US Counter-Terrorism Strategy In Yemen Is To 'Bomb And Hope'

Throughout 2013, the US has launched 21 airstrikes in Yemen, the vast majority from drones. Photograph: Reuters

Barrage Of Drone Strikes In Yemen Show Flaws Of US Counter-Terrorism Strategy -- Spencer Ackerman, The Guardian

Four years after identifying al-Qaida in Yemen as a major terrorist threat, the US seems stuck with a plan of 'bombing and hoping'.

If the barrage of US drone strikes over the last week weakened al-Qaida's Yemen affiliate, the terrorist organization that has captured Washington's attention isn't acting like it. Not only is it vowing another attack, it has prompted the US to keep its Yemen embassy closed while reopening all the others – implicitly highlighting the weakness of the US policy of launching drone strikes first and asking questions later.

Intelligence chatter indicating an imminent attack by al-Qaida in the Arabian peninsula (Aqap) prompted two reactions by Washington. The first was to order a dramatic, temporary shutdown at embassies and consulates throughout the Middle East and Africa. The second was to order a surge in drone strikes in Yemen.

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My Comment: I have been following the U.S. war against Al Qaeda for years .... and while in the past I could define what US counter-terrorism strategy was .... i.e. rendition/Guantanamo/interrogation and intelligence gathering/alliances/etc. .... I have trouble defining it accurately now .... but "bombing and hoping" is certainly one description that I would use.