The regiment took part in the Battle of Paardeberg which resulted in Piet Cronjé’s surrender during the Second Boer War.

(meta data) TITLE: Anglo Boer War - 9th (Queen's Royal) Lancers

The regiment was one of those which were so opportunely despatched from India to South Africa in September 1899.

They landed at Cape Town, and when war broke out had to do an immense amount of patrol work, as mounted men were so scarce in the colony.

When Lord Methuen commenced his advance from Orange River in November (see 3rd Grenadier Guards), the 9th Lancers, three companies Mounted Infantry, and some of Rimington's Guides were his only mounted forces,—an utterly inadequate complement for practically three brigades of infantry.

At Belmont, 23rd November 1899 (see 3rd Grenadier Guards), the regiment had very responsible work—two squadrons with one of Mounted Infantry protecting the left flank; one squadron and some of Rimington's Guides and a company of Mounted Infantry worked to the east.

At Enslin on the 25th they had plenty— too much—to do.

In closing his despatch as to Enslin Lord Methuen says, "My guns played on the masses of horsemen, but my few cavalry, dead beat, were powerless, and for the second time I longed for a cavalry brigade and a horse-artillery battery to let me reap the fruits of a hard-fought action".

The want of cavalry caused Belmont, Enslin, and Modder River to be purely infantry actions, and wellnigh barren ones.

Some critics, such as Mr Maydon, have expressed the opinion that Lord Methuen should have delayed his advance till more mounted troops were available, but the perils of the Diamond City bulked largely in the thoughts of all at the time.

At Modder River, 28th November, the 9th Lancers and Mounted Infantry protected the right flank, where the Boers were threatening all day.

Mr Maydon, p 45, records that the regiment reported on the previous day the enemy intrenched in the river-bed, but that Lord Methuen refused to believe it.

This statement is not altogether unsupported.

At Magersfontein, 11th December, the regiment did much dismounted work on the right flank, and their services were very valuable.

"Major Little in the firing line did good work all day"; and Lieutenant Allhusen's work with the maxim was also mentioned in the despatch of 15th February 1900.

About 9th January 1900 the regiment took part in a raid into the Orange Free State.

When the march to Kimberley commenced on 11th February the 9th and 16th formed the 3rd Cavalry Brigade under Brigadier General J R P Gordon.

In the rush through the Boer position on the morning of the 15th February the 9th and 16th had a prominent place, heading the charge, and they did very well (see Maydon's book and Cecil Boyle's article in 'Nineteenth Century' of June 1900).

After Kimberley was relieved the brigade took part in the other operations antecedent to the occupation of Bloemfontein, but were not in the force which headed off Cronje on the 17th.

The 3rd Cavalry Brigade remained at Kimberley till the morning of the 18th, and arriving at a point north of the Boer force late in the afternoon, Gordon had a little fighting on his own account, his batteries O and R doing some good work.

Next day he joined French, and acted with him in all the other fighting on the way to Bloemfontein.

In Lord Roberts' despatch of 31st March 1900, 3 officers and 5 non-commissioned officers and men of the 9th Lancers were mentioned for exceptional work up to the occupation of Bloemfontein.

On 29th March 1900 the 1st and 3rd Cavalry Brigades under French were, with Tucker's VIIth Division, employed at Karee Siding when the enemy was driven back towards Brandfort.

Towards the end of April the brigade was engaged with Ian Hamilton and French in clearing the enemy from the Thabanchu district, and had some stiff fighting on the extreme right (see Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry).

Lord Roberts commenced his northern advance on 3rd May, and on the 8th he was joined by General French with the 1st (Porter's), 3rd (Gordon's), and 4th (Dickson's) Brigades of cavalry.

The 3rd Brigade now included the 17th Lancers.

In the further advance towards Pretoria this brigade was generally working in advance on the right flank of the main body and under the direct orders of Lord Roberts, General French with the 1st and 4th Cavalry Brigades and Button's Mounted Infantry being far out on the left flank.

At Diamond Hill (see Sussex Regiment) the 2nd and 3rd Cavalry Brigades were on the right, the 3rd Brigade being on the extreme right but thrown back.

Both brigades were opposed by strongly posted forces of the enemy, and were at times pressed to hold their own.

The 3rd Cavalry Brigade thereafter took part in the initial steps of the movement which led up to Prinsloo's surrender.

On 11th July the brigade left Sir A Hunter's force, returning via Reitz to Heilbron and thence to Kroonstad.

Brigadier General Gordon at this time left the 3rd for the 1st Brigade, his successor being Lieutenant Colonel Little.

The 2nd and 3rd Brigades were for some weeks after 16th July engaged in the pursuit of De Wet's force, which had broken out of the Brand water basin (see 1st Northumberland Fusiliers).

About the middle of August the 3rd Brigade moved with Lord Methuen to Zeerust.

As the brigade was starting to return on the 25th, Colonel Little was wounded and Colonel Dalgetty of the Colonial Division took command.

Between Zeerust and Krugersdorp there was constant fighting.

Brigadier General Porter now got the brigade, and under him it was railed from Johannesburg to Kroonstad to operate once more against De Wet.

The brigade was for a time employed in the Orange River Colony, sweeping up, and on the borders of Cape Colony.

In November 1900 the brigade was split up, but was mainly employed in the various columns put into the field to prevent, if possible, De Wet and other leaders from entering Cape Colony.

The 9th Lancers acted for a time with General Charles Knox.

Ten officers and 12 non-commissioned officers and men of the 9th Lancers were mentioned in Lord Roberts' despatches of 2nd April and 4th September 1901.

Early in the year 1901 the regiment was sent into Cape Colony to pursue Boers who had crossed the Orange, and, acting under Colonel Scobell, they and the Cape Mounted Rifles gained great credit for their successful endeavours to close with the enemy.

Over and over again this column surprised laagers and killed or captured many of the enemy.

In particular, they were specially praised for the capture of Letter's commando on 5th September 1901.

Lord Kitchener described it as a brilliant success.

In this affair the 9th lost 7 killed and 5 wounded.

During the remainder of the campaign the regiments of the brigade were mainly employed in Cape Colony.

The 9th sailed for India in March 1902, after two and a half years' campaigning.

Their war services were as continuously hard, as brilliant, and as fruitful as those of any other regiment in South Africa.

For exceptional work in the later phases of the war Lord Kitchener mentioned, in despatches written during the war, 6 officers and 10 non-commissioned officers and men of the 9th Lancers, and in the final despatch 4 officers and 4 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned.

AbadieEustace Henry EgremontLieutenantABADIE, EUSTACE HENRY EGREMONT, Lieutenant, was born 24 January 1877, elder son of Major General Henry Richard Abadie, CB, 9th Lancers, Lieutenant-Governor of Jersey, 1900-4, and of his first wife Kate (who died in 1883), daughter of G Sandeman.

Eustace Abadie joined the 9th Lancers 11 August 1897, becoming Lieutenant 3 May 1899.

He served with much distinction in the South African War, 1899-1902, and was present at the advance on Kimberley, including the actions at Belmont, Enslin and Magersfontein; Relief of Kimberley; took part in the operations in the Orange Free State, February to May 1900, including operations at Paardeberg (17 to 26 February); actions at Poplar Grove, Driefontein, Karee Siding, Houtnek (Thoba Mountain), Vet River (5 and 6 May) and Zand River; was present during the operations in the Transvaal in May and June, 1900, including actions near Johannesburg, Pretoria and Diamond Hill (11 and 12 June), again in the Transvaal, east of Pretoria, July to 29 November 1900, including actions at Reit Vlei and Belfast; in the Transvaal, west of Pretoria, July to 29 November 1900; operations in Cape Colony and the Transvaal 30 November 1900, to 31 May 1902.

He was mentioned in Despatches [London Gazette, 10 September 1901]; received the Queen's Medal with eight clasps, the King's Medal with two clasps, and was created a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order [London Gazette, 27 September 1901]: "Eustace Henry Egremont Abadie, Lieutenant, 9th Lancers.

In recognition of services during the operations in South Africa".

The Insignia, Warrant, etc, were sent to the Commander-in-Chief in India, and presented by General Sir Bindon Blood at Full Garrison Parade at Rawal Pindi 8 April, 1903.

It is said that no other officer received more than eight clasps to the Queen's Medal in the South African Campaign.

He was promoted to Captain 15 March, 1904; was a Staff College Graduate; was Adjutant of his regiment from February 1906, to August 1907, and was promoted to Major in March, 1912.

Source: DSO recipients (VC and DSO Book)

AlbertS3591PrivatePrisoner. Paardeplaat, 19 July 1900

Source: South African Field Force Casualty Roll

Prisoner - released, Paardeplaat, 19 Jul 00.

During the Second Boer War, the regiment took part in the Battle of Belmont and the Battle of Modder River in November 1899. The regiment took part in the Battle of Magersfontein during the Second Boer War in December 1899. The regiment took part in the Relief of Kimberley during the Second Boer War in winter 1899.


His famous speech, in which he said, "I came through and I shall return", was first made at Terowie railway station in South Australia.

