SAN'A, Yemen – An overnight government
airstrike on what was believed to be an al-Qaida hide-out in a remote Yemen province
accidentally killed a provincial councilman and his two bodyguards, a
security official said Tuesday.
The incident sparked clashes between tribesmen
protesting the deaths and police that claimed three more lives later
Tuesday, a local Marib provincial official said.
The airstrike and the ensuing turmoil comes as Yemen
is waging an aggressive campaign against al-Qaida, which has increased
its footprint in this impoverished Arab nation
in the southern corner of the Arabian Peninsula.
The security official said the strike late Monday
night took place in the Wadi Obeida area in Marib province, about 107
miles (173 kilometers) south of the capital, San'a. The
secretary-general of the Marib council, Sheikh Jabir bin al-Shabwani,
and the two bodyguards were hit as they were driving home, he said.
As daylight came, tribesmen outraged over the deaths
attacked government
buildings in the area, blew up an oil pipeline and threatened to
blow up the Marib oil facility,
said the Marib official. He did not provide details on the three who
died in the clashes.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity
because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, an offshoot of Osama bin Laden's terror
network, was formed more than a year ago when Yemen and Saudi militant groups merged.
Militants are believed to have built up strongholds in remote parts of
the country, allying with powerful tribes that resent the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Washington has earmarked some $150 million in military assistance to
the Yemeni government to help combat the threat with training, equipment
and intelligence help.
The latest air strike comes as Yemen reported the
kidnapping of two American tourists — a man and a woman — and
their driver, seized Monday while traveling to al-Hudaydah province west
of San'a.
The three were abducted by members of the Sharda
tribe who are demanding the release of a jailed tribesman. The U.S.
Embassy in San'a said it was working with Yemeni authorities to resolve the
situation, and a U.S. official in Washington said the kidnapping did not
appear to be an act of terrorism.
On Tuesday, a Yemeni official said the government
wanted to negotiate a deal with the kidnappers.
Abdullah al-Sa'fani, a local official in Hayma where the
Americans were abducted, said tribesmen in the area were already
negotiating with the kidnappers. He, however, said the kidnappers'
demands were "extreme."
Although kidnappings in Yemen are usually carried out
by disgruntled tribesmen who hope to win
concessions from the government and who in most cases release their
captives unharmed, al-Qaida has in recent years started kidnapping
foreigners as well, sometimes with lethal results.
The abductions often take place outside the heavily guarded capital, underlining the fragility
of the security in Yemen's rural areas.