By
Michelle Shephard National Security Reporter
April
8, 2012
SANAA,
YEMEN—Yemen’s main airport closed Saturday and all flights were cancelled amid
fears that aircraft would be shot down, upping the tension in a capital already
on edge with threats of terrorist bombings and political instability.
But
travel to Yemen’s 1st Army Division, past the gates and down a well-paved road,
beyond a phalanx of guards and inside an office resplendent with fake rose
arrangements, bowls of almonds, raisins and candies, and there calmly sits
Yemeni strongman Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmer, at the centre of the political
storm.
General
Mohsen leads a powerful branch of the army that defected last year to protect
demonstrators who forced longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down.
He
is also widely considered part of the country’s old guard and obstacle for true
reform under Yemen’s new president.
During
a wide-ranging interview with the Toronto Star Saturday, Mohsen said he has no
plans — nor has he been asked — to leave his post.
“No, nothing of this,” he responded when asked
if there were negotiations for his removal.
Believed
to be one of the country’s most powerful figures, General Mohsen has been
described as everything from a kingmaker to a warlord; sometimes friend of Saudi
Arabia, sometimes U.S. foe, and always a canny survivor who, like Saleh, has
ruthlessly navigated Yemen’s tribal terrain.
“Ali Mohsen’s name is mentioned in hushed
tones among most Yemenis, and he rarely appears in public,” wrote Thomas
Krajeski, a former U.S. ambassador in Sanaa, in a 2005 cable posted by
WikiLeaks.
More
recently, John Brennan, U.S. President Barack Obama’s Deputy National Security
adviser, mentioned Mohsen in particular when calling on military generals to
“set aside their political agendas, and to do what’s in the best interest of
the Yemeni people.”
“The time has come for the Yemeni
military to be able to be a unified, disciplined, and professional
organization,” Brennan said during a visit to Sanaa earlier this year.
Mohsen
bristled at the suggestion Saturday that the U.S. found him “unhelpful” in the
military’s restructuring, saying he enjoys “good relations with the U.S.
“I didn’t hear this. I didn’t hear this at
all,” he said. “On the contrary, we heard positive and excellent things,”
adding that it is his forces that are “now fighting against terrorism,” not the
U.S.-trained counterterrorism units.
Mohsen,
however, listed terrorism as just one of Yemen’s problems — and not the
greatest challenge.
“Unemployment first of all,” he said of
Yemen’s woes, adding “the population explosion and the economy in general.”
The
U.S., however, regards Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) as the greatest
threat facing the West and spent millions training Sanaa-based units under the
command of Saleh’s nephew Yahya. Drone attacks in the southern provinces where
the group is based have increased dramatically in recent months.
But
the scope of AQAP’s influence is murky, as is its connections to a group
calling itself Ansar al Sharia that is quickly occupying the south.
When
asked to define Ansar al Sharia, Mohsen at first said he believed the group was
mainly based in Somalia and moves frequently.
When
asked directly: “Do you think Ansar al Sharia is a terrorist group?” he
replied, “Yes. Their actions indicate terrorism.”
Yemen
is often a place where people say it has to get worse before it gets better.
The
year-long uprising, where as many as 2,000 were killed, ended this February
when Saleh gave up power, honouring a Gulf sponsored power-transfer deal that
gave him immunity. But critics say he is still working behind the scenes to
protect his family’s interests.
And
few expect the transition to happen peacefully.
The
real challenge now for Yemen is how to deal with unpopular regime loyalists
such as Mohsen and Saleh’s relatives who hold key military and security posts.
On
Friday, tens of thousands of people were on the streets after midday prayers,
calling for an overhaul of the military. By evening, it seemed President Abed
Rabbo Mansour Hadi had done just that — announcing the biggest military shakeup
in this country’s history.
But
as Gregory Johnsen, Princeton scholar on Yemeni affairs, wrote on Twitter
Saturday, “For every action (in Yemen) there is a reaction.”
And
among those to lose their jobs in the reshuffle was Saleh’s half-brother,
General Mohammed Saleh al-Ahmar, the head of the air force.
Several
media reports stated it was his threats that forced the airport closure. The
Associated Press reported that Saleh loyalists also hit the airport with
anti-aircraft guns, while others disputed those claims as exaggerated.
There
were also reports that Saleh, the disgruntled former air force commander,
promised further chaos in Yemen unless General Mohsen and two other opposition
members were removed from their posts too.
If
true, these threats could be considered acts of terrorism, Yemeni analyst Abdul
Ghani al Iryani suggested in an interview Saturday night.
But
Mohsen dismissed the prospect of a military standoff, saying the problems could
be “solved easily.”
Despite
repeated questions, however, he could not explain how to avert fighting amongst
rivals except to say he had no immediate plans to step down as part of the
compromise.
Posts
