Foreign Affairs Chair: Yemen ‘Big Step Forward for Al Qaeda,’ ‘Win For Iran’

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) dubbed the resignation of Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi a “big step forward for al Qaeda” and a “win for Iran” on Thursday’s “Situation Room” on CNN.

“We have just lost our ally, President Hadi, as you know. And that ally had helped us mightily in our fight against al Qaeda in Yemen, so you can bet this is a big step forward for al Qaeda. The southern part of Yemen has always wanted to break away from control, basically they wanted a caliphate there, al Qaeda did, and this is — these are some of the concerns that right now we face” he stated.

Royce added, “in the north, it’s a win for Iran in Yemen. And in the south, where al Qaeda predominates, unfortunately it’s a win for al Qaeda and that particular al Qaeda unit, of course, has been the home of Ibrahim al-Asiri, the bomb maker who attempted several attacks in the United States, including recruiting the Christmas underwear bomber, if you recall, and this is the unit that was responsible, if you go through history, the attack on the ‘USS Cole.’…this is our most toxic, most lethal al Qaeda affiliate.”

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