Yemen denies US reports about Al Qaeda threats

By Nasser Arrabyee/26/08/2010
Yemen said Thursday that western media exaggerates the threat of Al Qaeda in Yemen.

In an official statement carried on by the State-run news agency (Saba), it said that combating terrorism of Al Qaeda will be always the responsibility of its security forces .
And it denied American reports that Al Qaeda in Yemen has become more dangerous than Pakistan.

“Some American and western media exaggerates Al Qaeda and its threats to stability and security of Yemen and to the interests of the brotherly and friendly countries,” said the statement.
The Washington Post and Wall Street Journal quoted on Wednesday unnamed CIA officials that Al Qaeda in Yemen has become more dangerous to US than Pakistan, and special operations should be implemented in Yemen using drones.

“The Yemeni forces, with support from brothers and friends, will be able to take its full responsibility for combating the elements of Al Qaeda and those who support them from saboteurs,” said the statement .
“Al Qaeda is suffering big breakdowns, be it through the preemptive strikes being implemented by the security agencies or surrenders of a number of leaders or arrests of others during the continuous hunts and tightening the noose on them.”

“These reports might have something to do with the mid- term elections in United States, so it will not affect the Yemeni government’s policy of combating terrorism or cooperation with the international community to combat it without touching the Yemen’s sovereignty and its constitution and laws.”

These developments came after fierce confrontations between Yemen’s security forces and Al Qaeda fighters in town of Lawdar, Abyan province south of Yemen. More than 30 people were killed in those confrontations which started last Friday August 20th, 2010.

On Wednesday, August 25th, 2010, Al Qaeda operatives killed four soldiers and injured two others in the heart of the capital of Abyan Zinjubar, according to an official statement.
An Al Qaeda fighter with an explosive belt was arrested in the same city on Thursday, said the official statement.