Yemen

Despite the indignities of serving in a conflict-mired country and living in a decaying hotel, U.S. diplomats posted to Yemen have had one major perk to look forward to: Starwood points. Lots and lots of them, entitling them to dozens of free nights at Sheraton, W Hotels and Westin properties worldwide. Alas, that's about to end, our colleague Ernesto Londoño reports. The hotel chain is expected to yank the Sheraton logo from the heavily fortified property — home to the diplos since political unrest broke out in Sanaa last year — by Jan. 1. "They want their name off," lamented a diplomat, who estimates he has racked up enough points to never again have to pay for a hotel stay.

IT'S BEEN 10 years since the first strike by an armed U.S. drone killed an al-Qaeda leader and five associates in Yemen. Since then, according to unofficial counts, there have been more than 400 "targeted killing" drone attacks in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia — countries where the United States is not fighting a conventional war. About 3,000 people have been killed, including scores — maybe hundreds — of civilians. And though the United States is winding down its military mission in Afghanistan, the Obama administration, as The Post's Greg Miller reported last week, "expects to continue adding names to kill or capture lists for years.

When President Obama tried to simultaneously disavow the anti-Muslim YouTube video that sparked widespread anti-American protests and defend freedom of speech at the United Nations last week , he ran headlong into the new governing principles of old allies like Egypt and Yemen. The presidents of Egypt and Yemen denounced the protesters' violence in speeches to the U.N. General Assembly. But they were equally fervent in defending the religious outrage behind them and challenging Obama's fulsome view of free speech.

Jaar, Yemen — Abdul Latif al-Sayid knows a lot about the al-Qaeda militants lurking in this tense southern town. He knows their tribes, knows their tactics. He knows because he used to be one of them. That's why they are trying to kill him. So Sayid, the leader of a tribal militia fighting the Islamist extremists, moves from house to house every few days to throw off their informants. He travels only with trusted bodyguards and sleeps with a Kalashnikov rifle by his side. "Now, the war against al-Qaeda is more dangerous than before," said Sayid, a thin and bearded 31-year-old who has survived six attempts on his life, including an ambush over the weekend that killed one of his fighters.

The deputy leader of al-Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen was killed in an airstrike Monday, according to the Yemeni government, five years after he was released from the U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay in a failed attempt at rehabilitation. Said Ali al-Shihri, a Saudi national and the deputy emir of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, and six other people were killed in a military operation in the southern Yemeni province of Hadramaut, the Yemeni Defense Ministry said in a brief statement.

The tents are still in Change Square. So is the large billboard declaring "Get Out. " Portraits of young activists killed in protests still grace the walls, an inspiration to many here who say their job is unfinished. "We didn't come here to fight against one person," said Ibrahim al-Khatab, 20, a student who has lived in his tent for nearly 17 months. "The goals of the revolution have not all been achieved. " It's been six months since a populist revolt ended President Ali Abdullah Saleh's 33-year rule . But here in Change Square — the nexus of the uprising, where tens of thousands once gathered — the revolution continues, in a different shape and form.

SANAA, Yemen — Clashes erupted in Yemen's capital on Tuesday between the new government's forces and soldiers loyal to the former regime, highlighting the divisions and volatility in the country six months after a populist uprising ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Hours after current President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi left the country to attend a conference in Saudi Arabia, elite Republican Guard soldiers under the command of Saleh's son surrounded the Defense Ministry. Government troops quickly moved to protect the building, located in the capital's center.

President Obama's chief counterterrorism adviser on Wednesday defended the administration's strategy to stem the growth of al-Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen, saying its use of targeted killing is part of a wider approach that includes humanitarian, development and military assistance. The remarks by John O. Brennan at the Council on Foreign Relations were prompted in part by criticism from foreign policy experts who have argued that U.S. airstrikes in Yemen do not address the underlying causes of extremism there.

In the latest sign of Washington's deepening involvement in Yemen's battle against an al-Qaeda affiliate, the U.S. military is preparing to give more than $100 million in counterterrorism and security aid to the Arabian country this year, according to newly obtained documents. The U.S. government suspended military assistance to Yemen more than a year ago in response to then-President Ali Abdullah Saleh's suppression of mass protests and other challenges to his 33-year rule.

Thanks for the June 3 front-page article " Increase in drone strikes in Yemen raises questions . " A quick read told me that, from the president on down, the U.S. government is not questioning itself about the use of drones. It is steadfast in its determination to expand the criteria for the use of drone technology, which already defy both international and U.S. law. This is "waterboarding isn't torture" all over again. Helen Schietinger, Washington