(meta data) TITLE: " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return " | Monument Australia

(meta data) COPYRIGHT: Monument Australia - UBC Copyright © 2010

www.monumentaustralia.org.auConflictCultureDisasterGovernmentLandscapePeopleTechnologySourcesDisclaimerLinksContactAbout UsVolunteers Recommend site Bookmark site!

Dear Monument Australia visitors, we are a self-funded, non-profit organisation, dedicated to recording monuments throughout Australia.

Over time the costs of maintaining this website have risen substantially (in fact they are probably larger than those of many companies who exist for profit).

In the past we have borne all the costs associated with maintaining the website but we are now having difficulties in paying the monthly expenses.

If Monument Australia is useful to you, please make a donation to keep this historical and educational resource available.

# " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return "

Memorial commemorates Douglas Macarthur's historic message to the Australian Press after retreating from the Phillipines during World War Two.

He subsequently repeated the line "I shall return" in a number of other speeches, in a number of other places.

Douglas McArthur arrived at Terowie Railway Station and much to MacArthur`s surprise his "secret" arrival in Terowie was not so secret.

A huge cheer went up from the locals who had gathered when he left the train.

General MacArthur responded by striding towards an opening between a line of railway carriages and saluted the people of Terowie on the other side of the carriages and some passengers on a nearby train.

MacArthur was dressed in a loose hanging jacket and slacks and wore no decorations or insignia except for a laurel wreathed peak on his cap and another emblem.

On being asked if his would reach the United States he said:- "The President of the United States ordered me to break through the Japanese lines and proceed to Corregidor to Australia for the purpose, as I understand it, of organising an American offensive against Japan, the primary purpose of which is the relief of the Philippines.

Address:Railway Station, Terowie, 5421State:SAArea:ForeignGPS Coordinates:Lat: -33.150403Long: 138.921392Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.

Monument Type:PlaqueMonument Theme:ConflictSub-Theme:WW2Actual Event STart Date:20-March-1942Actual Event End Date:20-March-1942

" I CAME OUT OF BATAAN AND I SHALL RETURN"

This historic message that echoed around the world was given on this spot by US General Douglas MacArthur at his first press interview in Australia, 20.3.1942

Source: MA,TOH Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au

Douglas MacArthur's escape from the Philippines

MacArthur awarded Silver Stars to the crews of the two bombers. Brett's chief of staff, Brigadier General Ralph Royce, was on hand to greet them, and Brett had sent two Australian National Airways DC-3s to bring them to Melbourne. However, Jean now refused to fly any further, so MacArthur asked for a motorcade to take them to the nearest railway station, which was at Alice Springs, 1,000 miles (1,600 km) away. Sutherland had received word of an incoming Japanese air raid, and asked Morhouse to intervene. Morhouse told MacArthur that Arthur, who had suffered badly from seasickness and airsickness, was on an intravenous feed, and could not guarantee that he would survive the trip across the desert. MacArthur then agreed to take the planes to Alice Springs. Sutherland had Huff hurry everyone onto the aircraft, which took off as the air raid siren sounded.
 At Alice Springs, the party split up. MacArthur, his family, Sutherland, Morhouse and Huff took a special train that Brett had borrowed from the Australians, while the rest of the staff flew down to Melbourne via Adelaide in the DC-3s.


(meta data) TITLE: " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return " | Monument Australia

(meta data) COPYRIGHT: Monument Australia - UBC Copyright © 2010

www.monumentaustralia.org.auConflictCultureDisasterGovernmentLandscapePeopleTechnologySourcesDisclaimerLinksContactAbout UsVolunteers Recommend site Bookmark site!

Dear Monument Australia visitors, we are a self-funded, non-profit organisation, dedicated to recording monuments throughout Australia.

Over time the costs of maintaining this website have risen substantially (in fact they are probably larger than those of many companies who exist for profit).

In the past we have borne all the costs associated with maintaining the website but we are now having difficulties in paying the monthly expenses.

If Monument Australia is useful to you, please make a donation to keep this historical and educational resource available.

# " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return "

Memorial commemorates Douglas Macarthur's historic message to the Australian Press after retreating from the Phillipines during World War Two.

He subsequently repeated the line "I shall return" in a number of other speeches, in a number of other places.

Douglas McArthur arrived at Terowie Railway Station and much to MacArthur`s surprise his "secret" arrival in Terowie was not so secret.

A huge cheer went up from the locals who had gathered when he left the train.

General MacArthur responded by striding towards an opening between a line of railway carriages and saluted the people of Terowie on the other side of the carriages and some passengers on a nearby train.

MacArthur was dressed in a loose hanging jacket and slacks and wore no decorations or insignia except for a laurel wreathed peak on his cap and another emblem.

On being asked if his would reach the United States he said:- "The President of the United States ordered me to break through the Japanese lines and proceed to Corregidor to Australia for the purpose, as I understand it, of organising an American offensive against Japan, the primary purpose of which is the relief of the Philippines.

Address:Railway Station, Terowie, 5421State:SAArea:ForeignGPS Coordinates:Lat: -33.150403Long: 138.921392Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.

Monument Type:PlaqueMonument Theme:ConflictSub-Theme:WW2Actual Event STart Date:20-March-1942Actual Event End Date:20-March-1942

" I CAME OUT OF BATAAN AND I SHALL RETURN"

This historic message that echoed around the world was given on this spot by US General Douglas MacArthur at his first press interview in Australia, 20.3.1942

Source: MA,TOH Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au

MacArthur awarded Silver Stars to the crews of the two bombers. Brett's chief of staff, Brigadier General Ralph Royce, was on hand to greet them, and Brett had sent two Australian National Airways DC-3s to bring them to Melbourne. However, Jean now refused to fly any further, so MacArthur asked for a motorcade to take them to the nearest railway station, which was at Alice Springs, 1,000 miles (1,600 km) away. Sutherland had received word of an incoming Japanese air raid, and asked Morhouse to intervene. Morhouse told MacArthur that Arthur, who had suffered badly from seasickness and airsickness, was on an intravenous feed, and could not guarantee that he would survive the trip across the desert. MacArthur then agreed to take the planes to Alice Springs. Sutherland had Huff hurry everyone onto the aircraft, which took off as the air raid siren sounded.
 At Alice Springs, the party split up. MacArthur, his family, Sutherland, Morhouse and Huff took a special train that Brett had borrowed from the Australians, while the rest of the staff flew down to Melbourne via Adelaide in the DC-3s. His famous speech, in which he said, "I came through and I shall return", was first made at Terowie railway station in South Australia.


He made the speech at the railway station where he changed trains.

(meta data) TITLE: " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return " | Monument Australia

(meta data) COPYRIGHT: Monument Australia - UBC Copyright © 2010

www.monumentaustralia.org.auConflictCultureDisasterGovernmentLandscapePeopleTechnologySourcesDisclaimerLinksContactAbout UsVolunteers Recommend site Bookmark site!

Dear Monument Australia visitors, we are a self-funded, non-profit organisation, dedicated to recording monuments throughout Australia.

Over time the costs of maintaining this website have risen substantially (in fact they are probably larger than those of many companies who exist for profit).

In the past we have borne all the costs associated with maintaining the website but we are now having difficulties in paying the monthly expenses.

If Monument Australia is useful to you, please make a donation to keep this historical and educational resource available.

# " I Came out of Bataan and I Shall Return "

Memorial commemorates Douglas Macarthur's historic message to the Australian Press after retreating from the Phillipines during World War Two.

He subsequently repeated the line "I shall return" in a number of other speeches, in a number of other places.

Douglas McArthur arrived at Terowie Railway Station and much to MacArthur`s surprise his "secret" arrival in Terowie was not so secret.

A huge cheer went up from the locals who had gathered when he left the train.

General MacArthur responded by striding towards an opening between a line of railway carriages and saluted the people of Terowie on the other side of the carriages and some passengers on a nearby train.

MacArthur was dressed in a loose hanging jacket and slacks and wore no decorations or insignia except for a laurel wreathed peak on his cap and another emblem.

On being asked if his would reach the United States he said:- "The President of the United States ordered me to break through the Japanese lines and proceed to Corregidor to Australia for the purpose, as I understand it, of organising an American offensive against Japan, the primary purpose of which is the relief of the Philippines.

Address:Railway Station, Terowie, 5421State:SAArea:ForeignGPS Coordinates:Lat: -33.150403Long: 138.921392Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.

Monument Type:PlaqueMonument Theme:ConflictSub-Theme:WW2Actual Event STart Date:20-March-1942Actual Event End Date:20-March-1942

" I CAME OUT OF BATAAN AND I SHALL RETURN"

This historic message that echoed around the world was given on this spot by US General Douglas MacArthur at his first press interview in Australia, 20.3.1942

Source: MA,TOH Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au

MacArthur awarded Silver Stars to the crews of the two bombers. Brett's chief of staff, Brigadier General Ralph Royce, was on hand to greet them, and Brett had sent two Australian National Airways DC-3s to bring them to Melbourne. However, Jean now refused to fly any further, so MacArthur asked for a motorcade to take them to the nearest railway station, which was at Alice Springs, 1,000 miles (1,600 km) away. Sutherland had received word of an incoming Japanese air raid, and asked Morhouse to intervene. Morhouse told MacArthur that Arthur, who had suffered badly from seasickness and airsickness, was on an intravenous feed, and could not guarantee that he would survive the trip across the desert. MacArthur then agreed to take the planes to Alice Springs. Sutherland had Huff hurry everyone onto the aircraft, which took off as the air raid siren sounded.
 At Alice Springs, the party split up. MacArthur, his family, Sutherland, Morhouse and Huff took a special train that Brett had borrowed from the Australians, while the rest of the staff flew down to Melbourne via Adelaide in the DC-3s. His famous speech, in which he said, "I came through and I shall return", was first made at Terowie railway station in South Australia. The speech was made on 20 March.


