Around 1994, jihadists from Ayman al-Zawahiri's Egyptian Islamic Jihad attempted to regroup in Yemen following a harsh crackdown in Egypt. In this, they were tacitly supported by the regime of Ali Abdullah Saleh, as he found them useful in his fight against southern separatists in the war of 1994. After using Islamic militants to repress the separatists and keep the country under his rule, Saleh turned a blind eye to their activities, and allowed their sympathizers to work in his intelligence services.