Al-Qaeda in Yemen

Previous al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen

Al-Qaeda in Yemen

تنظيم القاعدة في اليمن
Tanẓīm al-Qā‘idah fī Yemen

Flag used by the group

Founder| Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri (POW)
Leaders| Abu Ali al-Harithi † (1998 – 2002)

Muhammad al-Ahdal (POW) (2002 – 2003)

Nasir al-Wuhayshi (2006 – 2009)
Dates of operation| 1998 – 2003 and 2006 – 2009
Active regions|  Yemen
Ideology| Sunni Islamism

Salafi Jihadism
Anti-Westernism
Anti-Americanism
Anti-Zionism

Antisemitism
Part of|  Al-Qaeda
Allies|

* Al-Qaeda of Saudi Arabia
* Aden-Abyan Islamic Army

Opponents|  Yemen

United States
United Kingdom

France
Battles and wars| War on terror
Al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen

Succeeded by
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula

Al-Qaeda in Yemen (AQY),[a] also known as al-Qaeda in the Land of Yemen (AQLY)[b] and al-Qaeda in the Southern Arabian Peninsula (AQSAP)[c] in its later iteration, was a Sunni Islamist militant organization which existed between 1998 to 2003, and 2006 to 2009.

AQY was established in late 1998 as a cell led by Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, a Saudi member of al-Qaeda central who had convinced Osama bin Laden to fund an attack on a United States military target in Yemen. Bin Laden obliged, appointing al-Nashiri as al-Qaeda's head of operations in the Persian Gulf and leaving him to plan and execute the attack.[1] Al-Nashiri's plans would come to fruition when AQY bombed the USS Cole while it was docked at the Port of Aden in October 2000. Though it was al-Qaeda's largest success at that point, the bombing, which was followed by the September 11 attacks the next year, would lead to an intense counterterrorism campaign by the Yemeni and US governments which would cripple AQY's operational capacity.[2] Al-Nashiri was arrested by Yemeni authorities in November 2002, while a US drone strike killed AQY leader Abu Ali al-Haritha in the same month. After the arrest of replacement leader Muhammad al-Ahdal in 2003, AQY was regarded as largely defeated.[3][2]

In February 2006, a prison break in Sanaa lead to the escape of 23 members of al-Qaeda. The escapees, most notably Nasir al-Wuhayshi and Qasim al-Raymi, would rebuild al-Qaeda's presence in Yemen under the name of AQLY. Though the groups first attack, a pair of coordinated suicide car bombings on two Yemeni oil facilities in September 2006, would end up failing, AQLY would prove to be more resilient and appealable to locals than its predecessor group.[3][1] AQLY was officially announced as al-Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen in the summer of 2007, with Wuhayshi being named as the groups leader. From there, AQLY launched several high-profile attacks in Yemen against local and foreign targets, most notably a car bombing against Spanish tourists in Marib in 2007 and an attack on the US embassy in Sanaa in 2008. In 2009, AQLY merged with al-Qaeda's struggling branch in Saudi Arabia to form al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

## History

[edit]

### 1998–1999: Establishment

[edit]

With the rise of the Taliban in the mid-1990's, Osama bin Laden felt it a priority to cultivate ties with the militant group and move al-Qaeda's base of operations from Sudan to Afghanistan, leaving Yemen mostly out of the picture in terms of the groups activities during this time period. This had changed in late 1998 when Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, a former Saudi mujahideen who joined al-Qaeda earlier in the year, prosopsed to Bin Laden an attack on a US vessel after observing American ships docked without protection at the Port of Aden. Bin Laden approved of the idea, designating al-Nashiri as al-Qaeda's head of operations in the Persian Gulf and directing him to begin planning for the attack while providing money and operatives.[4] Abu Ali al-Harithi, a Yemeni militant and close associate of Bin Laden who fled to Afghanistan in 1997, was reportedly ordered to begin attacks in Yemen some time before 2000.[1][5] Al-Harithi would come to be recognized as the highest ranking leader of AQY.[6]

### 2000: USS Cole bombing

[edit]

