Saudi members of Al-Qaeda in Yemen

Introduction

By  abdulwhed alsumae

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the product of a merger between the terror group's Yemeni and Saudi branches, is considered al-Qaeda's most dangerous branch of all.

AQAP has been bolstering its operations in Yemen over the past few years after key Saudi operatives fled there following a major crackdown in their homeland.              The fighters, including those returning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, have established sanctuaries among a number of Yemeni tribes, particularly in three provinces bordering Saudi Arabia. The group is estimated to have hundreds of fighters as well as thousands of followers.

Al-Qaeda in Yemen, or al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), as it calls itself at the moment, has gone through different phases. During the era of the Afghan Jihad, Arab fighters recruited a large number of Yemenis, and Osama bin Laden relied on them as personal bodyguards. After the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, they returned to Yemen and Saudi Arabia, focusing their operations on the latter.

 In February 2006, Yemen’s “Great Escape” of over a dozen leading  Al-Qaeda suspects paved the way for a process of reorganization of a movement in Yemen and coincided with their withdrawal from Saudi Arabia after three years of armed confrontations with the authorities Thus, Yemen became a destination for Saudi jihadis and AQAP was born as a coalition of Saudi and Yemeni jihadis.

With regard to Saudi operatives in AQAP, most came from the south of Saudi Arabia

Al-Qaeda’s focus on recruitment from the south of Saudi Arabia led to an increase in the number of Saudi al-Qaeda members who have tribal connections to Yemeni tribes.

Coalition-backed militias actively recruit al-Qaida militants, or those who were recently members, because they are considered exceptional fighters, the AP found.

My trip to Shabwa

I went from Sana'a, the capital, to Shabwa in the morning. Shabwa arrived before sunset. My friend Ahmed was waiting for me at one of the army's military points. I was very happy that I met my friend Ahmed

Then we rode an army vehicle into the camp's main building  We ate dinner, there were five people wearing army uniforms and a sixth person in popular clothes

I started to talk to them and drink tea, I told them about the reason for my visit and I am writing a report on the elements of the Al Qaeda

My friend Ahmad surprised me when he pointed to the person in a popular dress 'this one of them' said to me, and they laughed, he was already an al-Qaeda operative.

His name Khalid. He looked at me with a wide smile and told me what he wanted to know about Al Qaeda

I asked his a question

Why are you fighting with al-Qaeda?

He replied quickly, 'We are not fighting anyone, they are fighting us'

Who are they fight you?

the whole world!

After that Khaled received a call and apologized to me and said that I should leave now and we will meet tomorrow

The next morning I woke up early, ate breakfast, and then went to the market to buy khat. I met Khalid in the market and he bought qat. He looked at me with a smile and said, 'We will eat qat together and complete our conversation'

I saw many people in the market dressed in popular clothes and carrying automatic weapons. My friend Ahmed told me that most of them were al-Qaeda members

My friend Ahmed was asked if you knew their names and from which country they were

He told me that he knows most of them and they know him. They are Yemenis, Saudis, Somalis, and different nationalities, but the majority are Yemenis and Saudis.

I told Ahmed that I wanted to know some personalities of Saudi nationality and their role in the organization and why they came to fight here

Ahmed replied, 'Do you see that fat person carrying a machine gun?'

I Yeah

His name is Abu Mus'ad, the organization's chief financial officer who receives millions every month from the Saudi government for distribution to the fighters. He is a very generous person who sometimes helps the soldiers of the Yemeni government. During our conversation the car that will take us to the camp arrived

When we arrived at the camp, we had lunch and then started eating qat. About half an hour later, Khaled arrived with two people carrying machine guns on their shoulders. My friend Ahmad welcomed them and sat with us eating khat and exchanging talk on several topics

In the meantime, Khalid looked at me and said, 'Did you find what you were looking for or did you need help from me?'

I told him I needed to answer some questions if that was possible

I asked him many questions and he answered and sometimes laughed

His words in the local dialect, we continued to sit and eat qat before sunset

Then Khalid left, I stayed with my friend Ahmad and tried to get some information I did not get from Khalid but he apologized to me and said  'i can not tell you the names of some of the Saudi fighters. I gave you one of the names Abu Massad as an example'

Reasons for recruitment

Based on the above, it is evident that al-Qaeda is attempting to build tribal alliances in the area extending from the south of Saudi Arabia to the south of Yemen. These alliances are made possible by the conservative nature of the Salafi-Jihadi movement’s ideology.  If we examine the structure of al-Qaeda, it is clear that the Salafi-Jihadis are succeeding in mobilizing youth in both Saudi Arabia and Yemen, even when their families have good relations with the authorities. It seems that al-Qaeda’s ideology is becoming more influential and is benefiting from injustices in the south of Yemen.

Saudis in Yemen seem to have been driven by composite motivational factors. The declared motivations were of two main kinds. The first was altruistic: to liberate a fellow Muslim people from US occupation According to their claim. The second was personal: to achieve martyrdom and go to heaven. According to some of the soldiers said to me when talking to them.

In my opinion for many, the prospect of going to heaven seems to have been more important than achieving political aims.

the second reason is incitement from religious clerics. There are strong indications that both local imams and some senior clerics They were encouraged to join jihad camps in Yemen. Said they were inspired to go to Yemen by sermons at a local mosque.

Third, Personal motivations were undoubtedly also very important. There are several accounts of people who went or tried to go to Yemen to follow in the footsteps of a brother or a friend who had gone before them. Others went because their brother had fallen in combat in Yemen and they wanted to die a martyr so that they could be with their dead brother in heaven.

Fourthly, coalition cut secret deals with al-Qaida fighters, paying some to leave key cities and towns and letting others retreat with weapons, equipment and wads of looted cash, an investigation by The Associated Press has found. Hundreds more were recruited to join the coalition itself.

Role in the Organization

There is a widespread perception that the Saudis are significantly overrepresented among the foreign fighters in Yemen. Estimates range from 30% to 40%, but it is virtually impossible to provide an authoritative figure. The widely diverging estimates reflect the general lack of information about the insurgency, as well as the highly contentious nature of the debate over the role of Saudis in Yemen.

Who were on average 23 years old this relatively low average indicates that the Saudis in Yemen represent a new generation of mujahidin. So they do not seem to have played important roles in the organization\

 The way of living

When I was asked about the number of Saudi fighters, Ahmed told me 'there were many of them. Many of them arrived from Saudi Arabia via trucks from the Saudi army about nine months ago. We are fighting and living with them against the Houthis,' he told me

When I asked him

Do they live here with their families or are they alone?

He answered me, "For the Yemenis, most of them live with their families, but the Saudis have almost three families living here. They married here