7 militants killed in Special Forces raid in Yemen
WASHINGTON: Seven militants were killed during an intelligencegathering raid by US Special Forces troops against an Al Qaeda compound in Yemen on Tuesday morning, US officials said.
Local tribesmen confirmed a raid in the central Marib governorate, which is controlled by forces loyal to the President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, but said five people were killed and six others were wounded, all from the same extended family.
It was the latest operation by US forces against the Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has exploited a twoyear-old civil war between the Ansar Allah and government to enhance its influence in the impoverished country.
US Central Command said in a statement the AQAP militants were killed “through a combination of small-arms fire and precision air strikes” in Marib, with the support of the Yemeni government.
“Raids such as this provide insight into AQAP’s disposition, capabilities and intentions, which will allow us to continue to pursue, disrupt, and degrade AQAP,” the statement said.
Two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that there were no known US casualties and the raid was carried out 40-45 km north of another US raid that took place in late January.
One of the US officials said there were no immediate reports of civilian casualties in the raid, which was carried out by US Special Forces troops.
Two sources in Marib said that the attack began with drone strikes at a house in the southern Marib governorate near the border with the Al Bayda governorate, followed by automatic fire from low-flying helicopters.
They said that five members of their Al Moradi clan, a main tribe in Marib, had died in the operation and six others were wounded, adding that they were all civilians.
The January operation, the first of its kind authorised by US President Donald Trump, was hailed as a success by the White House and other US officials.
However, critics questioned the value of the mission after a US Navy Seal was killed. Women and children, as well as several militants, were also killed in the raid.