Yemeni forces attack al-Qaida
Source: Agencies |
January 5, 2010, Tuesday
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SECURITY forces killed two suspected al-Qaida militants in clashes outside the Yemeni capital yesterday, officials said, as the United States and British embassies extended their closure for a second day because of threats of attack by the terror group's offshoot here.
The clashes took place in a region northeast of the capital where last month the government carried out intensified raids against an al-Qaida cell it said was plotting attacks against foreign interests, possibly including embassies. In that December 17 raid, officials said four would-be suicide bombers were killed.
The US and British embassies closed on Sunday after what US officials said were signs of al-Qaida was planning an attack in the capital San'a, possibly against the diplomatic missions.
An officer on duty at the US Embassy in San'a said yesterday the closure remained in force. State Department spokesman Fred Lash said reopening would be assessed day to day, based on the perceived threat to US personnel. The Foreign Office in London said the British were also reviewing the situation.
The French Embassy has been closed to the public since Sunday, though the staff was working. The Foreign Ministry in Paris and the ambassador urged French nationals in Yemen to avoid all nonessential movement in the country and to exercise vigilance.
Spain's embassy in San'a restricted access to the public.
In yesterday's clashes, security forces attacked a group of al-Qaida militants including Nazeeh al-Hanaq, a senior figure on Yemen's most wanted list, as they moved through the mountainous area of Arhab, security officials said.
Al-Hanaq escaped, but two fighters with him were killed in the battle, the officials said. The officials said yesterday's raid was not connected to the threats that prompted the embassy closures.
Yemen has carried out a string of raids on al-Qaida hideouts in the past month, part of an intensified effort - backed by the US - to stamp out the terror group's growing presence in this impoverished, fragmented nation at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
US President Barack Obama says al-Qaida's offshoot in Yemen was behind the failed attempt to bomb a US airliner heading to Detroit at Christmas.
The clashes took place in a region northeast of the capital where last month the government carried out intensified raids against an al-Qaida cell it said was plotting attacks against foreign interests, possibly including embassies. In that December 17 raid, officials said four would-be suicide bombers were killed.
The US and British embassies closed on Sunday after what US officials said were signs of al-Qaida was planning an attack in the capital San'a, possibly against the diplomatic missions.
An officer on duty at the US Embassy in San'a said yesterday the closure remained in force. State Department spokesman Fred Lash said reopening would be assessed day to day, based on the perceived threat to US personnel. The Foreign Office in London said the British were also reviewing the situation.
The French Embassy has been closed to the public since Sunday, though the staff was working. The Foreign Ministry in Paris and the ambassador urged French nationals in Yemen to avoid all nonessential movement in the country and to exercise vigilance.
Spain's embassy in San'a restricted access to the public.
In yesterday's clashes, security forces attacked a group of al-Qaida militants including Nazeeh al-Hanaq, a senior figure on Yemen's most wanted list, as they moved through the mountainous area of Arhab, security officials said.
Al-Hanaq escaped, but two fighters with him were killed in the battle, the officials said. The officials said yesterday's raid was not connected to the threats that prompted the embassy closures.
Yemen has carried out a string of raids on al-Qaida hideouts in the past month, part of an intensified effort - backed by the US - to stamp out the terror group's growing presence in this impoverished, fragmented nation at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
US President Barack Obama says al-Qaida's offshoot in Yemen was behind the failed attempt to bomb a US airliner heading to Detroit at Christmas.
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