Yemen - America's New Frontline Our World

enemies than they are killing in Yemen? I have to warn you that this

programme contains images that may disturb some viewers. Yemen is now

the frontline in the with Al Qaeda. The most active and plotting against

our homeland. A war President Obama is trying to redefine. One with no

troops on the ground. Battlefields have changed, technology has

evolved. We commit to a process of closing. What does this new war

actually mean on the ground? We have Guantanamo detainees? Is an

America's strategy creating more enemies than its killing? There were

more than 300 people in Al-Qaeda. Now we are talking about thousands

fighter in the battle. These rare footage shot by a local journalist

was filmed behind Al Qaeda lines. Al Qaeda in the Arabian peninsular have

taken over a large part of southern Yemen. The battle last June was

about taking it back. He was battling government forces on the

ground and American drones in the air. They did not hold the city. Al

Qaeda had now returned to fighting in the shadows. We have come to this

city, few Western journalists have been able to witness the terrible

destruction here. We must hide our identities at checkpoints. There are

still drones in the sky. This is a town reduced to rubble. The people

first had to deal with Al Qaeda, then heavy fighting between the yen

many military and the militants and they are in constant fear of the US

planes flying overhead. -- Yemeni. We've come to a safe house where

guards can protect us against Qaeda is stored and munition at the

hospital. Doctors protested but had no choice. The hospital was hit by a

targeted strike. Muhammad and his two children ran to a school and hid

in the basement. But then the school son survived, but his eight-year-old

daughter led to death on the way to drone hovering in the air. And two

jets circling overhead. Several other children were hurt in the

attack. What would you say to the people who ordered that drone

public support to Al Qaeda but plenty of anger over the strategy

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this is crucial to America's fight against extremism in the Arabian

peninsular. But people here fear US drones as much as they fear

Al-Qaeda. Drones are terrifyingly effective. They have wiped out a

generation of Al Qaeda leaders. In his only speech on Jones earlier

this year, President Obama compared the invasions of Alf then stand and

Iraq -- Afghanistan. -- drones. unleashed a torrent of unintended

consequences. Some think that targeted strikes are making the

enemy stronger. I am from a remote village in Yemen. Just six days

ago, my village was struck by a drone attack. He told senators that

dreams are dramatically increasing anti-American sentiment. They are

ready to fire measles at any time. -- measles missiles. I've come to

the old quarter to meet this man. He lived and studied in America and now

runs a pro-democracy organisation back home. He is one of the most

pro- American voices in the country. But he says the American drone war

is playing into Al-Qaeda's hands. The drones have been one of the most

effective tools. A big part of Al Qaeda's power at the moment is

convincing you many is that they are at war with America. Yemenis --

Yemenis. We are killing civilians for no reason. And they are not even

going to say sorry after that. Or last September in the south of Yemen

as an example of when America's silence was deafening. He was

working in the field that afternoon. He said goodbye to his father,

mother and sister who had to visit the local health clinic and then he

went to work on his crops. It was 3pm when he heard a buzzing noise in

what had happened. When he got there, he found two missiles had hit

local journalist. It is too gruesome to show in full. The truck was

packed with passengers coming back from the market. The target was

likely a local Al Qaeda leader seen travelling on this road. Over 30

taken to the local clinic. They report to seeing at least one drone

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responsibility and paying compensation are traditional ways of

atonement. In an off the record coast given to the Washington post,

a US officials did concede that it was a US strike. But there has been

no acknowledgement or apology to the families of the victims in Yemen. A

hundred AK-47s were also delivered to the families. What does your

community think? Who do they blame are tax -- classified as a covert

programme. Public comment is rare. In Yemen, America's actions are

debated openly and constantly. Issues of responsibility and

accountability are discussed in particular. We wanted to bring this

up with the US ambassador. We requested an interview. That request

was declined. The Yemeni Government has promised an investigation into

the attack but nobody that we spoke to have seen any evidence of an

enquiry so far. One group that claims to offer justice and redress

is Al-Qaeda. We have heard many reports of Al-Qaeda appearing after

airstrikes offering compensation and promising vengeance. Al-Qaeda has

stepped in to help rebuild homes. They have provided funeral costs.

