Dubai: Gunmen abducted an American teacher on Tuesday from an English language school in Sana’a, capital of wartorn Yemen, witnesses said, in the latest of a series of kidnappings of foreigners.
Armed men in civilian clothes entered the school and forced the teacher into their car as bewildered colleagues and students looked on.
“We were shocked when the armed group entered the building.
They got to his office and took him to an unknown location,” a Yemeni teacher at the school said.
“We are aware of reports of US citizens being held in Yemen. Privacy considerations prevent us from commenting further on this case,” a US State Department spokeswoman told Reuters.
Dozens of foreigners have been abducted in Yemen over the years. Most were released when their tribal abductors won concessions from central authorities in local disputes, but some have been executed by militants.
A Tunisian employee of the International Committee of the Red Cross was kidnapped in December and appeared in a video pleading for her life last month as a masked gunman stood over her.
An Al Houthi takeover prompted many countries to close their embassies and aid agencies to sharply reduce their staff, reducing the number of foreigners - and kidnappings - in Yemen.
But over the course of the 18-month-old war several Americans have been detained by the Iranian-allied Al Houthis.
Neighbouring Oman has mediated the release of two Americans held in Al Houthi custody.
