

[Al-Hud] We do not belong to the political security and we are not soldiers or officers as it was said [as published]. How do you expect people to accept you when you adopt the culture of killing? Honestly and briefly: do you approve of killing security personnel?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We did not do that. Everybody here knows us, and we have a clean history, thank God.

[Al-Hud] As far as you know, are there any Al-Qa'ida operatives in Abyan?

[Abd-al-Nabi] As far as I know, there are not. Rumors about their presence here come from certain people with certain interests.

[Al-Hud] Then, who was fighting against the army all those past weeks and months in Lawdar, Mudiyah, and other places?

[Abd-al-Nabi] They are people from those areas who were oppressed at different points in time. They definitely have their own convictions and ideology, which they defend as they defend themselves.

[Al-Hud] As jihadist youth, you declare animosity against the West and the United States publicly. What exactly do you want from them?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Our demands are the same as Shaykh Usama's. They must stop attacking the lands of the Muslims and leave us alone, because we do not acknowledge the so-called world order.

[Al-Hud] Do you use arms for this purpose?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We and every Muslim must face this Crusade attack and scheme in the region.

[Al-Hud] Of all Muslims, are you alone authorized by Shari'ah to do this?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Every Muslim has the right to defend the religion, because it belongs to all Muslims and it is not restricted to a certain category, group, or party. According to the Hadith, he who sees something wrong must amend it, and every Muslim is responsible for defending the religion.

[Al-Hud] Is that true even in cases that bring woes and calamities to the people, like what happened before our eyes? The Shari'ah rule stipulates that warding off harm comes before bringing benefits.

[Abd-al-Nabi] Bringing woes and calamities; these are merely words spoken, but the truth is...

[Al-Hud, interrupting] What is the truth?

[Abd-al-Nabi] If the ummah rises, it must rise for God. This would be the case if we have faith in the revelations of God, who said: "If ye will aid (the cause of) Allah, He will aid you, and plant your feet firmly," [partial Koranic verse, Muhammad, 47: 7], and: "And for those who fear Allah, He (ever) prepares a way out," [partial Koranic verse, Al-Baqarah, 2:2]. Religion is for everybody, and it is not for a certain group or an individual. If we want to get rid of humility and restore dignity, we have to pay the price. What about those who stage sit-ins seeking freedom? Were not hundreds of people killed because of that matter? Why do we not pay the price so that the word of God becomes the highest one? All sacrifices are cheap so that all glory becomes for God, His messenger, and the believers.

[Al-Hud] One last question: What is your previous and current position on President Salih?

[Abd-al-Nabi] We were asked this question many times before. We said that if the president is loyal to the West, Almighty God says: "O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them," [partial Koranic verse, Al-Ma'idah, 5:51].

[Al-Hud] Is this how you regard him?

[Abd-al-Nabi] Yes, he said so in public. He is their [the United States] soldier, and he recruits soldiers for them, even though he knows the Shari'ah ruling on this.

[Description of Source: Al-Dali: Gateway to the South in Arabic -- Pro-Southern Mobility Movement online discussion forum, focusing mainly on secessionist issues in southern Yemen; URL: http://www.dhal3.com/vb/]

Xinhua: 3rd LD: Yemen Al-Qaida Wing Calls on Army To Rapidly Withdraw From Abyan: Statement

CPP20110408968179 Beijing Xinhua in English 1341 GMT 08 Apr 11

[Xinhua: "3rd LD: Yemen Al-Qaida Wing Calls on Army To Rapidly Withdraw From Abyan: Statement"]

[Computer selected and disseminated without OSC editorial intervention]

SANAA, April 8 (Xinhua) -- The Yemen-based Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) declared through the Abyan Radio Station that they have on Friday killed dozens of government troops and destroyed three tanks, hours after they gave a deadline for the army to immediately withdraw from their "Islamic Emirate."

A local official told Xinhua by phone that the fresh declaration was broadcast through Abyan Radio Station, in which the militants of the AQAP announced "we have killed a large number of soldiers, destroyed two tanks and damaged another one and we will gain victory."

The official confirmed that fierce clashes between AQAP fighters and government troops were underway in Al-Makhzan area at the edge of Jaar town of the southern province of Abyan.

Eyewitness told Xinhua that they were hearing heavy gunfight at the rims of Jaar town.

The AQAP announced through Abyan Radio Station last week the establishing of their "Islamic Emirate" in Abyan.

Hours earlier, the AQAP broadcast a call through Abyan Radio Station for the Yemeni government army to quickly withdraw from the southern province of Abyan or they will face al-Qaida's ready suicide squads to demolish them if they refused to leave.

The official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that the AQAP said in their statement that "we call for the Yemeni government army to immediately pull out its units from our land, Islamic Emirate, within one hour, otherwise our suicide squads are ready to kill them all."

