Yemen: 2 al-Qaida militants killed in clash

[unhappycamper]

Yemen: 2 al-Qaida militants killed in clash
By LEE KEATH and AHMED AL-HAJ
Associated Press Writers
Jan 4, 8:33 AM EST

SAN'A, Yemen (AP) -- Security forces killed two suspected al-Qaida militants in clashes outside the Yemeni capital on Monday, officials said, as the U.S. 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 Dec. 17 raid, officials said four would-be suicide bombers were killed.

The U.S. and British embassies closed on Sunday after what U.S. officials said were signs of al-Qaida was planning an attack in San'a, possibly against the diplomatic missions.

An officer on duty at the U.S. Embassy in San'a said Monday that the closure remained in force. A State Department spokesman, Fred Lash, said reopening would be assessed day to day, based on the perceived threat to U.S. 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.


Rest of Stripes article at: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ML_YEMEN_AL_QAIDA?SITE=DCSAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[Ian David]

1. Okay, in January 2009, who here had a dollar on Yemen? Anyone? Anyone? n/t