Yemen wake-up

YEMEN is not the new frontline of the war on terror. Afghanistan and Iraq, despite signs the latter is stabilising, remain at the forefront of the battle against jihadi violence. Yemen is not even a recent entry to the lexicon of anti-terrorism. It was the location for the attack on USS Cole in 2000, which killed 17 American sailors and was linked to al-Qaida, and it is also the ancestral homeland of Osama bin Laden.

What it will be, however, is one of several new battlegrounds for the fight against Islamic extremism. That is why Britain and the US are right to provide funding for a counter-terrorism police unit in Yemen, along with more support for the country's coastguard – but it is reasonable to ask why this was not done sooner.

Clearly, the attempted Christmas Day airline attack sent the Arab nation soaring up the list of priorities in London and Washington. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the man charged, is thought to have been radicalised in Yemen and the closure of the British and American embassies there yesterday, following new threats, underlines the need for action.

Poverty, extremism and fighting make Yemen a breeding ground for terror. The West cannot afford another failed state, however. Much money has already been spent, and too many lives lost, in a slow fight against those who hate democracy. The West must quickly come up with a workable plan to help the state and show it has learnt the lessons of Afghanistan, where the invading coalition has been so confused about whether or not it can work with President Karzai.

Britain and the US's engagement with Yemen has been too slow. The planned emergency summit in London to deal with the terror threat it poses, and the ordering of body scanners for British airline travellers, have been hastily planned. It is not just airports that should be on high alert: politicians must be more vigilant.