Main article: USS Cole bombing

The USS Cole after the bombing

AQY's first major attack came with the attempted bombing of the USS The Sullivans on 3 January 2000.[7] The attack was a failure, as the suicide boat containing the explosives sank before it could reach the ship.[8] Al-Nashiri's plan would later come to fruition with the bombing of the USS Cole on 12 October 2000. On that morning, while the Cole was docked at the Port of Aden, two AQY suicide bombers drove a small boat loaded with explosives into the side of the ship, killing 17 American sailors and blowing a 40-foot hole in its hull.[9] While the bombing was al-Qaeda's most high-profile attack yet, the operation wasn't a full reflection of AQY's power as most of the militants involved in the attack were either more closely associated with al-Qaeda central rather than the cell in Yemen, or played no significant further role within AQY.[1]

### 2001–2003: Pressure and decline

[edit]

Under significant pressure from the United States due to the Cole attack the previous year as well as the September 11 attacks, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh decided to crack down on jihadists and coordinate counterterrorism operations with the support of the US.[10][6] AQY would engage in few significant activities or propaganda efforts during 2001.[1] Al-Harithi along with AQY's chief financial officer Muhammed al-Ahdal would move to the village of al-Hosun in the tribal areas of Marib Governorate in August 2001.[5][1] There, they would be targeted by Yemeni forces in a raid on 18 December 2001 which would end up failing as both militants escaped and tribal resistance lead to the deaths of 19 soldiers.[6][11]

On 6 October 2002, AQY launched their second major attack, a suicide bombing targeting the French oil tanker MV Limburg.[1] In a similar vein to the USS Cole attack, a suicide bomber drove a small explosive-laden boat into the side of the Limburg, killing one crew member and spilling thousands of oil barrels into the Gulf of Aden.[12] Despite yielding a far less successful outcome, the bombing represented a turning point in AQY as an indigenous movement in Yemen. Funded by al-Nashiri and allegedly endorsed by Bin Laden, the planning of the bombing involved a group of Yemenis, many of them trained in Afghanistan a year prior, travelling to Mukalla in Hadhramaut Governorate to organize and prepare the attack.[1] Many participants in the Limburg attack would come to hold high-ranking positions in AQY's later iteration.[10] Fawaz al-Rabayi, a leader in the Mukalla cell, later organized a second cell for the attempted shootdown of a Hunt Oil helicopter using rocket-propelled grenades and small arms on 3 November 2002.[13][14]

On the same day, the CIA launched a drone strike on a car travelling through the al-Naqaa desert in Marib Governorate, killing four militants from the al-Qaeda-aligned Aden-Abyan Islamic Army, Lackawanna Six member Kamal Derwish and Abu Ali al-Harithi.[15][16] The death of AQY's leader proved a significant blow to the organization, which subsequently had dozens of its supporters detained by Yemeni authorities through late 2002 and early 2003 and experienced a "precipitous membership decline" by the end of the year.[1][10] Muhammed al-Ahdal, who allegedly replaced al-Harithi as AQY's leader, was arrested on 25 November 2003 in a sting operation through a tip from an AQY member.[17] The capture of al-Ahdal effectively signalled the defeat of AQY's first iteration, with most Yemeni militants either jailed or participating in the Iraqi insurgency.[2][18]

### 2006: Revival

[edit]

On 3 February 2006, a prison escape freed 23 members of al-Qaeda incarcerated in a Political Security Organization (PSO) detention center in Sanaa. Many observers, including US government officials, believed the escape to be in some part facilitated by members of the PSO or other government officials.[19][3] Among the escapees included USS Cole bombing planner Jamal al-Bawadi, as well as Fawaz al-Rabayi and al-Qaeda veterans Nasir al-Wuhayshi and Qasim al-Raymi.[20][21][22] The latter two were the most important in the rebuilding of AQY, as they spent their time in prison building up a network by recruiting fellow inmates, many of whom were arresting for attempting to travel to Iraq.[23] AQY's revival was first reflected in the groups attempted attacks in September 2006; a pair of suicide car bombings against two oil facilities.[1] Though both attacks failed, the bombings reflected the most sophisticated operation taken by AQY since 2002, and itself the first instance of VBIED usage on land in the country.[1][24]

## See more

[edit]

* Islamic Jihad in Yemen
* Aden-Abyan Islamic Army

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Arabic: تنظيم القاعدة في اليمن, romanized: Tanẓīm al-Qā‘idat fī Yemen
2. ^ Arabic: تنظيم القاعدة في ارض اليمن, romanized: Tanẓīm al-Qā‘idat al-Jihād fī ‘Ard al-Yemen
3. ^ Arabic: تنظيم القاعدة في جنوب شبه الجزيرة العربية, romanized: Tanẓīm al-Qā‘idat fī Junub Shibh al-Jazīrat al-‘Arab

