Yemen is Osama Bin Laden’s ancestral home, and the US suspects his men were behind the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen, in which 17 American soldiers were killed.
In mid-December Yemeni security forces - with the help of US intelligence - attacked mountain villages suspected of harbouring members of al-Qaeda network.
It was the first time since 11 September that an Arab government used military force to confront suspected members of al-Qaeda, and many believe it could mark the start of phase two in America’s war on terror.