Gronkowski was in the National Honor Society.

(meta data) TITLE: New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski Pictures and Interview

(meta data) PUBLISHER: https://www.facebook.com/DuJour-146786422111039

Life is pretty damn good for New England Patriots superstar Rob Gronkowski right now—and it's bound to get even better

A massacre has just occurred at a ritzy restaurant in northern Miami.

The assassin—a man beast of 265 pounds with a tree-trunk-thick neck—is sawing mercilessly into the pile of bloody flesh.

"I usually don't cut it before I eat it," he admits.

A speaker trembles with the heavy bass of a Whitney Houston dance remix.

His voice rises an octave as he tears a particularly large chunk free and says: "Sorry!

Watching a 6'6" professional football player have his way with a 14-ounce New York strip is a brutal experience, but New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has a hard time dialing back his intensity, even when he's not playing football.

Still, the herculean force he brings to the dinner table—evocative of his take-no-prisoners approach on the field—is misleading.

In reality, he is the gentlest of giants, with kind eyes, a dopey grin and the ambiguous sort of accent that sounds, at first, midwestern, but is really the product of upstate New York.

At the age of 26, Gronkowski, a newly minted Super Bowl champion, has already locked in a six-year, $54 million contract—the most lucrative deal for a tight end in NFL history.

He's set several all-time records for his position, cementing a reputation as the best tight end in the league, if not the best tight end to ever play pro football.

That's no small feat, considering he's suffered (and bounced back from) two major injuries that threatened to ruin his career.

But as much as he's been lauded for his remarkable talent on the field, Gronkowski's extracurricular behavior has garnered even more attention.

If quarterback Tom Brady is the Patriots' demure sophisticate, well, Gronkowski is his fratty, fun-loving foil.

He has become something of a pop-culture phenomenon: Gronkowski's post-touchdown tradition of football spiking (and spiking other things, like bouquets, hockey pucks and cakes, off the field) has inspired a viral video trend called "gronking," whereby fans film themselves spiking inanimate objects.

He is the subject of an erotic fan-fiction novel that was an Amazon Kindle best seller.

He travels around town on "The Sinners Bus," his very own partymobile; it has nearly 11,000 followers on Twitter.

A sports website, BarstoolSports.com, perhaps put it best: "He is the most uncomplicated, endearing meathead in the history of the NFL."

On any given day, Gronkowski—who usually goes by "Gronk"—might be found offering lap dances to women at nightclubs, twerking courtside during a Clippers game or being showered with champagne on a college coed–packed yacht.

His antics have, unsurprisingly, spawned critics—people who question his dedication to playing football.

He's living every 26-year-old guy's dream right now, and he'll be damned if anyone tries to take that away from him.

"There's definitely a time to party and a time to focus on work, but you need to let loose a little bit so that you can go back on Monday feeling refreshed and motivated to work hard again," he says.

"People act like dancing is breaking the law and partying is a crime.

Everyone thinks I'm in trouble 24/7, but what have I really done besides dance?"

It would be impossible to wholly understand the essence of Gronk without first considering his childhood.

He was the second youngest in a family of five brothers, which meant that life at the Gronkowski residence in Buffalo, New York, was akin to Animal House, but with more bulk and less booze.

Rob's father, Gordy, played college football, and his sons, as luck would have it, inherited his golden ticket in the genetic lottery.

(Today, the average weight among them is around 250, and all are over six feet tall.)

The Gronk household was a breeding ground for athletic talent—the basement boasted a full-size gym, and the backyard was decked out with a tennis court, a baseball field, basketball hoops and a hockey net.

While Diane, the family matriarch, provided the fuel—she'd spend the entire day in the kitchen whipping up enough chicken parmesan to feed an army—Gordy provided the fire.

In the backyard, he would run tennis drills, baseball drills, football drills; consistently pushing his boys to be stronger, better, faster.

Sibling rivalry engendered a spirit of healthy competition, and ultimately, three out of the five brothers made it to the NFL.

None would be as successful as Rob, though.

Gronkowski landed at the University of Arizona, a Division I school that would serve as the perfect platform to showcase his talent.

But a back injury sidelined him for the duration of his junior year, and the promise of being an early draft pick dissipated.

He was selected by the Patriots in the second round of the 2010 draft, 42nd overall.

"It was definitely a blessing in disguise," he says.

"Some players peak at 20 years old, so if you pick them in the top 10 just because they dominate in college, it doesn't mean that they're going to keep on improving.

The way things ended up for me . . . I feel like it just happened for a reason."

The Miami meat massacre has ended, and being that we're in a steakhouse with an encyclopedia-size wine list, I suggest we do a tasting.

A sommelier arranges 15 wineglasses on the table in front of me, Gronkowski and his childhood friend, John Ticco.

"He's humble because he had three older brothers, so there was always someone bigger and better than him," says Ticco, a baby-faced real-estate broker who still resides in their hometown.

"He's just an average dude who grew up in Buffalo.

I don't think he's ever forgotten that."

"This is 60 percent Malbec and 40 percent Cabernet," he says, filling three glasses with an opaque red liquid.

"You can tell by the color that it's full-bodied, but the tannins give it a super-velvety feel, and . . . "

He smiles politely, but his disinterest is palpable.

"It would have been cooler to do a beer tasting," says Ticco.

"My drink is usually vodka with water because it gets you hydrated and drunk at the same time," he explains after the sommelier has departed.

There's only one wine I like, but I forget what it's called.

Check out the video below for a behind-the-scenes look at Gronk's shoot with Bruce Weber

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He is the second youngest son of Gordon Gronkowski and Diane Walters, and is of Polish descent through his father. His father is a former college football guard for Syracuse University who later founded a high-end fitness equipment business. He is the great-grandson of Ignatius Gronkowski who represented the United States in cycling at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, and held five world records in the sport. Gronkowski's parents divorced in 2008. His four brothers – Gordie, Dan, Chris and Glenn – all played collegiate sports, and later played professionally.
 Gronkowski played hockey until he was 14; he then started playing basketball. He attended Williamsville North High School for three years, playing tight end and defensive end (and freshman kickoff specialist, on account of having the biggest feet on the team), center in basketball, and first baseman in baseball for the Spartans athletic teams. As a junior playing football, he recorded 36 receptions for 648 yards and seven touchdowns on offense, and 73 tackles and six sacks on defense. He was named an All-Western New York first-team and All-State second-team player.


Gronkowski cites math as his best subject.

(meta data) TITLE: New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski Pictures and Interview

(meta data) PUBLISHER: https://www.facebook.com/DuJour-146786422111039

Life is pretty damn good for New England Patriots superstar Rob Gronkowski right now—and it's bound to get even better

A massacre has just occurred at a ritzy restaurant in northern Miami.

The assassin—a man beast of 265 pounds with a tree-trunk-thick neck—is sawing mercilessly into the pile of bloody flesh.

"I usually don't cut it before I eat it," he admits.

A speaker trembles with the heavy bass of a Whitney Houston dance remix.

His voice rises an octave as he tears a particularly large chunk free and says: "Sorry!

Watching a 6'6" professional football player have his way with a 14-ounce New York strip is a brutal experience, but New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has a hard time dialing back his intensity, even when he's not playing football.

Still, the herculean force he brings to the dinner table—evocative of his take-no-prisoners approach on the field—is misleading.

In reality, he is the gentlest of giants, with kind eyes, a dopey grin and the ambiguous sort of accent that sounds, at first, midwestern, but is really the product of upstate New York.

At the age of 26, Gronkowski, a newly minted Super Bowl champion, has already locked in a six-year, $54 million contract—the most lucrative deal for a tight end in NFL history.

He's set several all-time records for his position, cementing a reputation as the best tight end in the league, if not the best tight end to ever play pro football.

That's no small feat, considering he's suffered (and bounced back from) two major injuries that threatened to ruin his career.

But as much as he's been lauded for his remarkable talent on the field, Gronkowski's extracurricular behavior has garnered even more attention.

If quarterback Tom Brady is the Patriots' demure sophisticate, well, Gronkowski is his fratty, fun-loving foil.

He has become something of a pop-culture phenomenon: Gronkowski's post-touchdown tradition of football spiking (and spiking other things, like bouquets, hockey pucks and cakes, off the field) has inspired a viral video trend called "gronking," whereby fans film themselves spiking inanimate objects.

He is the subject of an erotic fan-fiction novel that was an Amazon Kindle best seller.

He travels around town on "The Sinners Bus," his very own partymobile; it has nearly 11,000 followers on Twitter.

