Al-Qaida Suspected in Assault on Yemen’s Intelligence Headquarters That Left 20 Dead
Once again you see that Al Qaeda has zero qualms about attacking and destroying Mosques during Eid.
he death toll in a suspected al-Qaida attack on a Yemeni intelligence headquarters rose to 20 on Saturday. It is the worst such attack in a year and highlights challenges the country’s new leadership faces as it struggles to bring security and reconcile a military with split loyalties.
The attack in the heart of the port city underscored al-Qaida’s ability to launch deadly strikes, despite a two-month, U.S.-backed Yemeni military offensive that, earlier this year, dislodged militants who had taken over a string of southern towns near Aden.
Militants attacked the intelligence building from two sides, firing automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, according to intelligence officials in the city and witnesses from the adjacent government TV and radio building.
While one group clashed with guards of the intelligence building’s main gate, a second threw a bomb at a small mosque, killing soldiers who were resting and sleeping inside, officials said. The gunmen then sprayed their victims with bullets before detonating a car bomb in front of the intelligence building, collapsing its facade.