The last American troops are being pulled out of Yemen after al-Qaida fighters stormed a city near their base last week. Houthi rebels who have already overrun most of the country are closing in on Aden, the last stronghold of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi.

And last Sunday, the Islamic State group sent suicide bombers into two big mosques in the capital, Sanaa, killing 137 people.

The U.S. State Department spokesman put the best possible face on it, saying that "due to the deteriorating security situation in Yemen, the U.S. government has temporarily relocated its remaining personnel out of Yemen." He even said that the U.S. continued to support the "political transition" in Yemen. But there is no "political transition." There is a four-sided civil war.