Al-Qaeda Militants Escape In Yemen Jail Break

12/12/2011
(RTTNews) - At least 16 inmates, including 12 al-Qaeda militants, broke out of a prison in Yemen's southern city of Aden on Monday, reports quoting officials said.
They believed to have escaped through a six-meter tunnel dug from the yard of the port city's central prison.
Dozens of prisoners had escaped when al-Qaeda fighters stormed the central jail in Mukalla, another southern city, in June last.
The impoverished country in the southern tip of the Arabian peninsula is in turmoil facing insurgency in the north, a separatist movement in the south besides nationwide protests calling for political reforms and free elections. The city of Zinjibar, capital of Abyan province, has been witnessing fierce fightings between the Army and al-Qaeda militants.
Yielding to international pressure, President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who ruled the country for 32 years, had agreed last month to hand over powers to his deputy and quit office within 90 days.