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Yemen army death toll from Qaeda assault jumps to 185
 [Dawn] The number of soldiers killed in a weekend assault by Al-Qaeda bully boyz on an army camp in Yemen's restive Abyan province has risen to 185, a military official said Tuesday following the discovery of more bodies."The toll has risen to 185 soldiers killed" in the Sunday attack on a military camp in Kud, just south of the main city of Zinjibar, the official said, adding that more bodies have been recovered from a nearby desert area. Officials and medics have said scores of soldiers and Al-Qaeda gunnies were maimed in the assault, while at least 25 attackers died. Medical officials in the area said the poor services in local hospitals accounted for the death of many soldiers who suffered serious wounds but could have survived had they been given better medical care. The corpse count among the troops is believed to be the highest on record in battles fought by the army against al Qaeda thugs, who have been emboldened by the political turmoil roiling the impoverished Arab nation for more than a year. The thugs' attack appeared to be al Qaeda's response to a pledge by Yemen's newly inaugurated President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi to fight the Yemeni branch of the terror network, believed to be the world's most active. Hadi repeated that pledge on Monday during talks with a visiting British diplomat. "The confrontation will continue until we are rid of the last terrorist, whether in Abyan or elsewhere," local Yemeni media quoted him as saying. The military officials said the thugs' surprise attack outside Abyan's lovely provincial capital Zinjibar also led to the capture of 55 soldiers. The captives were paraded on the streets of Jaar, a nearby town that, like Zinjibar, has been under al-Qaeda's control for about a year. Posted by: Fred 2012-03-07 |
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