Battle against Al Qaida escalating in Yemen with US funds, equipment

Yemen is growing front in Al Qaida battle

WASHINGTON — The secretive U.S. air strike against suspected al-Qaida in Yemen last week is the latest in what has been a fast-growing campaign to better equip and fund Yemeni forces so they can eliminate the expanding al-Qaida safe havens there.

The Pentagon has poured nearly $70 million in military aid to Yemen this year, a massive financial infusion compared to nothing in 2008.

Much like the effort with Pakistan’s Frontier Corps, the military has boosted its counterterrorism training for Yemeni forces, and is providing more intelligence, which probably includes surveillance by unmanned drones, according to U.s. officials and analysts.