Al-Majalah camp attack
The al-Majalah camp attack also referred to as the al-Majalah massacre[1] occurred on December 17, 2009 when the United States military launched Tomahawk cruise missiles from a ship off the Yemeni coast on a Bedouin camp in the southern village of al-Majalah in Yemen, killing 14 alleged Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters and 41 civilians,[2][3][4][5][6] including 14 women and 21 children.
| Al-Majalah camp attack | |
|---|---|
| Part of the al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen | |
| Type | Airstrike |
| Location | al-Majalah, Abyan Governorate, Yemen 13.972°N 46.462°E |
| Target | AQAP (U.S. claim) |
| Date | 17 December 2009 |
| Executed by |  |
| Casualties | 55 (including 14 women and 21 children) killed |
  al-Majalah Location of al-Majalah within Yemen | |
The attack
The al-Majalah camp attack took place on December 17, 2009, when United States launched cruise missiles at the site.[7][8] Initially, both the U.S. and Yemeni governments denied U.S. involvement in the strikes, despite accusations from Amnesty International.[9][10] Several months after the attack in Al Majalah, Amnesty International released photos showing an American cluster bomb and a propulsion unit from a Tomahawk cruise missile. A subsequent inquiry by the Yemeni parliament found that fourteen Al Qaeda fighters had been killed—along with forty-one civilians, including twenty-three children.[2]
A primary target in the attacks — Qasim al-Raymi, is suspected of or has taken credit for several attacks that killed many civilians and has threatened more attacks on the United States. For example, he is the al-Qaeda leader who was believed to be behind a 2007 bombing in central Yemen, that killed seven Spanish tourists and two Yemenis — survived the attack.[11]
In media
- Dirty Wars, a 2013 American documentary directed by Richard Rowley, and written by Jeremy Scahill and David Riker.
See also
- Abdulelah Haider Shaye, a prominent Yemeni journalist who was jailed after reporting US involvement in the attack.
References
- Scahill, Jeremy (2013-06-04). Dirty Wars: The World is a Battlefield Enhanced Edition for Nook. PublicAffairs. pp. 303–312. ISBN 9781568584843.
- Filkins, Dexter (6 February 2013). "What We Don't Know About Drones". The New Yorker. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
- "US: Reassess Targeted Killings in Yemen". Human Rights Watch. 21 October 2013. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
- "Yemen drones strikes cause civilians to 'fear the US as much as al-Qaeda'". The Daily Telegraph. London. October 22, 2013.
- Hugh MacLeod and Nasser Arrabyee (January 3, 2010). "Yemeni air attacks on al-Qaida fighters risk mobilising hostile tribes". The Guardian. London.
- Raghavan, Sudarsan (2009-12-18). "Yemen asserts 34 rebels killed in raid on Qaeda". The Washington Post. The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2010-01-27.
- "Obama Ordered U.S. Military Strike on Yemen Terrorists". Abcnews.go.com. December 18, 2009. Retrieved April 4, 2010.
- Spencer, Richard (7 June 2010). "US cluster bombs 'killed 35 women and children'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
- "Images of missile and cluster munitions point to US role in fatal attack in Yemen".
- Hauslohner, Abigail (December 22, 2009). "Despite U.S. Aid, Yemen Faces Growing al-Qaeda Threat". Time.