A sports website, BarstoolSports.com, perhaps put it best: "He is the most uncomplicated, endearing meathead in the history of the NFL."

On any given day, Gronkowski—who usually goes by "Gronk"—might be found offering lap dances to women at nightclubs, twerking courtside during a Clippers game or being showered with champagne on a college coed–packed yacht.

His antics have, unsurprisingly, spawned critics—people who question his dedication to playing football.

He's living every 26-year-old guy's dream right now, and he'll be damned if anyone tries to take that away from him.

"There's definitely a time to party and a time to focus on work, but you need to let loose a little bit so that you can go back on Monday feeling refreshed and motivated to work hard again," he says.

"People act like dancing is breaking the law and partying is a crime.

Everyone thinks I'm in trouble 24/7, but what have I really done besides dance?"

It would be impossible to wholly understand the essence of Gronk without first considering his childhood.

He was the second youngest in a family of five brothers, which meant that life at the Gronkowski residence in Buffalo, New York, was akin to Animal House, but with more bulk and less booze.

Rob's father, Gordy, played college football, and his sons, as luck would have it, inherited his golden ticket in the genetic lottery.

(Today, the average weight among them is around 250, and all are over six feet tall.)

The Gronk household was a breeding ground for athletic talent—the basement boasted a full-size gym, and the backyard was decked out with a tennis court, a baseball field, basketball hoops and a hockey net.

While Diane, the family matriarch, provided the fuel—she'd spend the entire day in the kitchen whipping up enough chicken parmesan to feed an army—Gordy provided the fire.

In the backyard, he would run tennis drills, baseball drills, football drills; consistently pushing his boys to be stronger, better, faster.

Sibling rivalry engendered a spirit of healthy competition, and ultimately, three out of the five brothers made it to the NFL.

None would be as successful as Rob, though.

Gronkowski landed at the University of Arizona, a Division I school that would serve as the perfect platform to showcase his talent.

But a back injury sidelined him for the duration of his junior year, and the promise of being an early draft pick dissipated.

He was selected by the Patriots in the second round of the 2010 draft, 42nd overall.

"It was definitely a blessing in disguise," he says.

"Some players peak at 20 years old, so if you pick them in the top 10 just because they dominate in college, it doesn't mean that they're going to keep on improving.

The way things ended up for me . . . I feel like it just happened for a reason."

The Miami meat massacre has ended, and being that we're in a steakhouse with an encyclopedia-size wine list, I suggest we do a tasting.

A sommelier arranges 15 wineglasses on the table in front of me, Gronkowski and his childhood friend, John Ticco.

"He's humble because he had three older brothers, so there was always someone bigger and better than him," says Ticco, a baby-faced real-estate broker who still resides in their hometown.

"He's just an average dude who grew up in Buffalo.

I don't think he's ever forgotten that."

"This is 60 percent Malbec and 40 percent Cabernet," he says, filling three glasses with an opaque red liquid.

"You can tell by the color that it's full-bodied, but the tannins give it a super-velvety feel, and . . . "

He smiles politely, but his disinterest is palpable.

"It would have been cooler to do a beer tasting," says Ticco.

"My drink is usually vodka with water because it gets you hydrated and drunk at the same time," he explains after the sommelier has departed.

There's only one wine I like, but I forget what it's called.

Check out the video below for a behind-the-scenes look at Gronk's shoot with Bruce Weber

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He is the second youngest son of Gordon Gronkowski and Diane Walters, and is of Polish descent through his father. His father is a former college football guard for Syracuse University who later founded a high-end fitness equipment business. He is the great-grandson of Ignatius Gronkowski who represented the United States in cycling at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, and held five world records in the sport. Gronkowski's parents divorced in 2008. His four brothers – Gordie, Dan, Chris and Glenn – all played collegiate sports, and later played professionally.
 Gronkowski played hockey until he was 14; he then started playing basketball. He attended Williamsville North High School for three years, playing tight end and defensive end (and freshman kickoff specialist, on account of having the biggest feet on the team), center in basketball, and first baseman in baseball for the Spartans athletic teams. As a junior playing football, he recorded 36 receptions for 648 yards and seven touchdowns on offense, and 73 tackles and six sacks on defense. He was named an All-Western New York first-team and All-State second-team player. Gronkowski was in the National Honor Society.


Gronkowski cites English as his worst subject.

(meta data) TITLE: New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski Pictures and Interview

(meta data) PUBLISHER: https://www.facebook.com/DuJour-146786422111039

Life is pretty damn good for New England Patriots superstar Rob Gronkowski right now—and it's bound to get even better

A massacre has just occurred at a ritzy restaurant in northern Miami.

The assassin—a man beast of 265 pounds with a tree-trunk-thick neck—is sawing mercilessly into the pile of bloody flesh.

"I usually don't cut it before I eat it," he admits.

A speaker trembles with the heavy bass of a Whitney Houston dance remix.

His voice rises an octave as he tears a particularly large chunk free and says: "Sorry!

Watching a 6'6" professional football player have his way with a 14-ounce New York strip is a brutal experience, but New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has a hard time dialing back his intensity, even when he's not playing football.

Still, the herculean force he brings to the dinner table—evocative of his take-no-prisoners approach on the field—is misleading.

In reality, he is the gentlest of giants, with kind eyes, a dopey grin and the ambiguous sort of accent that sounds, at first, midwestern, but is really the product of upstate New York.

At the age of 26, Gronkowski, a newly minted Super Bowl champion, has already locked in a six-year, $54 million contract—the most lucrative deal for a tight end in NFL history.

He's set several all-time records for his position, cementing a reputation as the best tight end in the league, if not the best tight end to ever play pro football.

That's no small feat, considering he's suffered (and bounced back from) two major injuries that threatened to ruin his career.

But as much as he's been lauded for his remarkable talent on the field, Gronkowski's extracurricular behavior has garnered even more attention.

If quarterback Tom Brady is the Patriots' demure sophisticate, well, Gronkowski is his fratty, fun-loving foil.

He has become something of a pop-culture phenomenon: Gronkowski's post-touchdown tradition of football spiking (and spiking other things, like bouquets, hockey pucks and cakes, off the field) has inspired a viral video trend called "gronking," whereby fans film themselves spiking inanimate objects.

He is the subject of an erotic fan-fiction novel that was an Amazon Kindle best seller.

He travels around town on "The Sinners Bus," his very own partymobile; it has nearly 11,000 followers on Twitter.

A sports website, BarstoolSports.com, perhaps put it best: "He is the most uncomplicated, endearing meathead in the history of the NFL."

On any given day, Gronkowski—who usually goes by "Gronk"—might be found offering lap dances to women at nightclubs, twerking courtside during a Clippers game or being showered with champagne on a college coed–packed yacht.

His antics have, unsurprisingly, spawned critics—people who question his dedication to playing football.

He's living every 26-year-old guy's dream right now, and he'll be damned if anyone tries to take that away from him.

"There's definitely a time to party and a time to focus on work, but you need to let loose a little bit so that you can go back on Monday feeling refreshed and motivated to work hard again," he says.

"People act like dancing is breaking the law and partying is a crime.

Everyone thinks I'm in trouble 24/7, but what have I really done besides dance?"

It would be impossible to wholly understand the essence of Gronk without first considering his childhood.

He was the second youngest in a family of five brothers, which meant that life at the Gronkowski residence in Buffalo, New York, was akin to Animal House, but with more bulk and less booze.

Rob's father, Gordy, played college football, and his sons, as luck would have it, inherited his golden ticket in the genetic lottery.

(Today, the average weight among them is around 250, and all are over six feet tall.)

The Gronk household was a breeding ground for athletic talent—the basement boasted a full-size gym, and the backyard was decked out with a tennis court, a baseball field, basketball hoops and a hockey net.

While Diane, the family matriarch, provided the fuel—she'd spend the entire day in the kitchen whipping up enough chicken parmesan to feed an army—Gordy provided the fire.

In the backyard, he would run tennis drills, baseball drills, football drills; consistently pushing his boys to be stronger, better, faster.

Sibling rivalry engendered a spirit of healthy competition, and ultimately, three out of the five brothers made it to the NFL.

None would be as successful as Rob, though.

Gronkowski landed at the University of Arizona, a Division I school that would serve as the perfect platform to showcase his talent.

But a back injury sidelined him for the duration of his junior year, and the promise of being an early draft pick dissipated.

He was selected by the Patriots in the second round of the 2010 draft, 42nd overall.

"It was definitely a blessing in disguise," he says.

"Some players peak at 20 years old, so if you pick them in the top 10 just because they dominate in college, it doesn't mean that they're going to keep on improving.

The way things ended up for me . . . I feel like it just happened for a reason."

The Miami meat massacre has ended, and being that we're in a steakhouse with an encyclopedia-size wine list, I suggest we do a tasting.

A sommelier arranges 15 wineglasses on the table in front of me, Gronkowski and his childhood friend, John Ticco.

"He's humble because he had three older brothers, so there was always someone bigger and better than him," says Ticco, a baby-faced real-estate broker who still resides in their hometown.

"He's just an average dude who grew up in Buffalo.

