U.S., Yemen discuss deployment of U.S. forces

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Yemeni and U.S. officials are discussing the imminent deployment of U.S. special forces to the Middle Eastern country, the latest joint endeavor between the two countries in the U.S.-led war against terrorism.

A small number of U.S. special forces -- perhaps fewer than 100 -- could be dispatched to Yemen relatively soon to train their Yemeni counterparts to find terrorists, a U.S. military official said Friday.

Many al Qaeda members, including 18 identified earlier this week in an FBI security alert warning of a possible imminent terrorist attack, are believed to live or have lived in Yemen.

Local authorities have engaged in several firefights with suspected terrorists in recent months, including a shootout late Wednesday that ended when a suspected al Qaeda member wanted in the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole blew himself up in Yemen's capital of Sana'a.

But while Yemen has expressed its desire to combat terrorism since September 11, analysts consider its military forces' poorly equipped.

The possible training exercise may include giving the Yemeni military a limited amount of new equipment, most likely communications and night vision gear, officials said.

Gen. Tommy Franks, commander of U.S. forces in the region and Afghanistan, met with Yemeni President Ali Aballah Saleh in a recent visit to Sana'a. After that meeting, Franks said the Bush administration planned to provide training and support for Yemen's special forces.