Tuesday, March 24, 2015

S "Loses" $500 Million In Weapons Given To Yemen, Now In Al-Qaeda Hands

US "Loses" $500 Million In Weapons Given To Yemen, Now In Al-Qaeda Hands

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 03/23/2015 22:02 -0400

Nobody could have possibly foreseen that yet another US foreign diplomacy "success story" would turn out to be an epic disaster. Well, nobody, except for those who accurately predict that every US intervention abroad is now a staggering fiasco (for everyone involved except the US military-industrial complex of course). As for Yemen, the outcome was clear long ago:

And, naturally, after noting that "the employees said that more than 20 vehicles were taken by the fighters after the Americans departed from Sanaa's airport" we asked how long until we have a "tabulation of losses to US taxpayers, just like the great Islamic State 'robbery' of hundreds of millions in US military equipment in Iraq?" That, of course, was another epic US intervention success story.

Anyway, thanks to WaPo we have an answer: according to Jeff Bezos' recent media acquisition, "the Pentagon is unable to account for more than $500 million in U.S. military aid given to Yemen."

Obviously, "can't account for" means "has lost." But while the US does not know where nearly half a billion in weapons can be found, it is more than informed who is the current owner: there are "fears that the weaponry, aircraft and equipment is at risk of being seized by Iranian-backed rebels or al-Qaeda, according to U.S. officials."

And just like that, America's now laughable, pathetic foreign policy has not only resulted in another US-supported administration to be exiled or worse, but is has directly armed the adversary. And to think it was only 6 months ago when the Teleprompter in Chief was praising the "Yemen success story." From Obama's Statement on ISIL as of September 10, 2014:

Now, it will take time to eradicate a cancer like ISIL. And any time we take military action, there are risks involved –- especially to the servicemen and women who carry out these missions. But I want the American people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will not involve American combat troops fighting on foreign soil. This counterterrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist, using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground. This strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us, while supporting partners on the front lines, is one that we have successfully pursued in Yemen and Somalia for years. And it is consistent with the approach I outlined earlier this year: to use force against anyone who threatens America’s core interests, but to mobilize partners wherever possible to address broader challenges to international order.

Some may find it odd then, that 6 months later this "strategy" has been flipped on its head, and the Obama administration is taking out its partners (in Yemen), while supporting the terrorists who threaten us.

But almost everyone will say this was obvious from day one.

Here is what else was obvious:

With Yemen in turmoil and its government splintering, the Defense Department has lost its ability to monitor the whereabouts of small arms, ammunition, night-vision goggles, patrol boats, vehicles and other supplies donated by the United States. The situation has grown worse since the United States closed its embassy in Sanaa, the capital, last month and withdrew many of its military advisers.

U.S. firearms supplied to the Interior Ministry in Yemen, which has
received
$500 million in aid from the United States since 2007 under an
array of
Defense Department and State Department programs. (GAO)

In recent weeks, members of Congress have held closed-door meetings with U.S. military officials to press for an accounting of the arms and equipment. Pentagon officials have said that they have little information to go on and that there is little they can do at this point to prevent the weapons and gear from falling into the wrong hands.

“We have to assume it’s completely compromised and gone,” said a legislative aide on Capitol Hill who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

* * *

Washington has supplied more than $500 million in military aid to Yemen since 2007 under an array of Defense Department and State Department programs. The Pentagon and CIA have provided additional assistance through classified programs, making it difficult to know exactly how much Yemen has received in total.

Below is a graphic representation of all the equipment that has been "misplaced."

Another day for the US State Department under John Kerry, another day of endless embarrassment.

U.S. military officials declined to comment for the record. A defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the Pentagon, said there was no hard evidence that U.S. arms or equipment had been looted or confiscated. But the official acknowledged that the Pentagon had lost track of the items.

“Even in the best-case scenario in an unstable country, we never have 100 percent accountability,” the defense official said.

It gets better:

U.S. government officials say al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen poses a more direct threat to the U.S. homeland than any other terrorist group. To counter it, the Obama administration has relied on a combination of proxy forces and drone strikes launched from bases outside the country.

And now it is relying on an even more radical strategy: arming al-Qaeda directly.

