Yemen likely to be new front in global fight against terror

SANAA, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- It seems Yemen has become a new front in the fight against extremism as the U.S. and British embassies in the country closed on Sunday in response to threats of possible attacks by al-Qaida affiliates.

U.S., U.K. CLOSE EMBASSIES OVER TERROR THREATS

The British embassy asked its staff to stay at home on Sunday, well-placed sources told local News Yemen, citing security reasons behind the closure. The sources did not say when the mission would be reopened.

Earlier in the day, the U.S. embassy in Sanaa was closed over what it said threats by Yemen's al-Qaida affiliate to attack U.S. interests in the country.

"The U.S. Embassy in Sanaa is closed today, January 3, 2010, in response to ongoing threats by al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to attack American interests in Yemen," a statement on the embassy website said, without saying how long the embassy would be closed.

The closures followed an announcement by Britain that it and the United States have agreed to fund a special counter-terrorism unit in Yemen in a bid to prevent al-Qaida from taking the impoverished country as a safe haven.

Following the decisions of the United States and Britain to close their embassies, Spain also decided on Sunday to close its embassy in Yemen on Monday and Tuesday over the threat of al-Qaida attack.

According to media reports, the Spanish Foreign Ministry said that its embassy in Yemen remains "operating," but access to its facilities has been restricted for security reasons.

Spain opened its embassy in Yemen in April 2006. In July 2007, eight Spanish tourists died in an attack attributed to al-Qaida.

Yemeni southern provinces, especially the mountainous areas of Shabwa, al-Baidha and Aden, have been recently witnessing an increasing presence and growing strength of al-Qaida militants.

Last month, Yemeni officials said raids against AQAP hideouts in the southern province of Abyan and Arhab district to the northeast of Sanaa left 34 militants killed and dozens of others arrested.

The AQAP, Yemen's branch of the terrorist group, has vowed to retaliate.

While Sanaa said the raids were conducted by Yemeni troops, the group blamed the United States and vowed to target U.S. interests in the country located at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.

U.S. President Barack Obama accused the Yemen-based al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula of arming and training a Nigerian, who was involved in a failed Christmas Day attempt to bomb a U.S. aircraft.

Al-Qaida claimed responsibility for the failed attack and called for strikes on embassies in Yemen.