20:33
Tieng Anh Vui
Six alleged al-Qaeda militants have been killed in the latest presumed US drone strike in Yemen, officials say.
The attack in Marib province was the sixth in the last two weeks.
It comes a day after Yemeni authorities said they had foiled a major al-Qaeda plot to blow up oil pipelines and seize two of the country's main ports.
Yemen is considered a stronghold of al-Qaeda in the Arabian peninsula (AQAP). Militants have gained ground because of a weak central government.
Security forces were placed on a high state of alert earlier in the week amid fears of an al-Qaeda-linked attack that prompted western embassies to close.
Both the US and UK withdrew diplomatic staff and urged their nationals to leave the country.
On Thursday, Yemeni counter-terrorism forces raided a number of addresses north of the capital Sanaa after a tip-off that they were being used by AQAP operatives, a Yemeni security source told BBC Arabic.
In another development, a Yemeni diplomatic source told BBC Arabic that the US has suspended arrangements to return about 100 Yemeni detainees from the Guantanamo Bay prison.
Dawn attack
Thursday's dawn attack in Marib targeted vehicles transporting the alleged militants. Five of the dead were Yemeni while the sixth was thought to be from another Arab state, an unnamed official told AP news agency.
On Wednesday, another seven people died in a strike.
Some 30 suspected militants have been killed in a series of raids since 28 July, news agencies report.
While the US has acknowledged targeting militants in Yemen with drones, it does not comment publicly on its policy or the raids.
According to a US think-tank, the New America Foundation, the number of US drone strikes in Yemen tripled between 2011 and 2012.
Đăng ký: Tieng Anh Vui
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