Dubai: Yemen needs more help from its allies to combat Al Qaida, its foreign minister said on Monday, just two days after the militant group said it had been responsible for sending US-bound parcel bombs on two aircraft.
Yemen is under pressure from Washington to crush a wing of Al Qaida, but also faces intermittent revolt by Shiites in the north and a secessionist movement in the south.
Two parcel bombs from Yemen were intercepted in Britain and Dubai two weeks ago, in a foiled plot claimed by Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which is based in Yemen.
Overt involvement
Washington has helped Yemen target militants but Sana'a is concerned about more overt US involvement that could alienate ordinary Yemenis and boost Al Qaida. Some other Western countries also give aid to the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state.
"Those who want to help the Yemeni government should help build its forces to fight terrorism and give its security forces training and equipment, as well as logistical support in communications and transportation," Abu Bakr Al Qirbi told the Al Arabiya channel.
The foreign minister told the local English daily that Yemen maintained its independence in its security operations. "The US cooperates with Yemen in intelligence, but the operations are conducted by the Yemeni security forces."
Al Qaida's Yemen wing last year claimed a foiled Christmas Day plot to bomb a US-bound passenger plane and staged an unsuccessful assassination attempt on a Saudi security chief.
Al Qirbi said Yemen's security forces had done well so far in the fight against the militant group given the resources it has.
"I think our security forces have managed a lot of achievements in facing Al Qaida," the paper quoted the minister, who was in Abu Dhabi, as saying.
