SANAA // Yemeni warplanes killed at least five Al Qaeda-linked militants in overnight air strikes against hideouts in the southern Abyan province, a security official said today.
The official said the attacks last night concentrated on the Al Mahfad area, where militants took refuge after they were driven out from strongholds in the city of Zinjibar and the nearby town of Jaar, both of which the army recaptured from militants two months ago.
Yemeni media said earlier that the militants were consolidating their positions in Al Mahfad, quoting witnesses who said they saw military hardware headed to the area in lorries. Local residents, cited in the reports, are appealing to the government to concentrate air strikes against militants in the area.
In Sanaa last night, gunmen fired at the car of Yahya Al Arasy, the press secretary to President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, the official added. Mr Al Arasy escaped unharmed.
The attackers tried to stop him during his drive home in the city's west, but he escaped by accelerating through a hail of bullets, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity according to regulations.
Meanwhile, the ministry of interior said that two unknown gunmen on a motorcycle assassinated a security official in Mukalla, the provincial capital of Hadramaout province, as he was heading home. The attackers escaped.
Al Qaeda militants, after being defeated in Zinjibar, Jaar and Shoqra, have intensified their attacks mainly against security officials and ranking army officers.
Last Thursday, Col Abdullah Al Maouzaei, charged with hunting down members of Al Qaeda, was killed when his vehicle blew up as he turned on the ignition outside his home in the southern port city of Aden.
Lt Col Mohammed Al Qudami, who was the intelligence chief for one of the sectors of Sanaa, was killed earlier this month in a similar way.
Also in Aden, a suicide bomber late last month killed Maj Gen Salem Ali Al Quton, an army commander who was leading the fight against Al Qaeda in the country's south, while he was travelling in a three-car convoy.
Al Qaeda's branch in Yemen, also known as Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, seized several cities in southern Yemen since an uprising began last year. But in May, government troops attacked them in coordination with US military experts based in a southern airbase and managed recapturing many of its strongholds.
The deadliest reaction by Al Qaeda came in May 21 when a suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt at a parade ground in Sanaa that killed 96 Yemeni soldiers.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Other must-tries
Tomato and walnut salad
A lesson in simple, seasonal eating. Wedges of tomato, chunks of cucumber, thinly sliced red onion, coriander or parsley leaves, and perhaps some fresh dill are drizzled with a crushed walnut and garlic dressing. Do consider yourself warned: if you eat this salad in Georgia during the summer months, the tomatoes will be so ripe and flavourful that every tomato you eat from that day forth will taste lacklustre in comparison.
Badrijani nigvzit
A delicious vegetarian snack or starter. It consists of thinly sliced, fried then cooled aubergine smothered with a thick and creamy walnut sauce and folded or rolled. Take note, even though it seems like you should be able to pick these morsels up with your hands, they’re not as durable as they look. A knife and fork is the way to go.
Pkhali
This healthy little dish (a nice antidote to the khachapuri) is usually made with steamed then chopped cabbage, spinach, beetroot or green beans, combined with walnuts, garlic and herbs to make a vegetable pâté or paste. The mix is then often formed into rounds, chilled in the fridge and topped with pomegranate seeds before being served.
PROFILE OF INVYGO
Started: 2018
Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo
Based: Dubai
Sector: Transport
Size: 9 employees
Investment: $1,275,000
Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