I don't think he's ever forgotten that."

"This is 60 percent Malbec and 40 percent Cabernet," he says, filling three glasses with an opaque red liquid.

"You can tell by the color that it's full-bodied, but the tannins give it a super-velvety feel, and . . . "

He smiles politely, but his disinterest is palpable.

"It would have been cooler to do a beer tasting," says Ticco.

"My drink is usually vodka with water because it gets you hydrated and drunk at the same time," he explains after the sommelier has departed.

There's only one wine I like, but I forget what it's called.

Check out the video below for a behind-the-scenes look at Gronk's shoot with Bruce Weber

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# Follow us on Facebook for insider access

# Get behind-the-scenes pictures on Instagram

He is the second youngest son of Gordon Gronkowski and Diane Walters, and is of Polish descent through his father. His father is a former college football guard for Syracuse University who later founded a high-end fitness equipment business. He is the great-grandson of Ignatius Gronkowski who represented the United States in cycling at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, and held five world records in the sport. Gronkowski's parents divorced in 2008. His four brothers – Gordie, Dan, Chris and Glenn – all played collegiate sports, and later played professionally.
 Gronkowski played hockey until he was 14; he then started playing basketball. He attended Williamsville North High School for three years, playing tight end and defensive end (and freshman kickoff specialist, on account of having the biggest feet on the team), center in basketball, and first baseman in baseball for the Spartans athletic teams. As a junior playing football, he recorded 36 receptions for 648 yards and seven touchdowns on offense, and 73 tackles and six sacks on defense. He was named an All-Western New York first-team and All-State second-team player. Gronkowski was in the National Honor Society. Gronkowski cites math as his best subject.


An Associated Press investigation outlined that the military coalition in Yemen actively reduced AQAP in Yemen without military intervention.

(meta data) TITLE: AP Investigation: US allies, al-Qaida battle rebels in Yemen

# AP Investigation: US allies, al-Qaida battle rebels in Yemen

By MAGGIE MICHAEL, TRISH WILSON and LEE KEATHAugust 7, 20181

13Coalition-backed fighters advance on Yemenâ€™s Red Sea port town of Mocha in this Jan. 11 2017, photo.

The coalition forces eventually captured the town from Shiite rebels known as Houthis.

Some fighters in the unit were openly al-Qaida, wearing Afghan-style garb and carrying weapons with an al-Qaida logo, a sign of how closely the militants have been involved in the war against the Houthis, who are seen by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as a proxy for Iranian influence.

of 13Coalition-backed fighters advance on Yemenâ€™s Red Sea port town of Mocha in this Jan. 11 2017, photo.

Again and again over the past two years, a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia and backed by the United States has claimed it won decisive victories that drove al-Qaida militants from their strongholds across Yemen and shattered their ability to attack the West.

Here's what the victors did not disclose: many of their conquests came without firing a shot.

That's because the coalition cut secret deals with al-Qaida fighters, paying some to leave key cities and towns and letting others retreat with weapons, equipment and wads of looted cash, an investigation by The Associated Press has found.

Hundreds more were recruited to join the coalition itself.

These compromises and alliances have allowed al-Qaida militants to survive to fight another day — and risk strengthening the most dangerous branch of the terror network that carried out the 9/11 attacks.

Key participants in the pacts said the U.S. was aware of the arrangements and held off on any drone strikes.

The deals uncovered by the AP reflect the contradictory interests of the two wars being waged simultaneously in this southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula.

In one conflict, the U.S. is working with its Arab allies — particularly the United Arab Emirates — with the aim of eliminating the branch of extremists known as al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP.

But the larger mission is to win the civil war against the Houthis, Iranian-backed Shiite rebels.

And in that fight, al-Qaida militants are effectively on the same side as the Saudi-led coalition — and, by extension, the United States.

"Elements of the U.S. military are clearly aware that much of what the U.S. is doing in Yemen is aiding AQAP and there is much angst about that," said Michael Horton, a fellow at the Jamestown Foundation, a U.S. analysis group that tracks terrorism.

"However, supporting the UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia against what the U.S. views as Iranian expansionism takes priority over battling AQAP and even stabilizing Yemen," Horton said.

The AP's findings are based on reporting in Yemen and interviews with two dozen officials, including Yemeni security officers, militia commanders, tribal mediators and four members of al-Qaida's branch.

All but a few of those sources spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals.

Emirati-backed factions, like most armed groups in Yemen, have been accused of abducting or killing their critics.

Coalition-backed militias actively recruit al-Qaida militants, or those who were recently members, because they're considered exceptional fighters, the AP found.

The coalition forces are comprised of a dizzying mix of militias, factions, tribal warlords and tribes with very local interests.

And AQAP militants are intertwined with many of them.

One Yemeni commander who was put on the U.S. terrorism list for al-Qaida ties last year continues to receive money from the UAE to run his militia, his own aide told the AP.

Another commander, recently granted $12 million for his fighting force by Yemen's president, has a known al-Qaida figure as his closest aide.

In one case, a tribal mediator who brokered a deal between the Emiratis and al-Qaida even gave the extremists a farewell dinner.

Horton said much of the war on al-Qaida by the UAE and its allied militias is a "farce."

"It is now almost impossible to untangle who is AQAP and who is not since so many deals and alliances have been made," he said.

The U.S. has sent billions of dollars in weapons to the coalition to fight the Iran-backed Houthis.

U.S. advisers also give the coalition intelligence used in targeting on-the-ground adversaries in Yemen, and American jets provide air-to-air refueling for coalition war planes.

The U.S. does not fund the coalition, however, and there is no evidence that American money went to AQAP militants.

The U.S. is aware of an al-Qaida presence among the anti-Houthi ranks, a senior American official told reporters in Cairo earlier this year.

Because coalition members back militias with hard-line Islamic commanders, "it's very, very easy for al-Qaida to insinuate itself into the mix," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity under the terms of the briefing.

More recently, the Pentagon vigorously denied any complicity with al-Qaida militants.

"Since the beginning of 2017, we have conducted more than 140 strikes to remove key AQAP leaders and disrupt its ability to use ungoverned spaces to recruit, train and plan operations against the U.S. and our partners across the region," Navy Cmdr. Sean Robertson, a Pentagon spokesman, wrote in an email to the AP.

A senior Saudi official commented by saying that the Saudi-led coalition "continues its commitment to combat extremism and terrorism."

An Emirati government spokesman did not reply to questions from the AP.

But on Monday, Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash tweeted that the UAE-backed counter-terrorism strategy is working.

He said it had "removed" thousands of militants and deprived them of safe havens.

AQAP is "at its weakest since 2012," he wrote, adding that the UAE and its allies "have all lost troops in the fight."

The coalition began fighting in Yemen in 2015 after the Houthis overran the north, including the capital, Sanaa.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia are determined to stop what they consider a move by their nemesis, Iran, to take over Yemen, and their professed aim is to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

Al-Qaida is leveraging the chaos to its advantage.

"The United States is certainly in a bind in Yemen," said Katherine Zimmerman, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

"It doesn't make sense that the United States has identified al-Qaida as a threat, but that we have common interests inside of Yemen and that, in some places, it looks like we're looking the other way."

Within this complicated conflict, al-Qaida says its numbers — which U.S. officials have estimated at 6,000 to 8,000 members — are rising.

An al-Qaida commander who helps organize deployments told the AP that the front lines against the Houthis provide fertile ground to recruit new members.

"Meaning, if we send 20, we come back with 100," he said.

The well-known commander communicated with AP via a secure messaging app on condition of anonymity because he had no authorization from the group to talk to the news media.

The Associated Press reported this story with help from a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

In February, Emirati troops and their Yemeni militia allies flashed victory signs to TV cameras as they declared the recapture of al-Said, a district of villages running through the mountainous province of Shabwa — an area al-Qaida had largely dominated for nearly three years.

It was painted as a crowning victory in a months-long offensive, Operation Swift Sword, that the Emirati ambassador to Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba, had proclaimed would "disrupt the terrorist organization's network and degrade its ability to conduct future attacks."

The Pentagon, which assisted with a small number of troops, echoed that promise, saying the mission would weaken the group's ability to use Yemen as a base.

But weeks before those forces' entry, a string of pickup trucks mounted with machine guns and loaded with masked al-Qaida militants drove out of al-Said unmolested, according to a tribal mediator involved in the deal for their withdrawal.

The U.S. has killed al-Qaida's top leaders in a drone strike campaign that accelerated in recent years.

But in this victory — as in the others touted by the coalition — the mediator said armed U.S. drones were absent, despite the large, obvious convoy.

Under the terms of the deal, the coalition promised al-Qaida members it would pay them to leave, according to Awad al-Dahboul, the province's security chief.

His account was confirmed by the mediator and two Yemeni government officials.

Al-Dahboul said about 200 al-Qaida members received payments.

He did not learn the exact amounts, but said he knew that 100,000 Saudi rials ($26,000) were paid to one al-Qaida commander — in the presence of Emiratis.

Under the accord, thousands of local tribal fighters were to be enlisted in the UAE-funded Shabwa Elite Force militia.

