US counterterrorism strategy disintegrates

Once hailed by US President Barack Obama as a model for fighting extremism, the US counterterrorism strategy in Yemen has all but collapsed as the country descends into chaos, according to US and Yemeni officials.

Operations against militants have been scaled back dramatically amid the fall of the US-backed government and the evacuation of US personnel. What had been consistent pressure on Yemen's dangerous al-Qaida affiliate has been relieved, the officials say, and a safe haven exists for the development of an offshoot of the Islamic State group.

It's a swift and striking transformation for an anti-terror campaign Obama heralded just six months ago as the template for efforts to fight the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. The shift has left Obama open to criticism that he failed to anticipate the risks of a light-footprint strategy that aims to put fragile governments and beleaguered local security forces, not the US military, at the forefront.