Yemeni security forces detain al-Qaeda chief following major’s killingJune 22, 2012 - 16:45 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Yemeni security forces have detained a local al-Qaeda leader suspected of links to an attack that killed a top military commander earlier this week, a security source said on Friday, June 22, Reuters said. Yemeni security forces have tightened security across the country after a suicide bomber killed Major General Salem Qatan, the commander of military forces in southern Yemen, on Monday after his forces drove al-Qaeda allies Ansar al-Sharia from their strongholds in the Abyan province. A Yemeni security source said Sami Dayyan, who they believe is a local al-Qaeda leader, was captured along with two other suspected militants while travelling by car to Lahej province from the port city of Aden. The source said that explosives and suicide belts were found in the vehicle, which was stopped for a routine search outside Aden on Thursday evening. The three men were being questioned. "They were in the process of preparing for operations similar to the one that killed Qatan," the source said. He said that the three had "entered Aden in previous days to prepare for the operation in which Qatan was assassinated". Al-Qaeda said in a statement on Thursday that one of its members had killed Qatan for his role in the U.S.-backed offensive that drove Ansar al-Sharia out of cities they had captured during last year's uprising that eventually forced President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down. Qatan's death highlighted the tenuous grip of Yemen's central authorities on the south despite weeks of a U.S.-supported campaign to crush the militants. Residents of the al-Mansoura district of Aden said they had spotted Dayyan looking to rent a house in the neighborhood a few days ago and chased him away. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Power of One Dram sums up two-year program with Teach for Armenia Idram Junior also joined the companies during the visit, bringing with it a fascinating intellectual game for children Moscow slams EU mission in Armenia for “provocative activity” The EU mission is doing more and more against Armenia’s neighbors Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran, Mikhail Galuzin said. Yerevan Mayor to travel to Paris on May 15-19 The official delegation headed by Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan will travel to Paris from May 15 to 19. Armenia, India hold first defense consultations The meeting was attended by Indian Ambassador Nilakshi Saha Sinha and Defense Attaché Brigadier General Naveen Nijhawan. |