Special to WorldTribune.com

As the Iran-backed Shi’ite Houthi militia consolidated its control of Yemen’s capital over the weekend and continued its advance southward, the U.S. counter terrorism strategy for the nation is being seen for what it is — a failure.

Praised just six months ago by President Barack Obama as a model for the new U.S. war on terror, the plan has failed in Yemen amid reports the last of the U.S. special forces in the country have been withdrawn.

Indeed Yemen, once seen as a staunch U.S. ally and a strategic asset close to Saudi Arabia, has come into Iran’s sphere of influence.

During Obama’s administration, the U.S. has spent millions on efforts to secure Yemen’s government. Under ousted President Abed-Rabbo Mansour Hadi, U.S.-supported Yemeni troops were conducting raids on Al Qaida militants as Iran-backed Houthi militia were moving in on the capital city.

Since September, the Shi’ite Houthis have ousted Hadi, dissolved the parliament and taken several government sites. Al Qaida has, in turn, exploited the imploding state. Last month, the U.S. evacuated embassy personnel and withdrew the rest of its military forces over the weekend.

Former U.S. ambassador to Yemen Barbara Bodine, said Obama’s perspectives on the Yemen campaign were not widely shared.

“It was being defined in terms of what we were doing to develop local forces and use drones and counter the immediate and real security threat,” said Bodine, now director of the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International reported the deaths on March 24, of “at least eight peaceful protesters, shot by members of the [Houthi] Yemeni Central Security Forces in Ta’iz”.

Doctors at two hospitals said that at least another 119 individuals were admitted with injuries related to tear gas inhalation but at least 38 had gunshot wounds.

“Human rights in Yemen are in free-fall as even peaceful protest becomes a life-threatening activity,” said Said Boumedouha, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program.

  As Iran-backed forces advance in Yemen, Obama’s terror strategy questioned, WorldTribune.com