The US assassination of two American citizens inside Yemen has been used for political gain in the US, as top officials crow about the value of their deaths in underscoring America’s military reach worldwide. It should be unsurprising, then, that it is being used for the same purpose inside Yemen.

Fresh off his several months in exile in Saudi Arabia, President Ali Abdullah Saleh is hoping to parlay the assassination of Anwar Awlaki into proof that he is an “indispensable” ally of the Obama Administration, and hopefully will have US officials backing off demands for him to step down.

Saleh has been coping with massive pro-democracy protests demanding he resign since the beginning of the year, and while the US has not endorsed the pro-democracy aspect they have supported replacing Saleh’s dictatorship with a new dictatorship led by his deputy, Major General Hadi.

In the meantime, violence is continuing to grow across the nation, with another 17 people killed today between clashes in the capital and across the nation’s mountainous interior.

Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz

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