Trump Gives Troops More Slack To Break Al-Qaida Heads In Yemen

– USA jets carried out dozens of airstrikes on al-Qaida targets in Yemen overnight and in the past 48 hours in one of the lengthiest, sustained operations inside this conflict-torn Arab country, Yemeni officials and residents said Friday.

“US forces conducted a series of precision strikes in Yemen against al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, in the early morning of March 2 (Yemen time)”.

President Donald Trump cleared the way for the U.S.to bomb al-Qaida in Yemen, ahead of a flurry of airstrikes on the terrorist group.

Also, on January 12, another airstrike by the US-led coalition killed Abu Ali al-Tunsi, a security official within the Fateh al-Sham group.

With today’s actions, the United States has carried out more than 30 strikes in Yemen since yesterday against the terrorist group, Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters.

Navy Seal William Ryan Owens and several civilians were killed during the operation.

Two U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier fly alongside a KC-10 Extender during a mission in support of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve over Iraq, Feb. 22, 2017.

Local residents say there are likely civilian casualties.

A USA defense official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the Pentagon is not required to announce every strike conducted in Yemen.

“The object was to go in and collect intelligence”, Army Gen. Joseph Votel, the commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), told CBS News.

The war has killed more than 10,000 people and put millions of people, including half a million children under age 5, on the brink of starvation, United Nations officials say.

The Trump administration has sought to deflect criticism of its first major counterterrorism operation, which was plagued by a series of mishaps, saying that the raid yielded significant intelligence material that would help the US military go after AQAP.

Several questions over whether the raid was worth the loss of Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer William “Ryan” Owens – an elite USA special operator – and an Osprey aircraft have since been raised.

“This is evidence of a new crime perpetrated by the Americans and the Crusader alliance”, said the statement signed by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.