Al Qaeda militants in Yemen executed three local men in the easterly
Hadramout province on Monday whom they suspected of assisting US drone
strikes, security sources toldReuters.
In a statement posted online, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
acknowledged the threat it faced from air attacks by unmanned US
drones, which require on-the-ground intelligence to guide them in.
AQAP said it had captured a group of spies, adding: "The greatest help
they give to the crusaders against the holy warriors is the placing of
trackers for American spy planes."
AQAP is deemed by Washington to be one of the most dangerous
franchises of the global militant group and controls broad swathes of
Yemen, where security has deteriorated badly since the Arab spring
protests that ousted the veteran president in 2011.
The group has mounted dozens of attacks on government officials,
security forces and foreigners in recent months, in response to a
government offensive on its strongholds. Last month it abducted and
killed 14 Yemeni soldiers in Hadramout.
Analysts believe British, Saudi and American intelligence agencies
have at times infiltrated AQAP, fearing its ability to carry out
attacks abroad, and in 2012 managed to foil what Washington said was a
plot by al Qaeda to put a bomb on an airliner bound for a Western
country.
The drone strikes have upset many Yemenis, however, because of the
civilians they have killed.
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