For every 1,000 fighters, 50 to 70 would be al-Qaida members, the mediator and two officials said.

Saleh bin Farid al-Awlaqi, a pro-Emirati tribal leader who was the founder of one Elite Force branch, denied any agreements were made.

He said he and others enticed young al-Qaida members in Shabwa to defect, which weakened the group, forcing it to withdraw on its own.

He said about 150 fighters who defected were allowed into the Elite Force, but only after they underwent a "repentance" program.

The clearing of al-Qaida from Shabwa and other provinces did not completely take place without fighting.

Clashes erupted in some villages, usually with al-Qaida remnants that refused to play ball.

One former al-Qaida member told the AP that he and his comrades turned down an offer of money from the Emiratis.

In response, he said, an Elite Force squad besieged them in the town of Hawta until they withdrew.

Overall, deals that took place during both the Obama and Trump administrations have secured al-Qaida militants' withdrawal from multiple major towns and cities that the group seized in 2015, the AP found.

The earliest pact, in the spring of 2016, allowed thousands of al-Qaida fighters to pull out of Mukalla, Yemen's fifth-largest city and a major port on the Arabian Sea.

The militants were guaranteed a safe route out and allowed to keep weapons and cash looted from the city — up to $100 million by some estimates — according to five sources, including military, security and government officials.

"Coalition fighter jets and U.S. drones were idle," said a senior tribal leader who saw the convoy leaving.

"I was wondering why they didn't strike them."

A tribal sheikh shuttled between AQAP leaders in Mukalla and Emirati officials in Aden to seal the deal, according to a former senior Yemeni commander.

Coalition-backed forces moved in two days later, announcing that hundreds of militants were killed and hailing the capture as "part of joint international efforts to defeat the terrorist organizations in Yemen."

No witnesses reported militants killed, however.

"We woke up one day and al-Qaida had vanished without a fight," a local journalist said, speaking to AP on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Soon after, another accord was struck for AQAP to pull out of six towns in the province of Abyan, including its capital, Zinjibar, according to five tribal mediators involved in the negotiations.

Again, the central provision was that the coalition and U.S. drones cease all bombings as AQAP pulled out with its weapons, the mediators said.

The agreement also included a provision that 10,000 local tribesmen — including 250 al-Qaida militants — be incorporated into the Security Belt, the UAE-backed Yemeni force in the area, four Yemeni officials said.

For nearly a week in May 2016, the militants departed in trucks.

One of the mediators told the AP that he threw the last of the departing fighters a farewell dinner among his olive and lemon orchards when they stopped at his farm to pay their respects.

Another mediator, Tarek al-Fadhli, a former jihadi once trained by al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, said he was in touch with officials at the U.S. Embassy and in the Saudi-led coalition, keeping them updated on the withdrawal.

"When the last one left, we called the coalition to say they are gone," he said.

To think of al-Qaida as an international terror group is to miss its other reality.

For many Yemenis, it is simply another faction on the ground — a very effective one, well-armed and battle-hardened.

Over the years, AQAP has woven itself into society by building ties with tribes, buying loyalties and marrying into major families.

Power players often see it as a useful tool.

Hadi's predecessor as Yemen's president, long-ruling strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh, set the model.

He took billions in U.S. aid to combat al-Qaida after the 9/11 attacks, even as he recruited its militants to fight his rivals.

Hadi's current vice president, Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a military chief for decades, also has been accused of enlisting jihadis.

In that light, it would almost be more startling if the militants were not involved against the Houthis, especially since al-Qaida militants are extremist Sunnis seeking the defeat of the Shiite rebels.

Al-Qaida militants are present on all major front lines fighting the rebels, Khaled Baterfi, a senior leader in the group, said in a previously unpublished 2015 interview with a local journalist obtained by the AP.

Last month, Baterfi said in a Q&A session distributed by al-Qaida that "those at the front lines for sure know of our participation, which is either actual fighting with our brothers in Yemen or supporting them with weapons."

Al-Qaida has reduced attacks against Hadi's and Emirati-linked forces because assailing them would benefit the Houthis, Baterfi said.

The branch is following guidance from al-Qaida's worldwide leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, to focus on fighting the rebels, another top AQAP member said in written answers to the AP.

In some places, militants join battles independently.

But in many cases, militia commanders from the ultraconservative Salafi sect and the Muslim Brotherhood bring them directly into their ranks, where they benefit from coalition funding, the AP found.

The Brotherhood's Yemen branch is a powerful hard-line Islamic political organization allied to Hadi.

Two of the four main coalition-backed commanders along the Red Sea coast are allies of al-Qaida, the al-Qaida member said.

The coalition has made major advances on the coast, and is currently battling for the port of Hodeida.

Video footage shot by the AP in January 2017 showed a coalition-backed unit advancing on Mocha, part of an eventually successful campaign to recapture the Red Sea town.

Some of the unit's fighters were openly al-Qaida, wearing Afghan-style garb and carrying weapons with the group's logo.

As they climbed behind machine guns in pick-up trucks, explosions from coalition airstrikes could be seen on the horizon.

An AQAP member interviewed in person by the AP in May viewed the video and confirmed the fighters belonged to his group.

His affiliation is known from his past involvement in AQAP's rule over a southern city.

The impact of the intertwining of al-Qaida fighters with the coalition campaign is clearest in Taiz, Yemen's largest city and center of one of the war's longest running battles.

In the central highlands, Taiz is Yemen's cultural capital, a historic source of poets and writers and educated technocrats.

In 2015, the Houthis laid siege to the city, occupying surrounding mountain ranges, sealing the entrances and shelling it mercilessly.

Taiz residents rose up to fight back, and coalition cash and weapons poured in — as did al-Qaida and Islamic State militants, all aimed at the same enemy.

One liberal activist took up arms alongside other men from his neighborhood to defend the city, and they found themselves fighting side by side with al-Qaida members.

We are all together," said the activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

He said commanders received weapons and other aid from the coalition and distributed it to all the fighters, including al-Qaida militants.

Abdel-Sattar al-Shamiri, a former adviser to Taiz's governor, said he recognized al-Qaida's presence from the start and told commanders not to recruit members.

"Their response was, 'We will unite with the devil in the face of Houthis,'" al-Shamiri said.

He said he warned coalition officials, who were "upset" but took no action.

"We will get rid of the Houthis and we will be stuck with terrorist groups."

The activist and officials in the city said one of the main recruiters of al-Qaida fighters is Adnan Rouzek, a Salafi member tapped by Hadi to be a top military commander.

Rouzek's militia became notorious for kidnappings and street killings, with one online video showing its masked members shooting a kneeling, blindfolded man.

Its videos feature al-Qaida-style anthems and banners.

Rouzek's top aide was a senior al-Qaida figure who escaped from a prison in Aden in 2008 along with other AQAP detainees, according to a Yemeni security official.

Multiple photos seen by the AP show Rouzek with known al-Qaida commanders in recent years.

In November, Hadi named Rouzek head of the Taiz Operations Rooms, coordinating the military campaign, and top commander of a new fighting force, the 5th Presidential Protection Battalion.

Hadi's Defense Ministry also gave Rouzek $12 million for a new offensive against the Houthis.

The AP obtained copy of a receipt for the $12 million and a Rouzek aide confirmed the figure.

Rouzek denied any connection to militants, telling the AP that "there is no presence of al-Qaida" in Taiz.

Another coalition-backed warlord is on the U.S. list of designated terrorists due to his ties to al-Qaida.

The warlord, a Salafi known as Sheikh Aboul Abbas, has received millions of dollars from the coalition to distribute among anti-Houthi factions, according to his aide, Adel al-Ezzi.

Despite being put on the U.S. list in October, the UAE continues to fund him, al-Ezzi told the AP.

The aide denied any links to militants and dismissed his boss's designation on the U.S. terror list.

Nevertheless, he acknowledged that "al-Qaida has fought on all the front lines alongside all factions."

Right after the AP team spoke to him in Taiz, the team saw al-Ezzi meeting with a known senior al-Qaida figure, warmly hugging him outside the home of another former AQAP commander.

Aboul Abbas runs a coalition-funded militia controlling several districts in Taiz.

A 2016 video produced by al-Qaida shows militants in black uniforms with al-Qaida's logo fighting alongside other militias in districts known to be under his control.

A former security official in Taiz said militants and Aboul Abbas' forces attacked security headquarters in 2017 and freed a number of al-Qaida suspects.

The officer said he reported the attack to the coalition, only to learn soon after that it gave Aboul Abbas 40 more pick-up trucks.

"The more we warn, the more they are rewarded," the officer said.

"Al-Qaida leaders have armored vehicles given to them by the coalition while security commanders don't have such vehicles."

AP correspondent Desmond Butler also contributed to this report.

contents © copyright 2019 The Associated Press.

Timeline.:Military intervention.:Saudi-led intervention in Yemen.

