Sana’a, Yemen. Photograph by Niklas Schiffler
The US and UK have temporarily withdrawn embassy staff from Yemen, with intelligence pointing towards an “imminent” threat from al-Qaeda in the capital Sana’a.
Yemeni intelligence has noted the arrival of a number of suspected al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants in Sana’a, coinciding with intercepted chatter of a possible attack on Western embassies in the city to coincide with the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
The US has ordered all of its citizens to leave Yemen immediately due to the security concerns, and also closed a number of other embassies and missions around the Middle East and North Africa, implying that they believe the threat to be credible.
The UK Foreign Office have been warning against all travel to Yemen for British nationals for the last few days, and had already withdrawn all non-essential staff from the British embassy. They have now withdrawn the remaining staff, saying in a statement
“Due to increased security concerns, all staff in our Yemen embassy have been temporarily withdrawn, and the embassy will remain closed until staff are able to return.”
The UK has similarly closed the British missions in Benghazi, Libya and Damascus, Syria due to the ongoing alert.
Earlier today the US drone strike reportedly killed four alleged al-Qaeda operatives within Yemen, with at least one suspected of helping to organise some form of attack on Western ambassadors and Yemeni military targets in the country.
The increased threat level comes after a number of suspected terrorists were freed in prison escapes across the region in recent days.