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Koehler-Derrick, Gabriel (2011-10-03). "A False Foundation? AQAP, Tribes and Ungoverned Spaces in Yemen" (PDF). CTC Westpoint. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-06-04. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
2. ^ a b c "Yemen's al-Qaeda: Expanding the Base". International Crisis Group. 2017-02-17. Archived from the original on 2024-03-14. Retrieved 2024-12-11.
3. ^ a b c Johnsen, Gregory (2009-07-14). "Waning Vigilance: Al-Qaeda's Resurgence in Yemen". The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Retrieved 2024-12-12.
4. ^ "Al Qaeda Aims at the American Homeland". National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. 2004-07-22. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
5. ^ a b "Profile: Ali Qaed Senyan al-Harthi". BBC News. 2002-11-05. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
6. ^ a b c Vick, Karl (2002-10-17). "Yemen Pursuing Terror Its Own Way". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2024-12-20. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
7. ^ Meyers, Steven Lee (2000-11-10). "Failed Plan To Bomb A U.S. Ship Is Reported". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-05-27. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
8. ^ Bass, Warren (2019-01-10). "The Bin Laden Attack That Two Presidents Failed to Answer". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Archived from the original on 2019-02-18. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
9. ^ Isikoff, Michael (2010-10-12). "U.S. failure to retaliate for USS Cole attack rankled then — and now". NBC News. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
10. ^ a b c "Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)". Council on Foreign Relations. 2015-06-19. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
11. ^ "Yemen cautious on battle against al-Qaeda". BBC News. 2002-01-23. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
12. ^ "Yemen says tanker blast was terrorism". BBC News. 2002-10-16. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
13. ^ Al-Haj, Ahmed (2006-02-06). "Plotter in USS Cole Attack Flees Jail Escape in Yemen Stalls Terror Trial". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2017-08-27. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
14. ^ "6 suspected Al-Qaeda men die in Yemen blast". Arab News. 2002-11-05. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
15. ^ "U.S. Predator Kills 6 Al Qaeda Suspects". ABC News. 2002-11-05. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
16. ^ Chan, Sue (2002-12-03). "CIA's License To Kill". CBS News. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
17. ^ "Yemen, US spar over al-Qaida leader". Al Jazeera. 2003-11-30. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
18. ^ Johnsen, Gregory D. (2010-01-03). "Al-Qa`ida in Yemen's 2008 Campaign" (PDF). Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
19. ^ "Was Al Qaeda Escape an Inside Job?". ABC News. 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
20. ^ Whitaker, Brian (2006-02-06). "Interpol alert for al-Qaida militants who tunnelled out of prison in Yemen". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
21. ^ "Nasir al-Wuhayshi: From Bin Laden Aide to AQAP Chief". Voice of America. 2015-06-16. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
22. ^ "US kills Qassim al-Raymi, leader of al Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula". France 24. 2020-02-07. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
23. ^ Kendall, Elisabeth (2018-07-01). "Contemporary Jihadi Militancy in Yemen" (PDF). Middle East Institute. pp. 2, 3. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
24. ^ "Al Qaeda's Leadership in Yemen". Stratfor. 2011-05-12. Archived from the original on 2018-11-06. Retrieved 2024-12-22.

* v
* t
* e

Al-Qaeda

Leadership|

* Saif al-Adel
* Abd al-Rahman al-Maghribi
* Sa'ad bin Atef al-Awlaki
* Ahmad Umar
* Iyad Ag Ghaly
* Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil
* Abu Ubaidah Youssef al-Annabi
* Ali Sayyid Muhamed Mustafa al-Bakri
* Ibrahim al-Banna
* Ibrahim al Qosi
* Abu Walid al-Masri
* Mohammed Showqi Al-Islambouli
* Abdukadir Mohamed Abdukadir
* Fuad Qalaf
* Jehad Mostafa
* Abu Humam al-Shami
* Sami al-Oraydi