They also pressure the relatives of those killed to join up to regain --

gain revenge. Archiver uses the strikes as an opportunity recruit

many more people. If you looked from the outside where this is happened,

it is crazy to think how much it has fuelled the anger. I think it is

dangerous. Al-Qaeda is in a more patriotic position in the yen --

Yemeni Government. In the capital Sanaa political factions are

fighting amongst themselves of a new constitution. They are trying to

build a new Yemen after the old president Ali Abdullah Saleh fell in

the Arab spring. There are two parallel insurgence is

in the north and south. Each of them are just as threatening to the

existence of the country as the kind of battle. Building a functioning

democratic Yemen as a race against time. There are signs he is saying,

criminals are running the government. There are other signs

saying that relatives have disappeared. Public servants have

not been paid. There are times when it feels like this country is

deteriorating and is chaotic. In this vacuum the US says there is

little chance of capturing suspects. Many argue that suspects

can be caught. One man was achieved propaganda arrest for AQAP. He

called for attacks on American targets. He had close ties to

another man, the underwear bomber, who tried to explode a bomb in a

plane of the Detroit in 2009. In a middle class suburb of Sanaa I have

come to meet the man's father. He says he was negotiating a deal that

would have seen her son put on trial. Instead, he was killed and a

drone attack. Your son was preaching hate and had himself praised

praising attacks on America for years. If they could be classified

as heck sermons... I don't think it is right for the United States to

kill him. But he is accused of being involved in it airline plot.

only allegations. They have not been proven in accordance for. -- in a

court of law. If there are any allegations against my son, the

United States government could have done something else... Going to

court but they did not do that. They killed him. He says the ideology

that consum?I ? that consumaking many more. There Were maybe 300

people in our code of it now we are talking about thousands. They'll all

over Yemen. If killing suspects as a source of current anger, it is

Guantanamo Bay that is probably the most long standing grievance against

America amongst Yemenis. To address this, President Obama says 50 six

Yemenis who have never been charged with any crime will be sent home --

56. This is likely to be their first stop, Sanaa's maximum-security

prison. This prison is whether Guantanamo Bay detainees are likely

to be sent. Many details remain unclear including whether they will

face trial or be released. Their families are concerned that they

will remain in legal limbo but in Yemen instead of Cuba. In Guantanamo

Bay D10 is on hunger strike. One of the leaders as a man, a Yemeni

arrested only ask an -Pakistan border. -- Afghanistan-Pakistan

border. The walls here are covered in pro- Al-Qaeda graffiti. He says

they speak to his brother once a month but the conversations

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monitored. So you see him on the web and many to be locked up. What do

casualties, and Guantanamo. The relationship between the United

States and Yemen is not easy. In Sanaa the Yemeni Foreign Minister

has agreed to an interview. We begin by asking, is America's targeting of

Yemen a threat to sovereignty ? A thing sovereignty is in danger if it

is done without approval of the government. -- I think.

It is making people angry. I know. It makes everybody angry to see the

drones coming in... And killing civilians. That is accidental.There

are always innocence whether it is drones, tanks, all machine-guns.

People get killed unfortunately. Every Yemeni we have spoken to have

said that an Al-Qaeda is using the strikes as a recruitment tool.

think if your targets are Al-Qaeda leaders, they are endangering the

situation of our country, there is no alternative to better these

individuals. What are the plans for Guantanamo Bay detainees when they

come back to Yemen? The Americans couldn't prosecute them. I don't

think they have enough evidence to do that. How can we prosecute were

me don't have any evidence that they are Al-Qaeda operatives was ?

future of this conflict will depend on whether America can convince

Yemenis that they are an inside. Every night in the backstreets of

this city children get together to play soccer. Growing up here in Aden

is hard. Their prospects are bleak. Yemen is the poorest country in the

Middle East. Corruption is endemic. The rule of law is uncertain. The

economy is a mess. It'll take more than military campaigns to reach the

country of Al-Qaeda. -- rid. The US argues that provides a lot of money

in civilian aid to the country. The noise from targeted strikes as