March 2, 2011

America’s Latest Excuse in Yemen: It’s the Iranians

Hillary Clinton surely received a video call from Jerusalem after Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's rant. Now, dripping with irony, the Secretary of State is choosing the easiest way out over self-reflection: blame Tehran.

"They are using Hezbollah... to communicate with counterparts... in (the Palestinian movement) Hamas who then in turn communicate with counterparts in Egypt," she told the Senate Appropriations Committee. "We know that they are reaching out to the opposition in Bahrain. We know that the Iranians are very much involved in the opposition movements in Yemen.”

Among other actors, Iran is accused of funding the Shia Houthi tribe - the same tribe Saleh and Saudi Arabia have bombed and shot at with U.S. technology. What else can be expected since no one supports them? Washington's response mirrors the incoherence of Saleh, supporting protesters while simultaneously demonizing the opposition.

But given America and Israel's coordination, the truth in Saleh's "conspiracy" cannot be denied. And luckily for Yemen's opposition, their involvement has only hastened Saleh's fall.

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