American drone targeted Qaeda sites in Yemen’s Beida

American drones raided a number of areas in Yemen’s Beida governorate, including Nofan and Aqabat Zaag of Al Quraishyah District, as it targeted sites related to Qaeda extremist group. According to the local sources, the drones still fly over areas.

The raid came to respond to attack launched by Qaeda targeting six soldiers and a civilian in the southern governorate of Aben. According to Yemeni official, the extremist elements targeted a checkpoint related to the Yemeni army in Aben killing six soldiers and a civilian.

Sources revealed that a son of a prominent tribal leader called Tarik Al Fodli was killed on Friday during an air raid conducted by a drone thought to be American in Shabou governorate.

On the political side, the Yemeni government demanded UN Envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Sheikh Ahmed to pressure the Houthi militias to direct the state’s sources in the areas under their control to the country’s Central Bank in Aden and other branches in the other governorate.

The government said, in its message to the UN official, “Houthi militias still control many of the state revenues using them to finance their militias who work against the interests of the Yemeni people and to enrich their leaders against the interests of the country.”

The US Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) warned merchant ships from the dangers of mines that were set by Houthis and militias allied to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Bab al-Mandeb near the Mokha port entrance.

A report issued by the ONI stated that the attacks on ships in the strait, especially commercial ones, will trigger the involvement of other parties, pointing out that the US Navy will deploy all the needed efforts to protect the freedom of ships.

Bab el-Mandeb, which is 25 kilometers wide, is a very important waterway for global navigation, through which merchant ships in the Gulf of Aden sail to the Red Sea, and then to the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea.

It is one of the most crowded waterways for oil transportation in the Middle East and other regions. More than 60 commercial ships cross the strait of Bab al-Mandeb with more than 3.3 million oil barrels per day.

The US warning noted that the closure of this waterway would lead to substantial increases in total energy costs and global oil prices.

Last month, Houthis attacked Bab al-Mandeb, targeting a Saudi frigate and an Emirati relief ship. They have also targeted a US navy patrol vessel in 2016.