Yemen Foils Terror Plot
by VOA News August 07, 2013
Yemeni authorities say they have foiled an al-Qaida plot to seize two southern cities and storm strategic oil and gas facilities nearby. They say the plot involved kidnapping or killing foreigners working there.
The announcement came as the U.S. launched a suspected drone strike that killed at least seven al-Qaida members in Yemen after warnings of potential attacks prompted Washington to shut diplomatic missions across the Middle East and Africa last week.
Rajeh Badi, a spokesman for Yemen's prime minister, said Wednesday the plot involved dozens of al-Qaida militants dressed in Yemeni army uniforms attacking the cities of Mukalla and Ghayl Bawazeer.
He said the operation included plans to take control of the Canadian-run Mina al-Dhaba oil terminal in the Mukalla region and another facility near Ghayl Bawazeer — while other militants would attempt to blow up pipelines, threatening Yemen's oil exports.
Badi said the plot was thwarted through the deployment of extra troops around the targeted facilities and by banning anyone from entering.
News of the foiled plot came the same day the United States launched a drone strike in Shabwa province — the fifth in Yemen in less than two weeks. The U.S. has repeatedly used drone strikes in recent years to target members of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.
US embassies evacuated
The U.S. State Department Tuesday ordered its non-essential staff to leave the country amid concerns of a possible terrorist attack.
Yemeni officials also said they have intercepted threats against targets in the capital, Sana'a, and other locations, and earlier this week released a list of 25 people it says were planning to carry out attacks.
The United States has shut down 19 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and Africa through Saturday, including the U.S. Embassy in Sana'a.
U.S. President Barack Obama says the threat that caused those closures is 'significant enough' that the United States is 'taking every precaution.'
The State Department has issued travel warnings to Americans, including in Yemen, where it cautions them to limit movement within the country.
Intercepted al-Qaida message
U.S. media reports say intelligence agencies intercepted communications between al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri in Pakistan and the head of al-Qaida's branch in Yemen, Nasir al-Wuhayshi. The reports say al-Zawahri ordered the Yemen branch to carry out an attack as early as this past Sunday. But U.S. officials were unable to pinpoint the exact time and place of the possible attack.
Analysts say the communications indicate al-Zawahri is working through the affiliates because they say the al-Qaida core has been substantially weakened.
The U.S. diplomatic posts to stay closed all week are Amman, Cairo, Sana'a, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Dhahran, Jeddah, Doha, Dubai, Kuwait, Manama, Muscat, Antanarivo, Bujumbura, Djibouti, Khartoum, Kigali, and Port Louis.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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