BRITISH AND FRENCH EMBASSIES STILL SHUTTERED

Britain and France extended the closure of their embassies in Yemen on Monday after a US warning of a possible militant attack in the region, and the Arab state said it was stepping up security at ports and airports.

Britain, which had said last week that it would close its embassy in Yemen on Aug 4 and 5, said on Monday the mission would remain closed and reopen on Thursday.

France, which closed its Yemen embassy on Sunday, said the mission would also reopen on Thursday. received information that high-level people from al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula were talking about a major attack.

Tight security

Security was especially tight in Yemen’s capital Sanaa on Sunday where Britain, France and Germany shut their embassies.

Troops with armored personnel carriers were stationed outside the buildings as police and army checkpoints went up on all the city’s main thoroughfares.

Residents said they heard the sound of a drone overhead,

Security in Yemen is a global concern as it is home to one of the most active wings of al-Qaida and shares a long border with Saudi Arabia, a US ally and the world’s top oil exporter.

The Yemeni interior ministry said late on Sunday it had ordered officials to increase security at ports and airports, as well as vital institutions, oil pipelines and electricity cables during the Eid holidays, which end at the weekend. which could only be from the United States as Washington is the sole power to operate the unmanned aircraft in the region.

The US considers al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula to be the jihadist network’s most active and dangerous branch, and has waged an intensifying drone war against the group’s militants in Yemen.

Although Washington has responded to terrorist threats before by closing diplomatic missions, this is believed to be the most widespread closure.