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U.S. Soldier Seized by Qaida Freed in Yemen
[AnNahar] A U.S. soldier was freed Tuesday by Yemeni forces just hours after being captured in an al-Qaeda attack on an air base in the violence-wracked country, military officials said.The American was seized along with seven Yemeni soldiers in the Lion of Islam assault on Al-Anad base in Lahij province, an official said. Yemeni forces launched a dawn raid to free the hostages, killing seven kidnappers. One member of the security forces was reported to have been lightly maimed during the rescue. The forces of Evil captured seven soldiers on guard during the night before advancing into the base and seizing the U.S. soldier, the official said. Yemen is a key U.S. ally in the fight against al-Qaeda, allowing Washington to conduct a longstanding drone war against the group on its territory. Yemeni officials acknowledge that Washington has deployed personnel at Al-Anad base to gather intelligence for the drone strikes. Al-Qaeda has exploited instability in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country since a 2011 uprising overthrew president President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... The American embassy in Sanaa declined to comment on Tuesday. Meanwhile, ...back at the hanging, Butch continued with his last words, trying not to repeat himself too often...... Yemen's interior ministry said in an overnight statement that the coasties was on alert in several provinces following information that "terrorist groups belonging to Somalia's (al-Qaeda-affiliated) Shabaab are planning to enter Yemen to carry out terrorist attacks". The ministry ordered "increased deployment in security patrols along Yemen's coast in coordination with naval forces... to arrest any elements and foil any suspected movement". It was unclear if the warning was linked to the attack in Lahij. Tens of thousands of Somali refugees cross the Gulf of Aden every year to reach Yemen. But African and Yemeni officials have warned that Shabaab fighters were also infiltrating among refugees entering the country, which is home to al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ...the latest incarnation of various Qaeda and Qaeda-allied groups, including the now-defunct Aden-Abyan Islamic Army that boomed the USS Cole in 2000... Washington calls AQAP the deadliest franchise in the global Lion of Islam network.
Posted by: trailing wife 2014-11-26 |
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