ROYG ACKNOWLEDGES U.S. INTEL ASSISTANCE IN AQAP

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 002274 SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/ARP AMACDONALD NSC OR AJOST E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/26/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PINS MOPS PINR YM SUBJECT: ROYG ACKNOWLEDGES U.S. INTEL ASSISTANCE IN AQAP STRIKES, MAKES CASE BEFORE PARLIAMENT REF: A. SANAA 2251 ¶B. SANAA 2250 Classified By: CDA Angie Bryan for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Deputy Prime Minister for Defense and Security Affairs Rashad al-Alimi for the first time publicly acknowledged U.S. intelligence assistance in the December 17 strikes during a presentation to Parliament on December 23. Preliminary reports from Post contacts indicate that Alimi's presentation, which included both a description of al-Qaeda's growing threat to Yemen going back to 1992 and an explanation that the civilian casulaties were in fact AQAP family members living in terrorist training camps, was well received by the pro-government MPs in attendance. Opposition MPs largely stayed away from the session because they have been boycotting Parliament since early December due to an unrelated dispute with the ROYG over parliamentary elections. End summary. Royg makes the case for aqap strikes before parliament -------------- -------------- ¶2. (SBU) After repeated calls in Parliament for the ROYG to explain the December 17 AQAP strikes, Deputy Prime Minister for Defense and Security Affairs Rashad al-Alimi described to MPs the al-Qaeda threat in Yemen during a December 23 presentation. Alimi said that the strikes were carried out "using intelligence aid from Saudi Arabia and the United States of America in our fight against terrorism." He pinned the occurrence of civilian casualties squarely on AQAP's leadership, saying that "militants" had brought their own family members to the training camps. Alimi's presentation before Parliament, which included a history of al-Qaeda's attacks on Yemeni targets since 1992 and a list of AQAP operatives killed in the December 17 strikes, was open to the press and received prominent coverage the following day in official and independent media outlets. Most of the strikes' harshest critics -- members of the minority Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) -- did not attend the presentation due to an ongoing boycott of Parliament since early December resulting from a dispute with the ROYG over the last round of parliamentary elections, according to opposition leader MP Hamid al-Ahmar. The JMP did send one opposition member, Islah Party MP Ali Ashal, from Abyan, to press Alimi on the issue of civilian casualties. ¶3. (C) For days following the December 17 strikes, Post contacts who supported the strikes lamented the ROYG's silence on the issue of civilian casualties. Alimi's presentation, which included satellite images and photographs of the training camps, was generally well received by MPs from the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) party, many of whom had previously expressed frustration with the government's tight hold on details of the strike. MP Nabil Basha told Pol FSN that Alimi's presentation was the subject of a heated debate over the issue of civilian casulaties, despite the majority GPC's overall support for aggressive action against al-Qaeda. On December 26, Parliament anounced the formation of a 10-member fact-finding commission, chaired by Deputy Speaker of Parliament Himyar al-Ahmar, to investigate reports of civilian deaths, according to government media. ¶4. (C) MPs pressed Alimi to answer why the strikes had not been carried out earlier, what measures were in place to limit collateral damage, and how best to compensate the civilian victims in Abyan, according to a Finance Ministry official who witnessed the session. "At long last, the ROYG addressed the issue of so-called innocent civilians being killed. Once it understood that these were training camps and that civilians were relatives of al-Qaeda people, Parliament respected the government's actions," xxxxx, told EconOff.xxxxx, told EconOff that the presentation impressed MPs and would go a long way in helping future CT operations. "Why did the government wait so long after the strikes to explain everything?" is a common refrain heard among Post political contacts, referring to Alimi's Sanaa 00002274 002 of 002 presentation to Parliament. Foreign minister asks u.s. To stay quiet on support role -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi told the Charge on December 23 that the U.S. should continue to refer inquiries to the Yemeni Government, highlight the ROYG's indigenous CT capabilities, and stress that al-Qaeda represents a threat not only to the West, but also to Yemen's security. Qirbi also attacked the opposition Islah party and the Southern Movement for "speaking in defense of al-Qaeda" by characterizing the strikes as targeting innocent civilians. Bryan