Pentagon Denies Plan for Ground Troops in Yemen

Insists No Decisions Made on Changing Policy

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman denied recent media reports that the Obama Administration is in the midst of drawing up plans to deploy ground forces to Yemen to launch attacks on al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).

There is nobody in a leadership position in the Defense Department who has given any serious consideration to the proposal outlined in that article,” said Whitman, adding no changes in policy are being considered yet.

The comments were in response to a Wall Street Journal article which claimed officials were preparing to deploy SOCOM forces to Yemen and turning them over to CIA command. The deployments would be covert and without official Yemeni approval.

President Obama promised to launch revenge attacks against Yemeni-based AQAP in a speech Friday, insisting he would do whatever it takes to “destroy” the group in retalition for the failed mail bomb plot.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.