With its stupefying temperatures and bleak terrain, Britain's Aden Colony on the southwestern fringe of the Arabian Peninsula is one of the world's most unattractive pieces of real estate. But it has its value nonetheless. Between Suez and Singapore, it is the only suitable fueling and victualing station for the British navy, and 8,000 troops of Her Majesty's Middle East Command are stationed on its 75 square miles of overheated rock.
To strengthen the precious little colony against the covetous desires of nearby Yemen, the British since 1959 have been linking neighboring sultanates and emirates in a new Federation of...
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