Sources close to the AQAP told Xinhua on Thursday that the group has seized control over swaths of hundreds of kilometers from Lodar city of Yemen's southern Abyan province to southeast Shabwa province's city of Rodhom, near Balhaf gas port.

Two local tribal chieftains confirmed AQAP set up checkpoints and makeshift military camps from Maeen area in Lodar city of Abyan to Ain Ba-Mabad area in Shabwa's cities of Azzan and Rodhom.

They told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that AQAP also seized the coastal road from Al-Awas in Abyan to Al-Haibala in Shabwa, off the Arab Sea.

Abyan, some 480 km south of the capital Sanaa, is a key stronghold of resurgent al-Qaida wing which have carried out frequent attacks against the Yemeni security and military personnel since 2009.

Yemen has witnessed weeks-long anti-government protests demanding an immediate end to the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The political crisis recently resulted in deterioration of security stability after the government pulled the police out from some towns of major provinces under the pretext of avoiding potential friction between police and protesters.

[Description of Source: Beijing Xinhua in English -- China's official news service for English-language audiences (New China News Agency)]

Xinhua: Yemen-Based Al-Qaida Seizes Swaths From Lodar To Balhaf Gas Port

CPP20110406968231 Beijing Xinhua in English 2236 GMT 06 Apr 11

[Xinhua: "Yemen-Based Al-Qaida Seizes Swaths From Lodar To Balhaf Gas Port"]

[Computer selected and disseminated without OSC editorial intervention]

SANAA, April 7 (Xinhua) -- The Yemen-based al-Qaida group seized control over swaths of hundreds of kilometers from Lodar city of Yemen's southern Abyan province to southeast Shabwa province's city of Rodhom, near Balhaf gas port, sources close to the group told Xinhua.

Two local tribal chieftains confirmed the al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) set up checkpoints and makeshift military camps from Maeen area in Lodar city of Abyan to Ain Ba-Mabad area in Shabwa's cities of Azzan and Rodhom, where Balhaf gas port is located.

They told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that AQAP also seized the coastal road from Al-Awas in Abyan to Al-Haibala in Shabwa, off the Arab Sea.

Abyan, some 480 km south of the capital Sanaa, is a key stronghold of resurgent al-Qaida wing which have carried out frequent attacks against the Yemeni security and military personnel since 2009.

One of the sources close to the AQAP said the explosion behind the bullets factory in Jaar on March 28 that left 150 people killed was triggered by a cigarette lit by a resident who stormed the plant.

"After AQAP militants took over the plant and seized a number of heavy and armored security vehicles, they moved the gunpowder from the ammunition factory to another safe place," the source told Xinhua, requesting anonymity.

"AQAP then put some of its armed members to guard the plant, but the second day (March 28) the local residents came in large numbers and insisted to go inside the plant to collect the remaining gunpowder," the source said.

"After the residents came into the plant and started to collect some old machines and remaining gunpowder, one of them lit a cigarette, which triggered a series of huge blasts," he added.

Yemen has witnessed weeks-long anti-government protests demanding an immediate end to the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The political crisis recently resulted in deterioration of security stability after the government pulled the police out from some towns of major provinces under the pretext of avoiding potential friction between police and protesters.

[Description of Source: Beijing Xinhua in English -- China's official news service for English-language audiences (New China News Agency)]

Yemen: Brigade Command in Abyan Denies Battalion Besieged by Al-Qa'ida

GMP20110409155001 Sanaa 26 September.net in Arabic 08 Apr 11

[Unattributed report: "The Command of the 111th Commando Brigade Denies Besiegement of a Battalion by Al-Qa'ida"]

The command of the 111th Commando Brigade in the area of Lawdar in Abyan Governorate has denied claims circulated by several media outlets that a battalion stationed in Jabal Ukad and a tank had been seized by elements of the Al-Qa'ida Organization.

A source from the brigade command said that reports by Al-Saeeda TV - citing Al-Ula newspaper - saying that a battalion was besieged, that military unit personnel escaped, and that a tank was seized by Al-Qa'ida elements are nothing but pure lies, falsehoods, deceptions, and a misguidance of public opinion being fabricated by bias and tendentious [persons], who seek, by all means, to undermine security and stability and harm national unity and social peace.

The source urged the media outlets to inspect the battalion post in Jabal Ukad, establish the facts on the ground so as not to become trumpets that echo rumors and spread fabrications and lies, and to rise above these cheap and vulgar methods.

The command of the 111th Commando Brigade asserted that all units, including the one at Jabal Ukad, will be on the lookout for anyone who attempts to undermine or tamper with the security and stability of the homeland, including all the terrorist and defeatist organizations and elements, as well as the outlawed sellouts and weak souls. The command added that all members of the brigade will remain loyal and faithful to the homeland and its legitimate and constitutional leadership and will do everything possible to protect it despite the malevolence and ill will of some.



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