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Report: Western presence fuels Yemen, Somalia insecurity
A new report says Western security measures in Yemen and Somalia are fueling militancy because local populations see it as a form of aggression.
Yemen expert Ginny Hill co-authored the report that was published by the London-based research group Chatham House.
"The U.S. administration has been providing training and military equipment to the Yemeni armed forces for several years now," said Hill. "And there has been an increase in that cooperation and that relation over the course of the last year. There have been a number of strikes where the U.S. is alleged to have been involved."
Hill says there is a danger that Western-backed security measures could contribute to tension inside Yemen.
"It is driving a wedge between the president and the tribes and in a country where there is an enormous amount of hostility towards American foreign policy in the region, it is contributing to perceptions that the government of Yemen does not legitimately represent its population," Hill said.