But the absolute punchline is the way the US government justifies this most recent fiasco:

Although the loss of weapons and equipment already delivered to Yemen would be embarrassing, U.S. officials said it would be unlikely to alter the military balance of power there. Yemen is estimated to have the second-highest gun ownership rate in the world, ranking behind only the United States, and its bazaars are well stocked with heavy weaponry. Moreover, the U.S. government restricted its lethal aid to small firearms and ammunition, brushing aside Yemeni requests for fighter jets and tanks.

See, it's no biggie that US taxpayers are half a bill out of pocket: the Yemen branch of Al-Qaeda was already armed to the teeth anyway, peace out.

Up next? US-trained Ukraine troops with ultra-modern equipment mysteriously defect, and end up in the Russian army?

The winner? The US Military Industrial Complex, because as General Sline said in Spies Like Us, "a weapon unused is a useless weapon." And if there is anything the US military-industrial complex is good at, it is exporting war first courtesy of the CIA operating the in the shadows of incompetent figureheads like Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, followed promptly - like in this case - by arms to fight it (while HSBC, JPM and others provide the funding).

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Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:02 | 5918820Chupacabra-322

All done by design, all done by agenda.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:03 | 5918843Seek_Truth

Indeed. Hence the "" around the word loses.

Who's your Daddy, Al-CIA-duh? Who's your Daddy, ISIS?

Lots of "losses" and "oops" lately, too many to count.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:06 | 5918855ratso

Much more likely the weapons ae in the hands of the Shia who are enemies of elQaeda. No proof that el Qaeda has the weapons.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:08 | 5918878Sanity Bear

None of this is difficult to explain if you start with the understanding that Al Qaeda, ISIS, and all the other FUD-inspiring "terror" groups are Western psyops. How better to supply them with massive amounts of arms than to let them be captured in highly predictable and avoidable circumstances?

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:15 | 5918918Chupacabra-322

Hence, plausible deniability

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:16 | 5918924McMolotov

There's no question at this point that Uncle Sam rides the short bus. But it remains to be seen whether he's an incompetent Simple Jack retard or a secret genius Rain Man retard.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:28 | 5918966Thirst Mutilator

Somewhere... Kr[JEW]gman is dancing on top of a van [upon hearing this news]...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:31 | 5918996TeamDepends

Looks like we have no choice but to cease White House tours until we recoup the loss.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:33 | 5919003wee-weed up

Another clusterfuck brought to you by the prestigious Obama-Kerry School of International Diplomacy.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:34 | 5919010gmrpeabody

Somebody PLEASE get these clowns out of the WhiteHouse...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:41 | 5919031Thirst Mutilator

This can EASILY be corrected...

Let's just DOUBLE it [& give a BILLION to the Apartheid State of Israel to help correct the 'accident']...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:03 | 5919125cheech_wizard

>This can EASILY be corrected...

By drone strikes on the White House? Or the Federal Reserve?

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:06 | 5919138ilion

This pretty much sums it all up: https://soundcloud.com/olav-nurk-1/midnight-blues

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:08 | 5919146Bunghole

They muzzies can keep those plastic Glocks.

I want the Sig P226s.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:13 | 5919174Took Red Pill

more proof it was no accident;

http://rt.com/news/241573-isis-plane-drop-ammunition/

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:27 | 5919223Thirst Mutilator

@Bunghole ~ no JUNK... [but I'd be a 'peaceful' dissenter here]...

I'll take the GLOCK anytime, anywhere...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:36 | 5919272Bunghole

I'm not knocking a Glock. They feed all day every day.

I'm just not a fan of polymer pistols.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 17:08 | 5919381RU-GAY2

We just sent ISIS another 2.48 BTC.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 17:19 | 59194263.7.77

"Donated by the United States", I don't remember okaying this....

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 17:52 | 5919530Money Boo Boo

to fabricate bullshit fictitious wars one first needs a capable enemy with capable equipment, supplied as needed by the CIA

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 19:06 |5919783negative rates

Remember, it's half our fault just for making the things, and don't tell me alquida was going to make those weapons either.

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 05:33 |5920928gold-is-not-dead

Why people still call them al qaeda or isis? That's wrong, correct term is CIA, MOSAD, MI6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqn0bm4E9yw

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:13 | 5919176winchester

this info is 4 days old..

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 17:14 | 5919403max2205

Was there a map also with directions to Syria?

