
President Obama’s self-imposed deadline for closing the U.S. military detention facility in Guantanamo Bay has passed. It may take years to fully close the facility because the real problem is not only Guantanamo, but the entire U.S. detention policy.

Yemen’s multiple economic and security problems transcend the threat posed by al-Qaeda. Without immediate involvement on the part of the international community to address Yemen’s many crises, the country risks becoming a failed state.

Food security is fast becoming a critical issue for Persian Gulf countries as they face three converging factors: tighter global food markets with strained export surpluses, a decline in domestic production, and continuous population growth.

The Yemeni government, already saddled with two protracted conflicts, is expending more time and resources battling al-Qaeda, as the organization’s presence in the country has become more high profile and dangerous.

Given the multi-faceted challenges facing Yemen, resources for fighting al-Qaeda are scarce. The international community must assist Yemen not only in short term counterterrorism initiatives, but also in crucial long term development assistance.

The resurgence of al-Qaeda in Yemen and around the world demands a comprehensive counterterrorism approach. In order to combat al-Qaeda and similar groups, the international community must focus on capacity building in weak states and de-radicalization programs.

Yemen faces a host of economic and security challenges. In order to stabilize the country, a proper balance of short term counterterrorism measures and long term development assistance is needed.

An international approach is needed to mitigate Yemen’s economic and security challenges before it becomes a failed state, creating a harbor for extremists on the border of Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil producer.

Efforts to combat terrorism largely defined the global security agenda during the past decade, when small terrorist groups, with as few as three hundred active members, were able to inflict enormous amounts of damage on regional, national, and international scales.

The presence of Al-Qaeda in Yemen is only one of many security and economic challenges facing the country. International aid must be comprehensive in nature and empower the Yemenis to build their own capacity, in order to combat these challenges.