Sana’a: Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr Al Kurbi on Saturday said the findings of a committee on Thursday’s attack represent “a possibility, but there is no evidence”.
“We should wait for the final results of the investigation,” he said on the sidelines of a regional security meeting in Bahrain.
Yemeni analyst Saeed Al Jamhi, who specialises in Al Qaida affairs, said the attack reflects “the level of the network’s penetration into security and military services” and shows it has access to “high-level information”.
The attack followed a spate of hit-and-run strikes on military personnel and officials, as the country struggles to complete a thorny political transition.
But Kurbi insisted that the attacks “do not threaten the transition process”.
“Al Qaida takes advantage of any political vacuum. I hope this latest attack will press participants to double their efforts to ensure the success of the national dialogue,” he said.
Yemen has been going through a difficult political transition since veteran president Ali Abdullah Saleh stood down in February 2012 after a year of deadly protests against his 33-year rule.
The transitional process aims to produce a new constitution, paving the way for parliamentary and presidential elections in February, but many hurdles remain.
There are growing demands for the secession of the formerly independent south, in addition to on-off fighting in the north between Shiite Muslim rebels and hardline Sunnis.
The national dialogue that began in March and was originally due wrap up in September has yet to conclude.
“What’s important is to finalise the specific task - agreeing on a constitution, a referendum and elections,” Kurbi said.
AQAP took advantage of a decline in central government control during Yemen’s 2011 uprising to seize large swathes of territory across the south.
The militants were driven back in June 2012 and the group has since been further weakened by US drone strikes.