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 18:38 | 5919693Fun Facts

Amid the systemic corruption, they can say anything they want and get away with it.

It's pretty sad, really.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 19:07 | 5919791negative rates

Tunnels only, plus there is a line a mile long for hand shovels.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 19:14 | 5919817weburke

ALL those weapons are RFID chipped, finding is a breeze. In fact it is impossible to lose them !

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 21:33 | 5920302SmackDaddy

lol, hope they remembered to put the batteries in this time...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:19 | 5919163macholatte

... and NOBODY thought to disable any of that stuff?

.... and the "Undelivered" will probably be delivered once the Pentagon gets a forwarding address.

This is why most people can't handle being informed. It's too frustrating.

Dictatorship naturally arises out of democracy, and the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery out of the most extreme liberty.

Plato

Believing that a crisis is a useful thing to create, the Obama administration - which understands that, for liberalism, worse is better - has deliberately aggravated the fiscal shambles that the Great Recession accelerated.

George Will

When times are tough and people are frustrated and angry and hurting and uncertain, the politics of constant conflict may be good, but what is good politics does not necessarily work in the real world. What works in the real world is cooperation.

William J. Clinton

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 22:08 | 5920399Tarzan

"This is why most people can't handle being informed. It's too frustrating."

Exactly why I stopped talking about this stuff around my wife, not that she doesn't believe it, just that she can't wrap her head around why, and what to do about it.

When first presented with the facts we all start by cry out why would they, and how stupid they must be, but then it begins to sink in just how stupid they would have to be and unspeakable questions begin creeping in. Your eyes are not truely open until you give in to the fact that they're not stupid they're EVIL, against the people, and they're DOING IT ON PURPOSE. Only then does what they're doing begin to make sense.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:19 | 5919199dcohen

How about Congress?

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 00:29 | 5920697toxic8

The Farce continues.

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 14:18 | 5922355mkkby

How do you lose a patrol boat? ISIS is a sea power now, or more likely some CIA agent sailed off for his retirement.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:35 | 5919013knukles

"I read about it on ESPN... er, I mean the newspaper"

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 23:58 | 5920627RockyRacoon

Where's the problem? Arm both sides, sit back and watch. Problem goes away. Too exhausted or decimated to roam about the globe bothering decent folk.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:36 | 5919014Divided States ...

500mn missing but more likely given away in order to have more reasons to produce 5bn worth more to try to retrieve the 500mn back...good strategy there US of A.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 15:46 | 5919051new game

so as incompetent as the gov.org is, it wouldn't suprise me one bit if the undelivered weapons go straight to alkada or is...

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 16:11 | 5919162Crash Overide

500 million is a drop in the bucket compared to the 2 trillion Rumsfeld couldn't account for shortly before 9/11.

Shit, even Hilary racked up 6 billion in unaccounted State Department funds.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 18:58 | 5919757tenpanhandle

Oh, Okay then; no problemo.

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 03:47 | 5920854Tall Tom

I guess then I should not remind you about Hurricane Sandy flooding the New York Financial District and...they really have no clue as to the true owners of bonds and stocks.

Everything has been make believe.

What is so funny is that..that...that you guys think that anything is real.

One Half Billion?

Really it is nothing. Really. I mean that.

LMAO.

I wonder when everybody is going to realize that all of the trading since that point has been NAKED.

Yes. The King actually has no clothes.

Continue onward.

What is next in fantasy land today?

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 08:16 | 5921112Refuse-Resist

Fight On Vaquero!

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 21:54 | 5920365turnoffthewater

The inept US defense dept "Loses" $500 Million In Weapons Given To Yemen which the taxpayers are on the hook for.

Mon, 03/23/2015 - 22:17 | 5920423Tarzan

"INEPT"? Are they really? I get so sick of people calling Obama and the rest stupid or inept! These are fucking harvard grads! they're not stupid. Believing all this crap is done by mistake is stupid! Believing the military lost the weapons or dropped them in the wrong neighborhood or didn't forsee the fall of Yemen is the only thing stupid.

It's about time we realized that these are not just bumbling idiots in washington. There are ENEMIES in the camp and THEY ARE DOING IT ON PURPOSE!

Tue, 03/24/2015 - 08:38 | 5921171Pumpkin