Both countries site security risks and fear of further attack from the country’s al-Qaida presence
The U.S. and Britain announced on Sunday that their embassies have been shut down in Yemen. After the attempted bombing of a American flight on Christmas Day—by a Nigerian man who was trained and aided by Yemen al-Qaida members—concerns about further attacks prompted President Barack Obama to shut the embassy. The U.S. has been increasing its monetary counterterrorism aid to Yemen as well as its intelligence work there over the last year—just as al-Qaida has stepped up its presence in Yemen over the same period of time. Britain also closed their embassy for security reasons.