YEMEN: PRIORITIZATION OF CT PROGRAMS

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 001492

SIPDIS

AF/RA - SPYKERMAN; NEA/ARP - ROBERTS; S/CT - MILLER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/15/2014
TAGS: PTER EAID EFIN PREL PGOV PARM YM COUNTER TERRORISM MARITIME SECURITY TRAFFICKING PERSONS
SUBJECT: YEMEN: PRIORITIZATION OF CT PROGRAMS

REF: SECSTATE 112122

Classified By: Ambassador Edmund J. Hull for reasons 1.5 (a, b, c and d
)


1. (c) Embassy Sana'a welcomes the opportunity to engage with
AF Bureau on counter-terrorism issues and on developing a
more comprehensive CT strategy for the region. Post is
concerned with border and maritime security as well as the
movement of people and arms between Yemen and East Africa,
particularly Somalia, as highlighted by the recent seizure of
a dhow carrying a shipment of weapons from Yemen. As
requested in reftel, below is an outline of Post's
counter-terrorism (CT) programs that will boost ROYG
effectiveness in combating terrorism and potential for
participating in regional security cooperation.


2. (c) Post's ongoing military/counter-terrorism cooperation
includes:

- counter-terrorism training and modernization for Yemeni
Special Forces;

- U.S. Military Training Teams (MTTs) in country to train
ground and maritime forces;

- equipment, including 8 EDA (Excess Defense Articles) patrol
boats that were commissioned in April 2004, training, and
guidance to establish Yemeni Coast Guard (YCG) capabilities;

- equipment and training for Yemen's Terrorist Interdiction
Program (TIP),the on-line system for monitoring entry and
exit from all of Yemen's air, land, and sea ports. The
program is currently in Phase III (of 4 phases) and has
established monitoring portals at 24 border crossing points
in Yemen;

- training under the Anti-terrorist Assistance (ATA) program,
e.g., the Department of State and the FBI jointly sponsored a
terrorist crime scene investigation training course for ROYG
officials in summer 2003. Recently a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) with Ministry of Interior (MOI) for an
INL crowd control training program with Yemeni police
officers;

- an interagency Export and Border Security (EXBS) team visit
in December 2003; the trip report is still pending, but Yemen
is slated to receive approximately $470,000 to fund sending
ROYG officials to a Senior Export Control Seminar, a workshop
on controlled/dual-use items, land and sea interdiction
training, and basic equipment and border patrol vehicles;

- a Department of Energy (DOE) Radiological Threat Reduction
team visited in May 2004 and negotiated approximately $47,000
in contracts for upgrades to make radiological source storage
sites more secure; and

Post believes that there is real benefit to continued
capacity building for both counter-terrorism forces, border
control and law enforcement through all of the programs
listed above and is continually exploring additional funding
sources to maintain U.S. efforts.


3. (s) Post is also engaged in sensitive intelligence
programs to increase cooperation and information sharing.

RETURN ON INVESTMENT: SUCCESSFUL YEMEN CT OPERATIONS


4. (c) These collaborations are producing tangible successes.
In mid-September 2003, the ROYG disrupted an al-Qaida cell
operating in Sana'a, Yemen and targeting Western interests,
Yemeni officials trained by the FBI during the ATA program
participated in the take-down of the cell, which was headed
by Afghanistan-trained 'Amr al-Sharif, who was trying to
reconstitute al-Qaida in Yemen.


5. (sbu) In June 2003, the newly-formed Central Security
Forces (CSF) CT unit was dispatched to the Hattat mountains
in Abyan province to hunt down and bring to justice those
responsible for an attack on a military medical convoy the
week before. The area commander put this unit, trained by
British and U.S. forces, at the lead of this effort when
Ministry of Defense forces became bogged down by harassing
gunfire from the surrounding hills. Over a 3-day period, the
CSF unit engaged those responsible and completed their
mission. In May 2004, international forces intercepted a
dhow with a substantial shipment of weapons on board; after
careful negotiation the confiscated weapons were returned to
the ROYG for outfitting counter-terrorism and special forces
for future operations.

FUTURE EFFORTS: INCREASING MARITIME SECURITY AND REGIONAL
COORDINATION ON TIP


6. (c) Post sees two key areas for increased regional/HOA
cooperation: maritime security and regionalizing the TIP
program. Increased Yemeni cooperation with TF-150 and
regional maritime forces could contribute substantially to
regional maritime security efforts since enhanced regional
cooperation would better control routes and impede terrorist
movements. Regionalizing the PISCES/TIP border monitoring
program to allow greater information exchanges would improve
the ability of all countries in the region to stem the
movement of terrorists or criminals, as well as illegal
immigration that contributes to the threat of terrorism.
Moreover, Post believes that Yemen's leadership recognizes
the need to increase contacts and coordination with its
neighbors in the interest of enhancing stability and economic
growth in the region, as demonstrated by Yemen's recent
efforts to reach out to Ethiopia and the Sudan and create
tripartite cooperation, and is likely to be receptive to the
initiatives outlined above.


7. (u) Post's points of contact on this message are
Counter-terrorism Coordinator Austin Gilreath, class email:
gilreathag@state.sgov.gov; telephone 967-1-303-155, ext.
2356; facsimile 967-1-303-179 or Pol/Econ Chief Mary Brett
Rogers; class email: rogersmb@state.sgov.gov; telephone
967-1-303-155, ext. 2236; facsimile 967-1-303-183.

HULL