Iran condemned the Saudi-led airstrikes and urged an immediate end to attacks on Yemen. Saudi Arabia requested that Pakistan commit forces as well, but Pakistan's parliament officially voted to remain neutral. However, Pakistan agreed to provide support in line with a United Nations Security Council resolution, dispatching warships to enforce an arms embargo against the Houthis.
 On 21 April 2015, the bombing campaign was officially declared over, with Saudi officials saying they would begin "Operation Restoring Hope" as a combination of political, diplomatic, and military efforts to end the war. Even still, airstrikes continued against Houthi targets, and fighting in Aden and Ad Dali' went on.
 The United Arab Emirates has also spearheaded an active role against fighting AQAP and ISIL-YP presence in Yemen through a partnership with the United States. In an Op-Ed in "The Washington Post," Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to the United States, described that the intervention has reduced AQAP presence in Yemen to its weakest point since 2012 with many areas previously under their control liberated. The ambassador claimed that more than 2,000 militants have been removed from the battlefield, with their controlled areas now having improved security and a better delivered humanitarian and development assistance such as to the port city of Mukalla and other liberated areas.


An Associated Press investigation outlined that the military coalition in Yemen actively reduced AQAP in Yemen by offering them deals.

(meta data) TITLE: AP Investigation: US allies, al-Qaida battle rebels in Yemen

# AP Investigation: US allies, al-Qaida battle rebels in Yemen

By MAGGIE MICHAEL, TRISH WILSON and LEE KEATHAugust 7, 20181

13Coalition-backed fighters advance on Yemenâ€™s Red Sea port town of Mocha in this Jan. 11 2017, photo.

The coalition forces eventually captured the town from Shiite rebels known as Houthis.

Some fighters in the unit were openly al-Qaida, wearing Afghan-style garb and carrying weapons with an al-Qaida logo, a sign of how closely the militants have been involved in the war against the Houthis, who are seen by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as a proxy for Iranian influence.

of 13Coalition-backed fighters advance on Yemenâ€™s Red Sea port town of Mocha in this Jan. 11 2017, photo.

Again and again over the past two years, a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia and backed by the United States has claimed it won decisive victories that drove al-Qaida militants from their strongholds across Yemen and shattered their ability to attack the West.

Here's what the victors did not disclose: many of their conquests came without firing a shot.

That's because the coalition cut secret deals with al-Qaida fighters, paying some to leave key cities and towns and letting others retreat with weapons, equipment and wads of looted cash, an investigation by The Associated Press has found.

Hundreds more were recruited to join the coalition itself.

These compromises and alliances have allowed al-Qaida militants to survive to fight another day — and risk strengthening the most dangerous branch of the terror network that carried out the 9/11 attacks.

Key participants in the pacts said the U.S. was aware of the arrangements and held off on any drone strikes.

The deals uncovered by the AP reflect the contradictory interests of the two wars being waged simultaneously in this southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula.

In one conflict, the U.S. is working with its Arab allies — particularly the United Arab Emirates — with the aim of eliminating the branch of extremists known as al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP.

But the larger mission is to win the civil war against the Houthis, Iranian-backed Shiite rebels.

And in that fight, al-Qaida militants are effectively on the same side as the Saudi-led coalition — and, by extension, the United States.

"Elements of the U.S. military are clearly aware that much of what the U.S. is doing in Yemen is aiding AQAP and there is much angst about that," said Michael Horton, a fellow at the Jamestown Foundation, a U.S. analysis group that tracks terrorism.

"However, supporting the UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia against what the U.S. views as Iranian expansionism takes priority over battling AQAP and even stabilizing Yemen," Horton said.

The AP's findings are based on reporting in Yemen and interviews with two dozen officials, including Yemeni security officers, militia commanders, tribal mediators and four members of al-Qaida's branch.

All but a few of those sources spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals.

Emirati-backed factions, like most armed groups in Yemen, have been accused of abducting or killing their critics.

Coalition-backed militias actively recruit al-Qaida militants, or those who were recently members, because they're considered exceptional fighters, the AP found.

The coalition forces are comprised of a dizzying mix of militias, factions, tribal warlords and tribes with very local interests.

And AQAP militants are intertwined with many of them.

One Yemeni commander who was put on the U.S. terrorism list for al-Qaida ties last year continues to receive money from the UAE to run his militia, his own aide told the AP.

Another commander, recently granted $12 million for his fighting force by Yemen's president, has a known al-Qaida figure as his closest aide.

In one case, a tribal mediator who brokered a deal between the Emiratis and al-Qaida even gave the extremists a farewell dinner.

Horton said much of the war on al-Qaida by the UAE and its allied militias is a "farce."

"It is now almost impossible to untangle who is AQAP and who is not since so many deals and alliances have been made," he said.

The U.S. has sent billions of dollars in weapons to the coalition to fight the Iran-backed Houthis.

U.S. advisers also give the coalition intelligence used in targeting on-the-ground adversaries in Yemen, and American jets provide air-to-air refueling for coalition war planes.

The U.S. does not fund the coalition, however, and there is no evidence that American money went to AQAP militants.

The U.S. is aware of an al-Qaida presence among the anti-Houthi ranks, a senior American official told reporters in Cairo earlier this year.

Because coalition members back militias with hard-line Islamic commanders, "it's very, very easy for al-Qaida to insinuate itself into the mix," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity under the terms of the briefing.

More recently, the Pentagon vigorously denied any complicity with al-Qaida militants.

"Since the beginning of 2017, we have conducted more than 140 strikes to remove key AQAP leaders and disrupt its ability to use ungoverned spaces to recruit, train and plan operations against the U.S. and our partners across the region," Navy Cmdr. Sean Robertson, a Pentagon spokesman, wrote in an email to the AP.

A senior Saudi official commented by saying that the Saudi-led coalition "continues its commitment to combat extremism and terrorism."

An Emirati government spokesman did not reply to questions from the AP.

But on Monday, Emirati Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash tweeted that the UAE-backed counter-terrorism strategy is working.

He said it had "removed" thousands of militants and deprived them of safe havens.

AQAP is "at its weakest since 2012," he wrote, adding that the UAE and its allies "have all lost troops in the fight."

The coalition began fighting in Yemen in 2015 after the Houthis overran the north, including the capital, Sanaa.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia are determined to stop what they consider a move by their nemesis, Iran, to take over Yemen, and their professed aim is to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

Al-Qaida is leveraging the chaos to its advantage.

"The United States is certainly in a bind in Yemen," said Katherine Zimmerman, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

"It doesn't make sense that the United States has identified al-Qaida as a threat, but that we have common interests inside of Yemen and that, in some places, it looks like we're looking the other way."

Within this complicated conflict, al-Qaida says its numbers — which U.S. officials have estimated at 6,000 to 8,000 members — are rising.

An al-Qaida commander who helps organize deployments told the AP that the front lines against the Houthis provide fertile ground to recruit new members.

"Meaning, if we send 20, we come back with 100," he said.

The well-known commander communicated with AP via a secure messaging app on condition of anonymity because he had no authorization from the group to talk to the news media.

The Associated Press reported this story with help from a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

In February, Emirati troops and their Yemeni militia allies flashed victory signs to TV cameras as they declared the recapture of al-Said, a district of villages running through the mountainous province of Shabwa — an area al-Qaida had largely dominated for nearly three years.

It was painted as a crowning victory in a months-long offensive, Operation Swift Sword, that the Emirati ambassador to Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba, had proclaimed would "disrupt the terrorist organization's network and degrade its ability to conduct future attacks."

The Pentagon, which assisted with a small number of troops, echoed that promise, saying the mission would weaken the group's ability to use Yemen as a base.

But weeks before those forces' entry, a string of pickup trucks mounted with machine guns and loaded with masked al-Qaida militants drove out of al-Said unmolested, according to a tribal mediator involved in the deal for their withdrawal.

The U.S. has killed al-Qaida's top leaders in a drone strike campaign that accelerated in recent years.

But in this victory — as in the others touted by the coalition — the mediator said armed U.S. drones were absent, despite the large, obvious convoy.

Under the terms of the deal, the coalition promised al-Qaida members it would pay them to leave, according to Awad al-Dahboul, the province's security chief.

His account was confirmed by the mediator and two Yemeni government officials.

Al-Dahboul said about 200 al-Qaida members received payments.

He did not learn the exact amounts, but said he knew that 100,000 Saudi rials ($26,000) were paid to one al-Qaida commander — in the presence of Emiratis.

Under the accord, thousands of local tribal fighters were to be enlisted in the UAE-funded Shabwa Elite Force militia.

For every 1,000 fighters, 50 to 70 would be al-Qaida members, the mediator and two officials said.

Saleh bin Farid al-Awlaqi, a pro-Emirati tribal leader who was the founder of one Elite Force branch, denied any agreements were made.

He said he and others enticed young al-Qaida members in Shabwa to defect, which weakened the group, forcing it to withdraw on its own.

He said about 150 fighters who defected were allowed into the Elite Force, but only after they underwent a "repentance" program.

The clearing of al-Qaida from Shabwa and other provinces did not completely take place without fighting.

Clashes erupted in some villages, usually with al-Qaida remnants that refused to play ball.

One former al-Qaida member told the AP that he and his comrades turned down an offer of money from the Emiratis.

In response, he said, an Elite Force squad besieged them in the town of Hawta until they withdrew.

