Sunday, August 5, 2012

Suicide bomber kills 18 in southern Yemen


August 4, 2012
Reuters
ADEN—A suicide bomber killed at least 18 tribal fighters when he blew himself up in the midst of a funeral in a village in Yemen’s southern province of Abyan on Saturday, officials and residents said.
The bomber targeted tribesmen who sided with the Yemeni army during an offensive against Islamist militants that the government hailed as a major victory in June.

Yemen drone strike kills five Qaeda operatives


August 4, 2012
(AFP)
ADEN — A suspected US drone strike killed five members of Al-Qaeda travelling in the same vehicle late Saturday in eastern Yemen, a local official told AFP.
"A drone fired two missiles at an all-terrain vehicle... killing its five occupants, all members of Al-Qaeda," said the official, who requested anonymity.
The attack happened near the village of Al-Qotn, in the province of Hadramut, he added.
Security forces had deployed around the site of the strike and sealed it off, said witnesses.
The United States is the only country that has drones in the region and in recent months has been carrying out strikes on Al-Qaeda targets in the south and east of the country and in the Arabian peninsula.
Al-Qaeda militants have carried out several deadly attacks against Yemeni security services since President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, who has repeatedly vowed to battle extremists, came to power this year.
In July, Yemen announced it had placed its security services on high alert to prevent "terrorist" attacks after it uncovered a plot to launch assaults against security and military checkpoints.
The Yemen-based Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is believed to be the most effective and lethal branch of the global network.