Security forces in Yemen were on a heightened state of alert
Wednesday, a day after the United States urged all Americans to leave
the country amid fears of a possible terror threat.
Two U.S. military
transport aircraft landed in Yemen on Tuesday to evacuate American
citizens. The UK Foreign Office has also withdrawn its embassy staff.
A senior Yemeni Interior
Ministry official told CNN that "a few" al Qaeda operatives have arrived
in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, over the past three days, which has
forced government authorities to put Yemeni forces on high alert. The
official could not be named, as he is not authorized to speak to the
media.
"We are confident that
government security forces will be able to stop any attack from taking
place in Sanaa, but the militants do have a good history of operating in
Sanaa," he said Tuesday.
"It's not a secret that al Qaeda also has sleeper cells in Sanaa," the source said.
Acting on intelligence
information, the United States heightened its security stance late last
week, issuing a worldwide travel alert and closing a number of embassies
and consulates over large areas of the Middle East and Africa this
week.
U.S. State Department
spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Tuesday that the United States has "a close
partnership" with Yemen and that Secretary of State John Kerry had
spoken with President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi to thank him for his
efforts.
But in a sign of possible
tensions with its international allies, Yemen's Ministry of Foreign
Affairs said the evacuation of embassies "serves the interests of the
extremists" and undermined its efforts.
"Yemen has taken all
necessary precautions to ensure the safety and security of foreign
missions in the capital Sanaa," a statement said Tuesday.
"While the government of
Yemen appreciates foreign governments' concern for the safety of their
citizens, the evacuation of embassy staff serves the interests of the
extremists and undermines the exceptional cooperation between Yemen and
the international alliance against terrorism."
Helicopter shot down
Two separate drone
strikes on two vehicles killed six al Qaeda militants in the southern
province of Shabwa on Wednesday morning, officials said.
The latest strikes came a
day after a pair of suspected U.S. drone strikes killed four al Qaeda
militants in Yemen. Security sources told CNN about those strikes but
didn't offer additional details. None of those killed Tuesday were among
the 25 names on the country's most-wanted list, security officials
said.
It was unclear whether
Tuesday's strikes were related to the security alert in place in the
country since U.S. officials intercepted a message from al Qaeda leader
Ayman al-Zawahiri to operatives in Yemen telling them to "do something."
The message was sent to
Nasir al-Wuhayshi, the leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the
terror group's Yemeni affiliate. U.S. intelligence believes al-Wuhayshi
has recently been appointed the overall terror organization's No. 2
leader.
Meanwhile, a Yemeni
government official not authorized to speak to media told CNN that a
military helicopter was shot down in Mareb province Tuesday.
He said that the
helicopter had been inspecting the country's main oil pipeline -- one
that has been subject to repeated attacks -- and that "it's possible
this is the work of AQAP."
At least eight people
were killed, including the 107th Brigade commander, six army escorts and
at least one crew member, he said.
AQAP's recent attacks
have included a suicide bombing on a pro-government militia in the south
in March that killed 12, and an attempted suicide bombing attack on a
gas pumping facility in the port city of Balhaf in June.
In July, several soldiers were killed by a bomb in Sanaa after a lull in attacks in the capital.
American citizens evacuated
The State Department on
Tuesday urged Americans in Yemen to leave immediately, citing terrorist
activities and civil unrest. All nonemergency U.S. government personnel
were also told to leave.
"In response to a
request from the U.S. State Department, early this morning the U.S. Air
Force transported personnel out of Sanaa, Yemen, as part of a reduction
in emergency personnel," Pentagon press secretary George Little said in a
statement.
"The U.S. Department of
Defense continues to have personnel on the ground in Yemen to support
the U.S. State Department and monitor the security situation," he added.
Psaki said those evacuated had been taken to Germany.
The UK Foreign Office
said it had temporarily withdrawn all staff from the British Embassy and
would keep the facility shut until employees are able to return.
'Abundance of caution'
The State Department
said the substantial security steps it has taken reflect an "abundance
of caution" over intelligence information that indicated final planning
by al Qaeda in Yemen for possible terrorist attacks on Western targets
to coincide with the end of Ramadan this week.
Three sources told CNN
that the United States has information that members of al Qaeda in the
Arabian Peninsula are in the final stages of planning for an unspecified
attack. Recent jailbreaks in Pakistan, Iraq and Libya all have the
fingerprints of al Qaeda operations.
The Yemeni security
forces, extensively reorganized under Hadi, have over the past 18 months
recaptured swathes of territory that were briefly held by al Qaeda in
the Arabian Peninsula, particularly in the south of the country.
AQAP has not mounted a
large-scale suicide attack on Yemen's security forces since May 2012,
when more than 100 soldiers were killed by a suicide bomber as they
trained for a parade in Sanaa.
Many of AQAP's
operatives, including its leadership, retreated into remote areas after
the Yemeni military offensive last year and regrouped.
New York Yankees star Alex
Rodriguez was suspended in August 2013 after he was accused of having
ties to Biogenesis, a now-defunct anti-aging clinic, and taking
performance-enhancing drugs. The suspension covers 211 regular-season
games through the 2014 season. Rodriguez denied the accusations and said
he intends to appeal. Twelve other Major League Baseball players
received 50-game suspensions without pay in the Biogenesis probe, and In
July, Milwaukee Brewers star outfielder Ryan Braun was suspended for
the rest of the season for violating the league's drug policy.