Former
leadership|

| Killed|

* Osama bin Laden (killing)
* Ayman al-Zawahiri (killing)
* Mohammed Atef
* Qaed Salim Sinan al-Harethi
* Mustafa Mohamed Fadhil
* Haitham al-Yemeni
* Abu Hamza Rabia
* Muhsin Musa Matwalli Atwah
* Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
* Omar al-Faruq
* Haitham al-Badri
* Abu Yaqub al-Masri
* Abu Talha al-Sudani
* Abu Laith al-Libi
* Abu Sulayman Al-Jazairi
* Midhat Mursi
* Mohamed Moumou
* Khalid Habib
* Abu Ghadiya
* Abu Zubair al-Masri
* Rashid Rauf
* Mohammad Hasan Khalil al-Hakim
* Fahid Mohammed Ally Msalam
* Sheikh Ahmed Salim Swedan
* Saad bin Laden
* Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan
* Abdullah Said al Libi
* Saleh al-Somali
* Saeed al-Masri
* Hamza al-Jawfi
* Ahmed Mohammed Hamed Ali
* Mohamed Abul-Khair
* Sheikh Fateh
* Huthaifa al-Batawi
* Ilyas Kashmiri
* Fazul Abdullah Mohammed
* Atiyah Abd al-Rahman
* Anwar al-Awlaki
* Samir Khan
* Tariq al-Dahab
* Muhammad Sa'id Ali Hasan
* Fahd al-Quso
* Abu Yahya al-Libi
* Hassan Ghul
* Abu-Zaid al Kuwaiti
* Said Ali al-Shihri
* Farman Ali Shinwari
* Abdelhamid Abou Zeid
* Ibrahim Haji Jama Mee'aad
* Abu Mansoor Al-Amriki
* Said Bahaji
* Abu Khalid al-Suri
* Omar Ould Hamaha
* Ahmed Abdi Godane
* Abu Yusuf Al-Turki
* Adnan Gulshair el Shukrijumah
* Adam Yahiye Gadahn
* Harith bin Ghazi al-Nadhari
* Othman Ahmad Othman al-Ghamdi
* Ibrahim Sulayman Muhammad al-Rubaysh
* Nasser bin Ali al-Ansi
* Nasir al-Wuhayshi
* Muhsin al-Fadhli
* Abu Khalil al-Madani
* Matiur Rehman
* Abu Firas al-Suri
* Ahmed Refai Taha
* Mokhtar Belmokhtar
* Abu Khayr al-Masri
* Ibrahim al-Asiri
* Hamza bin Laden
* Sari Shihab
* Asim Umar
* Qasim al-Raymi
* Abdelmalek Droukdel
* Khalid al-Aruri
* Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah
* Abu Muhsin al-Masri

|

Captured|

* Mamdouh Mahmud Salim
* Wadih el-Hage
* Khalid al-Fawwaz
* Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri
* Khalid Sheikh Mohammed
* Walid bin Attash
* Riduan Isamuddin
* Ali al-Bahlul
* Ahmed Ghailani
* Abu Faraj al-Libbi
* Mustafa Setmariam Nasar
* Abdul Hadi al Iraqi
* Muhammad Jafar Jamal al-Kahtani
* Mohamed Atiq Awayd Al Harbi
* Younis al-Mauritani
* Sulaiman Abu Ghaith
* Abu Anas al-Libi
* Muhanad Mahmoud Al Farekh
* Mukhtar Robow
* Amin al-Haq

Other|

* Abu Ubaidah al-Banshiri (died)
* Abu Ubaidah al-Masri (died)
* Mahfouz Ould al-Walid (left)
* Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (expelled)
* Abu Mohammad al-Julani (left)
* Abu Maria al-Qahtani (left)
* Ahmad Salama Mabruk (left)
* Abu Omar al-Turkistani (left)
* Abu Sulayman al-Muhajir (left)
* Khalid Batarfi (died)

Timeline
of attacks|

* 1998 United States embassy bombings
* 2000 USS Cole bombing
* 2001 September 11 attacks
* 2002 Bali bombings
* 2004 Madrid train bombings
* 2005 London bombings
* 2007 Algiers bombings
* 2008 Islamabad Danish embassy bombing
* 2008 Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing
* 2013 In Amenas hostage crisis
* 2013 Westgate shopping mall attack
* 2015 Charlie Hebdo shooting
* 2015 Garissa University College attack
* 2015 Bamako hotel attack
* 2016 Ouagadougou attacks
* 2016 Grand-Bassam shootings
* 2016 Bamako attack
* 2019 Naval Air Station Pensacola shooting

