More Al Qaeda members captured

Security officials in Abayan on Monday morning arrested several members of Al Qaeda who were allegedly involved in the July 2 bomb attack in Mareb that killed eight Spanish tourists and two Yemeni drivers, said a statement from the Ministry of the Interior. The men were discovered in the district of Muddya in Abyan after someone tipped off the security officials to their location.  The army surrounded the area using helicopters and the soldiers were able to capture the men without using violence. No one was injured. 

In related news, the Ministry of Interior announced Thursday the names of four terrorists who died at the hands of security authorities in a recent counter-terrorism operation, conducted Wednesday in Mareb. An official source at the ministry said investigations revealed the men’s names: Ali bin Ali Nasser Doha, Naji Ali Saleh Jardan, Abdul-Aziz Sa’id Jardan, Amer Hassan Saleh Herridan.  The operation resulted in the death of one security soldier, the wounding of another, and the killing of the four alleged terrorists.

According to an official source in the Ministry of the Interior, Qasim al-Riyami, who is one of escapees from the prison of political security and one of the men accused in the attack on Spanish tourists in Mareb in July, was not among the four Al Qaeda members who were murdered.  This contradicts previous reports that al-Riyami was among those killed. Sources said three terrorists were former members who participated in a number of terrorist operations, which include the assassination of Colonel Mahmoud Gosaila, assistant director of security in Mareb Governorate on March 23 of this year. 

The security authorities accused the four men of protecting other terrorists who escaped from the prison, as well as participating in the planning and preparation for the bombing of oil installations in each of the Saffer sectors in Mareb governorate, and the port of Al-Dabbah, Hadramout Governorate committed last September 15.   Also, the four men are accused of harboring Mohammed Naif al-Qahtani, a Saudi national, who is the financier of subversive terrorist operations that have targeted oil installations in Mareb and Hadramout.   On a related issue, the Security Manager for the province of Mareb, Brigadier Mohamed Mansour Ghadrae, said that recent reports that electricity generators in Mareb were attacked by rockets are untrue.

Rather, the generators were attacked by men armed with small firearms, and there was no damage.    “What happened was the firing of shots at random from light weapons and distance from the generators electric, and it did not result in any damage recalls,” he explained.  “Those who fired the shots are wanted elements sought by security organs,” he added.  “The security forces wills continue tracking the wanted men to bring them to justice for their reward punishment.”

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