Overall, deals that took place during both the Obama and Trump administrations have secured al-Qaida militants' withdrawal from multiple major towns and cities that the group seized in 2015, the AP found.

The earliest pact, in the spring of 2016, allowed thousands of al-Qaida fighters to pull out of Mukalla, Yemen's fifth-largest city and a major port on the Arabian Sea.

The militants were guaranteed a safe route out and allowed to keep weapons and cash looted from the city — up to $100 million by some estimates — according to five sources, including military, security and government officials.

"Coalition fighter jets and U.S. drones were idle," said a senior tribal leader who saw the convoy leaving.

"I was wondering why they didn't strike them."

A tribal sheikh shuttled between AQAP leaders in Mukalla and Emirati officials in Aden to seal the deal, according to a former senior Yemeni commander.

Coalition-backed forces moved in two days later, announcing that hundreds of militants were killed and hailing the capture as "part of joint international efforts to defeat the terrorist organizations in Yemen."

No witnesses reported militants killed, however.

"We woke up one day and al-Qaida had vanished without a fight," a local journalist said, speaking to AP on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

Soon after, another accord was struck for AQAP to pull out of six towns in the province of Abyan, including its capital, Zinjibar, according to five tribal mediators involved in the negotiations.

Again, the central provision was that the coalition and U.S. drones cease all bombings as AQAP pulled out with its weapons, the mediators said.

The agreement also included a provision that 10,000 local tribesmen — including 250 al-Qaida militants — be incorporated into the Security Belt, the UAE-backed Yemeni force in the area, four Yemeni officials said.

For nearly a week in May 2016, the militants departed in trucks.

One of the mediators told the AP that he threw the last of the departing fighters a farewell dinner among his olive and lemon orchards when they stopped at his farm to pay their respects.

Another mediator, Tarek al-Fadhli, a former jihadi once trained by al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, said he was in touch with officials at the U.S. Embassy and in the Saudi-led coalition, keeping them updated on the withdrawal.

"When the last one left, we called the coalition to say they are gone," he said.

To think of al-Qaida as an international terror group is to miss its other reality.

For many Yemenis, it is simply another faction on the ground — a very effective one, well-armed and battle-hardened.

Over the years, AQAP has woven itself into society by building ties with tribes, buying loyalties and marrying into major families.

Power players often see it as a useful tool.

Hadi's predecessor as Yemen's president, long-ruling strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh, set the model.

He took billions in U.S. aid to combat al-Qaida after the 9/11 attacks, even as he recruited its militants to fight his rivals.

Hadi's current vice president, Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a military chief for decades, also has been accused of enlisting jihadis.

In that light, it would almost be more startling if the militants were not involved against the Houthis, especially since al-Qaida militants are extremist Sunnis seeking the defeat of the Shiite rebels.

Al-Qaida militants are present on all major front lines fighting the rebels, Khaled Baterfi, a senior leader in the group, said in a previously unpublished 2015 interview with a local journalist obtained by the AP.

Last month, Baterfi said in a Q&A session distributed by al-Qaida that "those at the front lines for sure know of our participation, which is either actual fighting with our brothers in Yemen or supporting them with weapons."

Al-Qaida has reduced attacks against Hadi's and Emirati-linked forces because assailing them would benefit the Houthis, Baterfi said.

The branch is following guidance from al-Qaida's worldwide leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, to focus on fighting the rebels, another top AQAP member said in written answers to the AP.

In some places, militants join battles independently.

But in many cases, militia commanders from the ultraconservative Salafi sect and the Muslim Brotherhood bring them directly into their ranks, where they benefit from coalition funding, the AP found.

The Brotherhood's Yemen branch is a powerful hard-line Islamic political organization allied to Hadi.

Two of the four main coalition-backed commanders along the Red Sea coast are allies of al-Qaida, the al-Qaida member said.

The coalition has made major advances on the coast, and is currently battling for the port of Hodeida.

Video footage shot by the AP in January 2017 showed a coalition-backed unit advancing on Mocha, part of an eventually successful campaign to recapture the Red Sea town.

Some of the unit's fighters were openly al-Qaida, wearing Afghan-style garb and carrying weapons with the group's logo.

As they climbed behind machine guns in pick-up trucks, explosions from coalition airstrikes could be seen on the horizon.

An AQAP member interviewed in person by the AP in May viewed the video and confirmed the fighters belonged to his group.

His affiliation is known from his past involvement in AQAP's rule over a southern city.

The impact of the intertwining of al-Qaida fighters with the coalition campaign is clearest in Taiz, Yemen's largest city and center of one of the war's longest running battles.

In the central highlands, Taiz is Yemen's cultural capital, a historic source of poets and writers and educated technocrats.

In 2015, the Houthis laid siege to the city, occupying surrounding mountain ranges, sealing the entrances and shelling it mercilessly.

Taiz residents rose up to fight back, and coalition cash and weapons poured in — as did al-Qaida and Islamic State militants, all aimed at the same enemy.

One liberal activist took up arms alongside other men from his neighborhood to defend the city, and they found themselves fighting side by side with al-Qaida members.

We are all together," said the activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

He said commanders received weapons and other aid from the coalition and distributed it to all the fighters, including al-Qaida militants.

Abdel-Sattar al-Shamiri, a former adviser to Taiz's governor, said he recognized al-Qaida's presence from the start and told commanders not to recruit members.

"Their response was, 'We will unite with the devil in the face of Houthis,'" al-Shamiri said.

He said he warned coalition officials, who were "upset" but took no action.

"We will get rid of the Houthis and we will be stuck with terrorist groups."

The activist and officials in the city said one of the main recruiters of al-Qaida fighters is Adnan Rouzek, a Salafi member tapped by Hadi to be a top military commander.

Rouzek's militia became notorious for kidnappings and street killings, with one online video showing its masked members shooting a kneeling, blindfolded man.

Its videos feature al-Qaida-style anthems and banners.

Rouzek's top aide was a senior al-Qaida figure who escaped from a prison in Aden in 2008 along with other AQAP detainees, according to a Yemeni security official.

Multiple photos seen by the AP show Rouzek with known al-Qaida commanders in recent years.

In November, Hadi named Rouzek head of the Taiz Operations Rooms, coordinating the military campaign, and top commander of a new fighting force, the 5th Presidential Protection Battalion.

Hadi's Defense Ministry also gave Rouzek $12 million for a new offensive against the Houthis.

The AP obtained copy of a receipt for the $12 million and a Rouzek aide confirmed the figure.

Rouzek denied any connection to militants, telling the AP that "there is no presence of al-Qaida" in Taiz.

Another coalition-backed warlord is on the U.S. list of designated terrorists due to his ties to al-Qaida.

The warlord, a Salafi known as Sheikh Aboul Abbas, has received millions of dollars from the coalition to distribute among anti-Houthi factions, according to his aide, Adel al-Ezzi.

Despite being put on the U.S. list in October, the UAE continues to fund him, al-Ezzi told the AP.

The aide denied any links to militants and dismissed his boss's designation on the U.S. terror list.

Nevertheless, he acknowledged that "al-Qaida has fought on all the front lines alongside all factions."

Right after the AP team spoke to him in Taiz, the team saw al-Ezzi meeting with a known senior al-Qaida figure, warmly hugging him outside the home of another former AQAP commander.

Aboul Abbas runs a coalition-funded militia controlling several districts in Taiz.

A 2016 video produced by al-Qaida shows militants in black uniforms with al-Qaida's logo fighting alongside other militias in districts known to be under his control.

A former security official in Taiz said militants and Aboul Abbas' forces attacked security headquarters in 2017 and freed a number of al-Qaida suspects.

The officer said he reported the attack to the coalition, only to learn soon after that it gave Aboul Abbas 40 more pick-up trucks.

"The more we warn, the more they are rewarded," the officer said.

"Al-Qaida leaders have armored vehicles given to them by the coalition while security commanders don't have such vehicles."

AP correspondent Desmond Butler also contributed to this report.

contents © copyright 2019 The Associated Press.

Iran condemned the Saudi-led airstrikes and urged an immediate end to attacks on Yemen. Saudi Arabia requested that Pakistan commit forces as well, but Pakistan's parliament officially voted to remain neutral. However, Pakistan agreed to provide support in line with a United Nations Security Council resolution, dispatching warships to enforce an arms embargo against the Houthis.
 On 21 April 2015, the bombing campaign was officially declared over, with Saudi officials saying they would begin "Operation Restoring Hope" as a combination of political, diplomatic, and military efforts to end the war. Even still, airstrikes continued against Houthi targets, and fighting in Aden and Ad Dali' went on.
 The United Arab Emirates has also spearheaded an active role against fighting AQAP and ISIL-YP presence in Yemen through a partnership with the United States. In an Op-Ed in "The Washington Post," Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to the United States, described that the intervention has reduced AQAP presence in Yemen to its weakest point since 2012 with many areas previously under their control liberated. The ambassador claimed that more than 2,000 militants have been removed from the battlefield, with their controlled areas now having improved security and a better delivered humanitarian and development assistance such as to the port city of Mukalla and other liberated areas. An Associated Press investigation outlined that the military coalition in Yemen actively reduced AQAP in Yemen without military intervention.