Wars|

* Soviet–Afghan War
* Afghan Civil War (1989–1992)
* Afghan Civil War (1992–1996)
* First Chechen War
* Afghan Civil War (1996–2001)
* Second Chechen War
* War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
* Iraq War
* Somali Civil War
* War in North-West Pakistan (drone strikes)
* Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present)
* Syrian civil war
* Yemeni civil war (2014–present)
* Al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen
* Houthi insurgency

Affiliates|

* Al-Shabaab (Somalia)
* Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (Yemen)
* Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (North Africa)
* Egyptian Islamic Jihad (Egypt)
* Al-Qaeda in the Indian subcontinent (Indian subcontinent)
* Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (Mali)
* Hurras al-Din (Syria)

Charity organizations|

* Benevolence International Foundation
* Al-Haramain Foundation

Media|

* Al Qaeda Handbook
* Al Neda
* As-Sahab
* Al-Andalus Media
* Al-Kataib Media Foundation
* Radio al-Andalus
* Shahada News Agency
* Az-Zallaqa Foundation
* Fatawā of Osama bin Laden
* Inspire
* Al-Khansaa
* Kuala Lumpur al-Qaeda Summit
* Management of Savagery
* Voice of Jihad
* Qaedat al-Jihad
* Global Islamic Media Front

Video and audio|

* Videos and audio recordings of Osama bin Laden
* Videos and audio recordings of Ayman al-Zawahiri
* USS Cole bombing

Related|

* Safe houses
* Saddam–al-Qaeda conspiracy theory
* Timeline

Category:Al-Qaeda

* v
* t
* e

War on terror

* September 11 attacks
* War in Afghanistan (2001-2021) (Withdrawal)
* Iraq War (2003–2011) (Withdrawal)
* Symbolism of terrorism

Participants|

| Operational|

* ISAF
* Operation Enduring Freedom participants
* Afghanistan
* Northern Alliance
* Iraq (Iraqi Armed Forces)
* NATO
* Pakistan
* United Kingdom
* United States
* European Union
* Philippines
* Ethiopia

|

Targets|

| Individuals|

* Osama bin Laden
* Hamza bin Laden
* Anwar al-Awlaki
* Sirajuddin Haqqani
* Jalaluddin Haqqani
* Anas Haqqani
* Khalil Haqqani
* Hafiz Saeed
* Mahmoud Mohamed Ahmed Bahaziq
* Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

|

Factions|

* al-Qaeda
* al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
* Abu Sayyaf
* Al-Shabaab
* Boko Haram
* Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami
* Hizbul Mujahideen
* Islamic Courts Union
* Jaish-e-Mohammed
* Jemaah Islamiyah
* Lashkar-e-Taiba
* Taliban
* Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
* Islamic State

Conflicts|

| Operation
Enduring Freedom|

* War in Afghanistan
* OEF – Philippines
* Georgia Train and Equip Program
* Georgia Sustainment and Stability
* OEF – Horn of Africa
* OEF – Trans Sahara
* Drone strikes in Pakistan

|

Other|

* Operation Active Endeavour
* Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present)
* Insurgency in the North Caucasus
* Moro conflict in the Philippines
* Iraq War
* Iraqi insurgency
* Operation Linda Nchi
* Terrorism in Saudi Arabia
* Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
* War in Somalia (2006–2009)
* 2007 Lebanon conflict
* al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen

Policies|

* Patriot Act (2001)
* Torture Memos (2002)
* Military Commissions Act of 2006
* Military Commissions Act of 2009
* President's Surveillance Program
* Protect America Act of 2007
* Terrorist Surveillance Program

Related|

* Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse
* Axis of evil
* Bush Doctrine
* Clash of Civilizations
* Cold War
* Combatant Status Review Tribunal
* Criticism of the war on terror
* CIA black sites
* Killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri
* Killing of Osama bin Laden
* Enhanced interrogation techniques
* Extrajudicial prisoners
* Extraordinary rendition
* Guantanamo Bay detention camp
* Iranian Revolution
* Islamic terrorism
* Islamism
* North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
* Operation Noble Eagle
* Operation Eagle Assist
* Situation Room photograph
* State Sponsors of Terrorism
* Targeted killing
* Targeted Killing in International Law
* Targeted Killings: Law and Morality in an Asymmetrical World
* Unitary executive theory
* Unlawful combatant
* CAGE

* Category
* Commons

*[POW]: Prisoner of war
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